Author: greenbenchramblings

A retired primary school head teacher, I now spend much of my time gardening in our quarter acre plot in rural Shropshire south of Shrewsbury. I share my garden with Jude my wife a newly retired teacher , eight assorted chickens and a plethora of wildlife. Jude does all the heavy work as I have a damaged spine and right leg. We also garden on an allotment nearby. We are interested in all things related to gardens, green issues and wildlife.

Our First Woodland Walk of Autumn – Part Two

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 17, 2014
4 Comments on Our First Woodland Walk of Autumn – Part Two

Back to Vyrnwy the woodland nature reserve of the RSPB based around a huge reservoir, where we continue our walk enjoying the sights, scents and sounds of an autumn wood.

We moved on to where the path turns a corner and we cross a tiny stream over a wooden bridge. Today the bridge looked very different. Each side was covered in a growth of ginger brown fungi. We were literally stopped in our tracks in amazement! We had never before seen such a sight and probably never will again.

In the close vicinity the atmosphere was so humid that you could feel the dampness in the air. Moss enjoyed the sauna-like conditions and grew on tree trunks. The trunks dripped with the moss, making them look like little green figures beneath the trees. We continued to find a variety of fungi some of which grew high off the ground. One in particular looked as if a frisbee had been thrown so fiercely that it had dug deep into the tree trunk.

The humidity here, partnered with the bright light creeping through the branches, made the shades of greens and brown glow richly.

The air got damper and the shafts of sunlight lower as we passed this old moss-covered stone wall and reached the lake. We shall find the lake in the third and final part of my First Woodland Walk of Autumn – Part Three.

Tags fungi, Lake Vryny, Lakes, mosses, nature reserves, reflections, reservoirs, woodland, woodlands, woods

autumn autumn colours colours countryside light light quality nature reserves photography wildlife woodland

Our First Woodland Walk for Autumn – Part One

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 15, 2014

When the winter weather gets a bit grim for too many days in a row it is good to look back and remember good days out.

We look forward to our woodland walks each autumn. This year we started early as we enjoyed a great day wandering the woodlands around Lake Vyrnwy in mid-Wales. We made this foray early because we had a specific reason for going. We were in search of cones and bits of bark to use on our “Homes for Wildlife” day up on our allotments later in October when we intended to make lots of extra insect shelters and a big insect hotel.

We chose to walk in a section of tall statuesque conifers all with tall straight trunks and dark green glossy needles clothing their stems.

It was a warm bright day so the woodland was pierced with sharp rays of sunshine, highlighting fungi amongst the ferns and brambles at the base of the trees and adding magic to the fresh new colours of autumn.

Fungi are the stars of the autumn woodland. We usually start looking out for them in September but with the seasons being a good four weeks behind this year we found our first here at Vyrnwy.

We stopped off in a clearing in the woods around the lake, a favourite place for our walks. A clear, fast-running mountain stream passes alongside and we always look to see what the floods from recent storms have brought down. A beautiful gnarled stump with delicate ferns on top sats close to our bank. A little further along a big branch pulled from a bankside tree was lodged in the middle of the stream caught in the overhanging branches of a tall tree.

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We hadn’t been many yards wandering down the narrow path with its surface softened by pine needles, when we realised that fungi time was here! We looked forward to seeking out specimens along the way. They turned up mostly at the base of trees or growing on old rotting tree stumps.

With the fungi we found juicy Blackberries growing, their berries glowing in any shaft of light that found its way through the canopy.

As we moved further into the wood we found more and more fungi of varying oranges, yellows and browns.

Tree trunks themselves had areas of colour upon them, algae, mosses, lichen and seeping resins.

Little did we know that we had the biggest surprise of all awaiting for us as we walked around the next corner. But that story is in my next post, “Our First Woodland Walk for Autumn – Part Two”.

Tags fungi, Lake Vryny, Lakes, RSPB, wildlife, woodland, woodlands, woods

allotments birds community gardening countryside garden wildlife gardens wildlife

New Wildlife Pictures for the Allotments

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 12, 2014
5 Comments on New Wildlife Pictures for the Allotments

We have an interest trail on our allotment site with accompanying trail guide and also several quizzes for different ages of children. For one quiz we challenge the children to follow our trail keeping an eye out for the pictures of several creatures who live in the wildlife friendly green spaces. The pictures are found in the sort of habitat where each creature would live. The pics are just photocopies of pictures which are laminated so have a short life span. We seem forever to be having to replace them so decided to try a more permanent solution.

I have just finished creating paintings of the creatures onto marine plywood and varnished them so that they will last a long time. So here they are for you to look at. It seems a while since I included any of my paintings on a post so I shall have to try to include more this year. Being destined for the outdoors the signs needed to be waterproof and able to stand up to our open site. I decided my usual watercolours would bot suffice so I retuned to a medium that I had not used for decades, Acrylics. Once I started using them though the skills all came back – just like riding a bike!

The Greater Spotted Woodpecker and the Peacock Butterfly. I start with these two as they were the cause of strange happenings as I was painting them. As I finished the picture of the Woodpecker I held it up to show Jude and a real one flew across the garden and landed on a feeder where he proceeded to devour peanuts for a long while. This seemed a little coincidental but the Butterfly picture caused a similar happening. As I finished the painting again I held it up and as I did so a real Peacock Butterfly flew down and fluttered around me. Amazing! We can only presume it was hibernating in the roof of the conservatory where I was painting and for some reason woke up. I caught it gently and placed it carefully in the garage where we hope it has found another snug winter hibernation home.

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The Grasshopper and the Bumble Bee.

The Grass Snake and the Soldier Beetle.

The Bat and the Seven Spot Ladybird.

For my next batch I will try to depict a Damsel Fly, Dragonfly, Field Vole, some moths, more butterflies and some more birds especially birds of prey which have become a bit of a hallmark for our site.

Tags allotments, Bowbrook Allotments, community gardening, nature trails, wildlife, wildlife painting

Gwyndd landscapes light light quality photography the sea the seaside the shore townscapes Wales

Closed for Winter but not Deserted – Barmouth – Part Two

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 10, 2014
1 Comment on Closed for Winter but not Deserted – Barmouth – Part Two

Back in one of our favourite Welsh seaside town of Barmouth we crossed the dunes and discovered the debris of the storms.

We came across seaweed wrenched by the roots from its sea floor home, an empty shell of a Cuttlefish, some twisted driftwood and fishermen’s debris.

As we left the dunes we found ourselves out in the open on the wide expanse of the beach itself. Here we gained views of the sea front hotels and guest houses and the yachts in their winter compound lit up by winter sunlight. The sand had risen piled high in drifts against the sea walls.

The peace we were enjoying as we listened to the gentle lapping of the waves and the wind lifting and moving the sand, was suddenly shattered as the sky darkened and a hail storm arrived. At the same time our peace was also shattered by the sound of raised alarms. Someone was in trouble out at sea, the coast guards arrived with flashing green lights on the roofs of their cars, followed by police with their blue lights flashing out of sync. The rapid response inflatable life-boat launched after being drawn across the sands by a tractor with caterpillar tracks gouging deep ruts cutting across the smooth surface of the sandy beach. Within minutes just the tracks were left and the life-boat disappeared out to sea on its mission.

The storm passed as quickly as it had arrived. The sun burst back through the thinning clouds, lower now and with a golden hue. It bathed buildings and yacht masts with golden light.

As we reached the end of the town we heard behind us the deep throated diesel engines of a big caterpillar-tracked vehicleas it dragged the big life boat across the beach and out to sea. the situation was a serious one!

As we left after a good day at the seaside blue patches began to appear in the cloudy skies.

Tags Barmouth, Gwynedd, seashore, seaside, Wales, winter

Gwyndd light light quality photography the sea the seaside the shore townscapes Wales

Closed for Winter but not Deserted – Barmouth – Part One

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 9, 2014
2 Comments on Closed for Winter but not Deserted – Barmouth – Part One

So after journeying through Wales we were getting very close to the sea.

The road along the Mawdach estuary gained sharper bends and narrowed and we soon found ourselves alongside the sea. The railway bridge crossing the estuary came into view as we approached Barmouth , a crisp silhouette cutting through the seascape.

The road rose up a final slope taking us up and over this row of old boats and fishing huts.

The road into the town was covered in drifts of sand built by the combination of recent high tides and strong winds. We slowed to a walking pace as driving became difficult. We made our way to the first car park, wrapped ourselves up well in thick coats, gloves, scarves and I had the added protection of a hat and set out to explore our one of our favourite seaside towns. We noticed that the sand had drifted right up the promenade seats burying their legs, and almost to the tops of the concrete sea defences.

We found the town mostly closed along the sea front, all closed up safely for winter. Cafes, amusement arcades, fairgrounds all empty of life. Outdoor seating was locked away and the fairground rides in wraps. We were surprised to see that Elvis had his own parking space alongside Las Vegas Amusements.

The hotels and guest houses glowed in the sun with the deep blue-black of the stormy sky, the white of their window frames and doorways intensified. Suddenly a rainbow began to grow before our eyes and we watched as it became a full semi-circle of every colour under the sun.

One tiny building was very close to the sea, actually situated on the promenade, making it very vulnerable to the ravishes of the winter tides and storms. We discovered lovely sayings written on rustic boards. Even closed this little beach cafe, The Beach Cabin, had a lovely atmosphere.

Welcome to the beach cabin

No worries

No cares

No dramas

Relax you’re on beach time

No watches

No clocks

No deadlines

Life is good on the beach

Across the promenade from the Beach Cabin sand dunes covered in rough grasses formed a barrier between the cabin and the beach and sea. We made our way over the dunes to explore the seashore itself and go back towards the way the entered the town. Follow our footsteps in my next post, Closed for Winter but not Deserted – Barmouth – Part Two

Tags Barmouth, beach cafes, estuaries, Mawdach Estuary, photography, sand dunes, sea, seascapes, seashore, seaside, Wales

countryside Gwyndd landscapes light light quality photography the seaside Wales

Over the hills to the sea – part two.

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 7, 2014
3 Comments on Over the hills to the sea – part two.

Continuing our journey from home across the Welsh mountains to the sea, we turned more to the north and climbed up steeply into far more rugged countryside. Each corner revealed new startling views of deeply cut glacial valleys and ridges eroded by the grinding action of glaciers in the last ice age. Few trees grow on these steep slopes with their shallow soils. We were now out of the county of Powys and travelling through Gwynedd.

We drove into a pass that took us up Dinas Mawddry where steep rugged mountains rose up on either side. This is notoriously difficult stretch of road often made impassable by deep drifts of snow. Back in the seventies when we first drove through this pass when cars were less powerful than today cars were often beaten by the steepness and the sharp bends. At the bottom drivers took a deep breath, crossed their fingers and put their foot down. Today’s cars take it in their stride and drivers can instead appreciate the beauty of the place. Some of the following shots were taken through the car windows so are less clear, but it was at times impossible to stop safely.

As we bypassed Dolgellau the valley widened out and in places rich pastureland spread out either side of the road.

We turned into a wide valley and the road passed through marshland and muddy areas of the Mawdach estate. Clouds hung low here. The view became hidden and the hill tops disappeared in their mistiness. The road ran through stone walls and the bends slowed the traffic.

We were now close to our day’s destination the seaside at Barmouth. My next post will be all about our day there.

Tags Gwynedd, landscape photography., landscapes, light, light quality, mountains, photography, Wales

countryside landscapes light light quality photography Powis Powys trees Wales woodland

Over the hills to the sea.

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 5, 2014
5 Comments on Over the hills to the sea.

To see in the new year we intended to go to the sea simply to walk along the beach and enjoy the fresh sea air. But it was not to be, for 1st January 2014 was a day of storms and strong winds so we delayed for a day.

We woke on the 2nd to a far finer dawn. So we set off out of Shropshire and over the Welsh hills to the coast at the little old seaside town of Barmouth. A favourite place to visit, Barmouth is where we have spent so many days as our children grew up and indeed many on our own after they left home. When with the kids we collected pebbles and shells and built sand castles with occasional trips across the sands to paddle in the sea. These days we still collect pebbles and shells and Jude is still tempted to paddle a little.

The journey involved following just two main “A” roads once we left the Shrewsbury bypass behind, the A458 and the A470. After leaving our home county of Shropshire behind we crossed into Wales and traveled east to west right across the counties of Powys and Gwynedd. Along the way we regularly stopped to take shots of the landscape. It is amazing how varied the landscape can be in such a short journey.

The A458 main road from Shrewsbury to Welshpool cuts through rich lowland dairy cattle farmland before reaching the hills called the Breiddens.

We passed through the market town of Welshpool and followed the road down a valley which the road shared with a narrow guage steam railway, a favourite of tourists. Farms appeared to snuggle into the valley bottoms where water lay in many fields after so much winter rain. High bare rounded mountains began to rear up each side of the valley. The mountains were dotted with clumps of woodland some of natural broadleaf trees while others were of the coniferous commercial forest plantings. The winter time leaves the broadleaf trees bare showing their skeletons. White branches like bones of many trees were broken up by the colourful branches of birches, which looked like soft hanging purple mist. In places along ancient hedgerows black skeletons of oak broke up the horizon. The conifer plantations just looked like unfriendly, unnatural solid black blocks, scars on the landscape.

Clouds moved quickly and rain came and went with them lit up on odd special occasions by a rainbow.

As we progressed further into the mountains of mid-Wales the sky turned a deep grey-blue but shafts of sunlight still penetrated to light up green fields and the occasional grey stone farmhouses.

After crossing mid-Wales westward we neared the coast and our journey took us more in a northerly direction for the final section. See “Over the hills to the sea. Part Two” for the next stage of the journey.

Tags conifer plantations, hill farming, landscapes, light, Powis, Powys, rainbows, Wales, Welshpool, woodland

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2013 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2013 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 16,000 times in 2013. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 6 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

garden photography gardens grasses light light quality ornamental grasses ornamental trees and shrubs photography winter gardens

Looking a little closer.

Recently I purchased of a pack of close-up filters by Polaroid. I longed to use them but the weather thwarted me. After days of waiting the light was good enough so I rushed to attach them to the standard lens of my trusty Nikon DSLR.

These are my first attempts, after the worst were deleted. My failures were mostly trouble with focus. It is difficult to get distance to subject right but trial and error resulted in the following shots. Let me know what you think. I need to do some research now and find out a bit more about using them effectively and efficiently. I shall dig into my photography books and copies of the wonderful “Outdoor Photography” magazines.

First a couple of shots of a Hamemelis “Jelena” followed by looking at the spent seed heads of Echinops, Clematis and Eryngium.

A close shot of this Buddleja illustrates the soft texture of the surface of the leaves. The texture of the Cotoneaster berry with its hard glossy red jacket is in strong contrast with the matt black berries of the Hypericum.

The leaves of the variegated Osmanthus are in every shade of yellow and bronzed green. The similarly spiky edged leaves of Eryngium are dry and grey as old bone.

The next few shots are of the old dessicated flowers of asters. They are so delicate – it makes you wonder how they stand up the strong winter winds.

Taking close up shots of fennel seeds within their seed heads shows the restricted depth of field of the close up lenses. Look closely at the differences and you will find the subtle changes by altering slightly the central point of focus.

The flowers of Mahonia japonica are usually seen in long racemes but a close up lens lets us appreciate them as individuals. I had not realised until I looked at these pics that each little flower is a double form.

We grow several trees for their interesting bark and in winter the low angle of the sun allows us to see golden light brightening it up.

Tansy is such a common flower we rarely take time to have a close look and appreciate its beauty. I tried to show them at their best here but sadly not too well.

Looking at the light playing on sticks and stems brings out their beautiful structure and delicate colours.

Grasses look stunning in any bright light and when studied close up their beauty increases further.

These little shaving brush flower heads expose their softness of texture when viewed in close up with each fine thread catching the light.

I shall finish this selection of my close up photos with the soft pink blooms of our Prunus subhirtella autumnalis. I shall keep trying and play around with the close ups and post again when I get more of a handle on them.

Tags close up photography, grasses, ornamental trees, trees, trees and shrubs, winter, winter garden

countryside grasses nature reserves the sea the seaside the shore wildlife

Strands – Discovering a Beach – Part Three

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date December 31, 2013
7 Comments on Strands – Discovering a Beach – Part Three

Okay here we go with the third and final part of my Strands posts, where we make our way – very slowly as you will see – back to the car. We went by way of the grass path above the strandline and explored the wildflowers growing there as well as enjoying glances across the sand dunes to the sea.

But first a reminder of the photos of Jude (Mrs Greenbench) beach combing and collecting objects for our seaside at home.

We found our pathway home by scrambling over the pebbles and then over the sand dunes.

Sadly some of the walkers who trod the path before us lacked caring and thoughtlessly left this plastic bottle. The seashore has enough of a problem with the plastics that roll in on the waves. It makes you wonder how many Coke bottles are dropped to bespoil our countryside every year.

Along the path we found interesting wild flowers and the dried remains of last year’s flowers stiffly standing among them. The first clump of photos show a beautiful blue leaved grass which is grown to bind the sand of the dunes to keep them from shifting. It must have an amazing network of roots working away down there.

The variety of the flora here on the beach itself, on the strandline, the dunes and the pathway alongside illustrates just how effective a narrow strip of land can be as a really good little nature reserve. Butterflies, bees, insects, invertebrates, mammals, birds and amphibians will find homes, shelter and food here. As you look at the following photos spot, in particular, the blackberries and wild carrots, relatives of our crops grown on our allotments, and wild forms of erodium, achillea and others that are the cousins of our garden plants.

As we moved closer to the car park shrubs took over, some brightly flowered and berried, mostly rose briars and a type of broom. Their cheerful colours made a fitting end to our great day of beachcombing.