The famous British novelist and journalist Sebastian Faulks once said, “If I could eat only one thing for the rest of my life, it would be rhubarb fool, which I would make with ginger and a hint of elderflower cordial”. Now that the hedgerows are white with the delicately formed and scented flowers of theContinue reading “Northwest Recipes; Elderflower Cordial”
Tag Archives: #Summer
The Ephemeral Phenomena of Noctilucent Clouds
So far this year we haven’t really been blessed with that many cloudless nights but the few we have had did provide us with some opportunities to espy spectacular night-sky phenomena such as the Aurora borealis a few weeks ago. That display was an absolute boon for photographers and astronomers, especially those who combine theContinue reading “The Ephemeral Phenomena of Noctilucent Clouds”
The Heath Spotted-Orchid
The Heath Spotted-Orchid, Dactylorhiza maculata, is one of the most common orchids in the British isles and one of our prettiest upland meadow-flowers. They can be found from May through to August, and grow on damp grasslands, heaths and moors, preferring acidic soils. Like many orchids, the Heath Spotted-Orchid can be variable in colour, butContinue reading “The Heath Spotted-Orchid”
Bee Boles
Bee holes are essentially holes built into a south-facing wall for placing bee-hives into, they usually date from before the 19th century, when modern, wooden bee-hives were made commercially available. Normally built into dry-stone walls but occasionally designed into brick walls, bee boles are almost always situated in a south-facing wall and usually accompanied aContinue reading “Bee Boles”
Bird’s Foot Trefoil
Bird’s foot trefoil, Lotus corniculatus, (corniculatus coming from the Latin for ‘with small horns’), is a common flowering plant throughout the British isles that has accumulated quite a collection of common names; ‘crow’s toes’, lady’s slippers’, ‘hen and chickens’ and ‘bacon and eggs’ being just a few that are still in regular use, most ofContinue reading “Bird’s Foot Trefoil”
The Green Hairstreak
As some of you might know I’m on Twitter quite a lot, mainly following other people who post about nature and history here in the north of England. Today I saw the following video of a kaleidoscope of Green Hairstreak butterflies filmed by Dinesh Patel (@lancsgp) and was inspired to write about this beautiful species,Continue reading “The Green Hairstreak”
The Globeflower
The Globeflower, Trollius europaeus, Trollius coming from the German Trollblume, meaning ‘round flower’, is a large member of the buttercup family and flowers from May to July, producing lemon- coloured, round-shaped flowers around 4cm in diameter on top of tall, slender stems. It grows in damp soils such as can be found in meadows and alongContinue reading “The Globeflower”
Northwest Recipes; Dandelion Syrup
Recently I published an article about Dandelions, in which we looked at the roles this wildflower plays in nature and its general, all-round usefulness. Included in the article were several of the plant’s medicinal and culinary uses and a promise to publish a recipe for Dandelion Syrup, here it is! Dandelion Syrup This is aContinue reading “Northwest Recipes; Dandelion Syrup”
Northwest Nature and History 