There were showers this morning such that the rain gauge read 3 mm. Mistakenly I picked up my sunglasses rather than spectacles. Today, I finally saw the results of the hay cut. Whilst I was disappointed by the limited effort in South Field, elsewhere seemed reasonable. South Field had the yellows of Agrimony and (Bulbous?) Buttercup having escaped the blades. Ballard Down was visible although mist about it. Fleabane flowers persisted and the wild food stuffs of Sloes, Haws, Rosehips and Blackberries were good. Seed keys clung onto Field Maple, then a Swallow duo passed overhead.
Saxon’s hay rake quarr always provides some interest. I delighted in finding at least five stems of Autumn Ladies Tresses as well as delicate Bastard Toadflax. Other ground hugging / short-stemmed version amongst the short sward were Ox Eye Daisies, Rest Harrow and miniature Wild Thyme in flower. Banded Snails were evident, whilst at the taller grass edge Field Scabious and Greater Knapweed still bloomed. Both grass blades and flower stem “head banged” when exposed to the wind. Golf ball sized Woolly Thistle heads were very slowly breaking up having much seed still to disperse.
A Carrion Crow trio passed overhead just before I left to drove to explore part of the sheltered footpath to South Barn. At the foot of a moss wearing dry stone wall was one Herb Robert bloom, however, plenty of primitive and successful Mares Tail fronds stood tall. In the distance the weaned Hereford calves could be seen grazing Jack Bais Meadow. A Wren trilled near Holcombe before I returned to the drove. In places finger hole had been nibbled in fleshy Burdock leaves. As if for the first time I observed the “three-pieced beak” resemblance of an opening Stinking Iris seed pod. It looked disturbingly alien for once!
A Magpie flew up from Herren Ground with another nearby. I walked through the second Hereford Herd consisting of Bull, Cows and young calves. Together they were revealing many Ant Hills. I found myself the wrong side of the electric fence. I failed to fit through a hogget hole so rolled under a higher strand of wire. Do not copy me!