Friday 22 May 2015

Five On Friday

Hello, thank you for dropping in, especially if you have come here via Amy at Love Made My Home.  It's been cold here this week, less than 10 degrees Celsius, and very wet, but it got a bit warmer yesterday, thank goodness.  On the other hand, I was chatting to a farming friend yesterday and she said,
 
"A cold wet May makes a full bay."
 
I had never heard that expression before so I asked her what it meant.  She told me that it means that if the weather in May is cold and wet, the grass will grow well and there will be a good hay harvest, enough to fill all the bays in the Dutch barn and so feed the animals through the winter.  Thank you, Mary.

 
To be quite honest, I didn't expect to be blogging today, but I have had one of those days which takes you by surprise.  I had promised to visit a rather lonely friend who lives over three miles away and as the bus service is expensive and infrequent, I have no choice but to cycle there.  Now, as I have said before, three miles may not sound much but it's not flat around here and I, er, do not have a cyclist's physique.  Frankly, it's a bit of a slog.
 
However, I really enjoyed the ride there (and I must be getting fitter because I get there a little quicker each time I go).  The weather was just right for cycling - dry, overcast and mild - and the views are always lovely, even though the cycle path is by a busy road.  Busy, that is, by Shropshire standards!  Today it was the flowers which struck me.  To me, May in the countryside is defined by three flowers: bluebells, cow parsley and hawthorn blossom.  Here are the bluebells -
 

Now, I know that Blogland is awash with pictures of English bluebells at the moment and this one isn't brilliant, but it records what I saw today.  I didn't actually go into the woods, I just parked my bike by the stone wall, leant over it and snapped what I could see, a lovely mist of blue drifting away in front of me.  Next, the cow parsley -
 
 
 Also called Queen Anne's Lace, this is one of the first wild flowers whose name I learnt.  It is all along the verges and the hedgerows at the moment, romantic, frothy and delicate in its abundance.  I love it.  (Oh yeah, and I am on the cycle path and on the left you can see the aforementioned busy road.  It did say that it's busy by Shropshire standards.)  And here is the hawthorn -
 
 

 
There is lots of this in the hedges and they look absolutely glorious in full bloom.  This is why the tree's other name is May! 
 
But there were plenty of other flowers to be seen in the verges: red clover, plantain, buttercup, speedwell, common vetch.  The closer I looked, the more I saw.  Nature's jewels.  I wish this were Six or Seven or Eight on Friday but it's not, it's Five, so I can't show you all of them.  So I'll show you only this, the white deadnettle -
 
 
 
Don't worry, it doesn't sting.  Do you know the Enid Blyton story called "A Fairy Secret"?  The story explains that fairies keep their golden dancing slippers inside the flowers of this plant - if you lift up the top "lip" you can see them.  It's true, give it a try next time you find a clump.
 
And finally, this last is not a flower, but a bird -
 
 
I think it's a kestrel and I was dead chuffed to capture it with my little point-and-click camera as it hovered over the field.  Get me!
 
So there you are, five photos this Friday taken on a journey which turned out to be unexpectedly enjoyable.  If you have time, you could hop over to Amy's blog and see who else is joining in today. 
 
Thanks, Amy.
 
Love, Mrs Tiggywinkle x
 
 

16 comments:

  1. You certainly have a beautiful cycle ride, you have captured the essence of the season. Have a great weekend.

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  2. What a lovely ride you must have had!! It is so nice that you took the time to take pictures to share with us, all of the spring flowers look so pretty!!! Thank you so much for joining in. I hope that you have a great weekend! xx

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    1. Thanks Amy, and thank you for hosting and giving all of us the opportunity to share. Take care. x

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  3. A lovely five! I am completely captivated by Bluebells this year, we stumbled across a wood last weekend that looked totally magical. I leave never heard that rhyme either! Thank you for sharing your lovely bike ride, have a great weekend xx

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    1. Thanks, Lisa. I just love that endless blue haze that you can find in the woods at this time of year. I agree, it's magical. x

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  4. Oh, how I wish I had a flowering hedge. Your photos are so lovely of the flowers.

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  5. England is truly wonderful in all the small natural details. Have a good weekend :-)

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  6. Loved your photos along your bike ride!! The flowers blooming there are so pretty. We have a lot of queen Anne's lace in the summer here in the northwoods in the states too. Love that we share some wildflowers. ;) We get lots of buttercups too- do you have those as well?

    Great shot of the kestral too!! You bike and capture nature beautifully talented Lady! Lol
    Happy weekend. xoxo

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    1. We certainly do get lots of buttercups Carrie. Thank you for your kind comments. x

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  7. Biking in the English countryside sounds heavenly to me. Love the bluebells (ours are long gone) and the other flowers. Beautiful photos of your corner of the globe.

    I love your blog name! One of our little granddaughters (almost 3 years now) was born with a mop of poker straight dark hair that stuck out every which way. We called her Miss Tiggywinkle for the longest time.

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  8. What a great ride! I haven't ridden my bike for eons, well it seems that way anyway! :D I think the hills here in New Hampshire would kill me at the moment but one can always get off said bike and walk it up the hill, right?! So what's my excuse? Hmmm... I love that photo of the bluebells drifting gently away into the distance!!!

    It's so nice to meet you and to visit your blog, and I thank you popping by my blog to say a quick hello! I will be back for visits in the future... more blogs to visit as I am so very late and behind on our Five on Friday Tour de Amy :D

    Hugs from across the pond from a new friend,
    Beth P

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  9. What a great ride! I haven't ridden my bike for eons, well it seems that way anyway! :D I think the hills here in New Hampshire would kill me at the moment but one can always get off said bike and walk it up the hill, right?! So what's my excuse? Hmmm... I love that photo of the bluebells drifting gently away into the distance!!!

    It's so nice to meet you and to visit your blog, and I thank you popping by my blog to say a quick hello! I will be back for visits in the future... more blogs to visit as I am so very late and behind on our Five on Friday Tour de Amy :D

    Hugs from across the pond from a new friend,
    Beth P

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  10. I'm glad you had a lovely bike ride-- those beautiful flowers by the roadside would have brightened my day too. They're gorgeous, nature's jewels indeed! X

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