I’ve begun the habit of walking very slowly through the woods on a Sunday morning. As I hear single chime from St Stephen’s church on the other side of the woods, I reflect that this is my worship. At this ponderous and mindful speed I notice tiny things which I suspect would otherwise be a […]

There is green everywhere in the woods, that’s true, but there’s a point in the year where I crave something fresh and new. Winter would definitely be a darker time without the yew, holly, ivy and the bramble leaves which seem to keep going indefinitely despite pretending to be a deciduous plant. Today that’s not […]

  I walk along the morning dark of the old rail bed to the meadow clearing. Here, unprotected by the canopy, the hoar frost has captured everything green and growing its icy grip.  Under a protective oak, a frothy profusion of cow parsley plants have taken advantage of the mild weather we had last week.  […]

I set off on this mild, gusty morning with a sense of purpose.  I’m confident I’m going to find my quarry in the woods today as there were early signs last week. In the denser areas of woodland, I look upwards and see the tantalising glimpses where the hazel stems have reached patches of sunlight. […]

The evergreen gang are such a relief in the woods at this time of year. I walk early and enjoy the visual pleasure of glossy yellow green ivy, darker yew and cedar and blue green holly.  Other than these and some persistent bramble leaves, it feels like the plant world is holding its breath. Some […]

The sight broke my running pulse. It stopped me in my tracks. I catch my breath. A tiny bird inspects each side of every branch and twig of a hazel sapling on the edge of the path where I’m running. As it’s still for tiny fractions of a second, I struggle at first to tell […]