I know I’ve arrived when I hear a cetti’s warbler asserting himself from a stand of reeds. I take a deep breath… I first came to this area for nature watching back in the early nineties. An old friend had admitted to being a birdwatcher too and we decided on a cold and windy winter’s […]

This is another one of the sites which is not open at the moment, but is one I’ve visited often so know well what it looks like from inside. Although not much more than a big pond with some nice planting in the shadow of blocks of flats, it’s so much more than that.  During […]

While I knew this little jewel just round the corner from King’s Cross station hasn’t been open to the public for sometime, I decide to visit today to see where it is and how the development is going. The park is a long thin oblong running more or less north south. I walk round it […]

I had to resort to using public transport to visit this reserve, as a recent neck injury means that frustratingly I can’t ride my bike. While the woodland is lovely, the patch of acid grassland was even better. As well as the heather, gorse, broom and foxgloves, I found some species unfamiliar to me: heath […]

Also closed but small enough that you can walk around and see into it all. Only a street away from bustling Rye Lane, it’s looking a bit unloved today and clearly suffers from littering. I’m pleased to have seen it though and it was an easy walk from home.

I was quite prepared for this lovely little centre to be closed and of course it was. I do know it well though and despite being squeezed between houses, it still manages to be full of interesting features in particular a reasonable-sized pond. There’s even a better class of pavement flora outside with a lovely […]

Yes I know this is a bit of a cheat because it doesn’t have a connection with the London Wildlife Trust but I was so excited when it re-opened last Wednesday and I couldn’t wait to go back there. It was warm, drizzly and so quiet!  The meadow areas were looking spectacular and there were […]

In the woodland clearing this morning, I like to think I notice the hint of rosy hue which wasn’t there last week.  It’s warm but fresh here after yesterday’s downpour. Up close to the scramble of plants on the old railway bank, I see that the cocksfoot grass (Dactylis glomerata) is in flower, and through […]

I stumbled on this on my way home from Streatham Common and decided to include it. While this isn’t a London Wildlife Trust site, the information board says the charity was instrumental in preserving this as a woodland. It’s a very small remnant of Victorian gardens so it has both exotic trees and natives including […]

On the east side of Streatham Common there’s an area of woodland which I’ve never been to. I’ve always thought of Streatham Common as the more obvious grassy bit so it’s surprising to see how much woodland there is. There’s a downpour just after I’ve arrived so I spent quite a lot of my visit […]