A blizzard of carrot


Langley Vale Farm turned on the spectacle again today, with the No Home field an unbroken sea of Wild Carrot (above). A few weeks ago it was a blizzard of Ox-eye Daisy, a few weeks before that it bled with Red Campion (below). Such expanse of colour is truly memorable - and, unlike the industrial quantity colour hits of crops such as Rape or Flax, these wild flower meadows are more of a natural artistic statement. Last year this same field was dominated by Common and Opium Poppies, and they are much reduced in number this time round. I wonder what will flower in profusion next year? The Woodland Trust are behind this field turning on the botanical spectacle, as they laid down a seed mix in 2014.


Sometimes an insect stops you in your tracks. This afternoon, at Gatton Park, this hoverfly, Volucella pellucens, did exactly that.


Comments

Simon Douglas Thompson said…
It's very beautiful, and that insect is a stonker!
25 July 2016 at 14:54
Derek Faulkner said…
What an amazing meadow, well done the Woodland Trust.
25 July 2016 at 16:20
Steve Gale said…
A stonker indeed Simon!
26 July 2016 at 19:09
Steve Gale said…
Yes indeed Derek - they seem to have chosen an applicable mix by and large.
26 July 2016 at 19:10
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