February 28, 2023

February - preparations

February 28, 2023

To see the Blog with all the video footage, go to www.liddells.co.uk

Left over from January - a fox limps its way through the Pit Wood. The smaller doe squeaks her way along the same path.

1st February

Clare has long said that she wished she knew more about grasses, sedges and rushes. Today she began a course with the Natural History Society of Northumbria on exactly that topic. She learned many new words, always a personal delight, and hopes that by the end of the course she will be able to use them confidently and appropriately. ‘Awn,’ ‘glume,’ ‘tepals', ‘lemma,’ ‘palea,’ ‘stolon,’ ‘culm', ‘auricle’ and ‘ligule’ might also help improve a Scrabble game. ‘Sedges have edges’ is also a good starter phrase and easy to remember.

John began work on the fourth bench.

A fox - not limping - goes off the path in the Pit Wood.

2nd February

The older buck makes his way through the Pit Wood and the camera captures excellent footage of the velvet on his antlers. As yet there is no evidence of him fraying to remove it.

3rd February

Clare took steps to finish putting wire on the approach to the shepherd’s hut; John finished the third bench.

Should the bees emerge in warm spells, there is forage ready for them.

5th February

Clare checked that all the hives had fondant - this can be a time of year when bees starve if they have eaten all their store and there is insufficient forage available for them. If the weather warms and then goes cold again, there is a risk that the queen starts laying but the colony is still too small for the workers to keep the brood warm, so while others are enjoying balmy early spring days, Clare and other beekeepers are concerned.

Clare planted more Periwinkle that she had grown from cuttings. This time she covered them with mesh as previous shoots had been eaten.

John continued his creative recycling for the meeting room; this time the fourth bench top is made from sawn up bed slats from a bed frame he and Clare inherited when they moved house. John also finished plugging gaps in the meeting room roof to keep out the rain. Thus far this treatment seems to have worked.

Clare identified more wall repair that needs to go on the to-do list.

The pheasant feeders that came with Liddells have been removed. Clare and John are hoping that without a supply of food, the pheasants will move elsewhere and stop taking up so much camera footage and battery power.

***‘Snowdrop*** *(Galanthus nivalis)*
From *Flowers of the Field,* 1885
Too well known to need any description. Fl. January - March.
Rev. C.A. Johns (1811-1874)’ From *Nature Writing for Every Day of the Year*
**7th February**
John and Clare seem to be subject to the organising zeitgeist. John created extra storage in the log shed while in the tool shed Clare channelled some of Marie Kondo’s principles.(While looking up exactly what Marie Kondo suggests, Clare noticed that under the heading ‘What are the 5 steps of the Konmari method' 6 Rules are listed:
Rule 1: Commit Yourself to Tidying Up. The KonMari Method™ is not a quick fix for a messy room or a once-in-a-while approach to tidying. ...
Rule 2: Imagine Your Ideal Lifestyle. ...
Rule 3: Finish Discarding First. ...
Rule 4: Tidy by Category, Not by Location. ...
Rule 5: Follow the Right Order. ...
Rule 6: Ask Yourself If It Sparks Joy.
It would seem that Kondo has neglected to discard one.
Clare was certainly pleased with her work, and will be joyful if her efforts are maintained.

14th February

In accord with the tradition of putting up bird boxes on St Valentine’s Day, John and Clare added a new box in the Pit Wood.

15th - 18th February

Clare discovered Woodpecker activity on a dead Elder behind the bee hives. As it is early in the year this is most likely to be from drumming to stake out territory.

Clare applied her organisational skills to the log shed and after three days’ work all the dry logs were stacked at home ready for this year’s autumn/winter burning, and all the wood that had been sawn and split ready to dry was stacked.

19th February

An entirely new experience on Liddells - John had met some detectorists working on land nearby and invited them to visit Liddells. Wayne, Mac, John and Lisa were delighted to accept the offer and spend a hard-working morning with the metal detectors. They covered the Top Grazing and the Meadow and then worked over the spoil heaps near the hives.

There proved to be no need to contact the British Museum with the finds, however there was some social history evidenced. The remains of a toastrack, a tin of Snowfire Vanishing Cream from the 1930s (here is one in fine condition https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/snowfire-vanishing-cream-alluminium-423388038), a tube of Synulox (still prescribed and used for treating a range of bacterial infections in cats and dogs, a tube of Orbenin (also still prescribed and used for the treatment of ocular infections in cattle, sheep, horses, dogs and cats), a Matchbox Series 23 Trailer Caravan (they were produced from 1965-1969; here is one in pristine condition: https://matchbox.fandom.com/wiki/Trailer_Caravan), a very rusted door handle, parts of an oil lamp, 2 spent bullets, the bowl of a spoon, the handle-end of a trowel or similar, several buttons, tuppence ha’penny (a George V penny, a George VI penny dated 193? and a George VI ship ha’penny), a nut, various unidentifiable bits of metal, inevitably the remains of a few aluminium cans, two bottle tops and some pieces of metal decoration whose origin is mysterious (top left of the photograph). If anyone has any ideas about what it might have been these last pieces decorated, feel free to email them in.

Meanwhile John and Clare planted an Oak grown and donated by their alarm maintenance engineer, wove straggly Willows into the arbour round one of the benches and completed a second section of wall repair.

23rd - 24th February

Dave came to help finish the wall as some of the stones needed extra lifting power.

Clare found frogspawn on the roadside pond however it was brown, which suggested it had been affected by the cold weather which had been distinctly brumous (‘Brumous’ Foggy, wintry OED Word of the Day 24.02.23).

Clare moved the camera from the Pit Wood to start this season’s Pond Watch - there were four clips of a heron within the first 24 hours and some interesting early morning visitors.

25th - 26th February

John and Clare set up a nesting box assembly line, completed 10 boxes and put 5 on trees in or near the Scrub. The boxes are mostly made from left over bits of shed not needed in the rebuilding works.

Clare planted a tray of Snowdrops in the Pit Wood and heard a thrush singing on Liddells for the first time this year. She recorded the singing which was accompanied by a Chaffinch, Robin and Great Spotted Woodpecker drumming - all suggesting the nest-box making is timely.

Clare also carried out an equipment inventory in her bee shed and was pleased that due to somewhat over-zealous prep last year, she has all the equipment she needs to start this bee-keeping year.

John saw a Woodcock near the Junipers.

28th February

Luke the Mole Man arrived with his traps - the final aspect of this month’s preparation.

Clare and John

November 30, 2020

November - a concerted effort

Clare and John

November 30, 2020

1st - 11th November

Clare put her efforts into preparing the path in the Top Strip ready for new chip, This is another way of saying she was weeding the path. AGAIN. John worked on the interior of the shepherd’s hut, completing the fire surround.

John moved the trail camera back to a much used place in the Pit Wood, overlooking one of the main and much used paths. The trail camera often captures deer seemingly bemused by its small red light.

12th November

Dave arrived with his chain saw and set about the stack of branches that Hal had helped bring up to the shelter. In a concerted effort Dave and Clare worked their way almost through the whole pile and stacked the logs ready to dry for next winter. Clare started adding chip to the path.

13th November

Thanks to a gift from Pat, Clare has been reading John Lewis Stempel’s The Private Life of the Hare, a delightful compilation of history, mythology, religion, literature, science, anecdote and statistics. Clare has discovered that the Scottish ‘malkin’ or ‘mawkin’ means both cat and hare, and a common general name for the hare in England was ‘puss’. Apparently hares are interchangeable with cats when it comes to those who opt for broomstick travel. Maybe Clare and John should be more concerned about Pit Wood activities.

14th November

Clare continued working on the path. John constructed a hinged work top from one of a pair of benches he had made to go with a table he had also made for Hal and Beth.

The trail camera captured several deer movements in the Pit Wood. The three that follow show three different deer a few minutes apart. When John and Clare first saw the clips, they thought it was one deer and couldn’t understand how it had managed to keep going back to the same place. See if you can spot the differences.

17th November

Mel came to help and he and John turned their efforts to weeding round the trees in cages on the Top Grazing and in the Scrub.

18th November

Another mound of chip spread on to the path. Here is one photo to show Clare’s achievement, though she acknowledges it is very similar to several photographs over the years showing the freshly chipped path. For a variation she took a photo of the tarpaulin that she and John use as a base for both brash and chip. Some readers might recognise it. When John and Clare got married in July 2009, they decided to have a celebratory party in their garden at home. Mindful of the vagaries of British summer weather, John constructed magnificent roofs for both lawns. It was just as well he did. The rain began in the early hours of the morning and continued heavily, and without respite until well into the next day. Several guests arrived in wellies and one wag turned up in a snorkel. The tarpaulins in use at Liddells were the covers for the garden. They continue to give excellent service.

Still going strong, just like John and Clare

19th - 21st November

Dave finished sawing and stacking the last of the logs then John directed Dave’s efforts into digging up several boulders on the Top Grazing that are a hazard when it comes to cutting. Clare had noted the OED Word of the Day on 11th of this month - ‘earthfast’ (Especially of a stone: fixed in the ground). Today one became earthloose.

Although knowing that gorse can flower throughout the year, Clare has noticed more in flower this month than ever before. Presumably this is down to the mild weather.

John and Clare made a concerted effort to bag up chip and move it on to the path.

Birds are arriving in great numbers at the hide. John decided to see if he could tempt one to feed from his hand.

A pheasant tried to seduce the trail camera with some sweet sounds. Clare thinks it sounds like a cat purring - could this be another witchy transformation.

The doe on the trail camera displays a perfect example of what is called ‘being on alert’. You can see her lift her head and neck and stare intently at something which has grabbed her attention. She is also lifting one foreleg, which is also typical.

To give an idea of just how big the stone is, the boot is a size 9

John failing to channel St Francis of Assissi

Socially distant kissing is in fashion. Certainly no ‘slummocking’ (OED Word of the Day 29.11.20: to kiss amorously n aparticularly wet and slobbery way)

28th November

Jane E and Pat spent some time in the hide and Jane saw Redpolls - this is the first record of them this season.

29th November

John did some tidying up and planning in the shepherd’s hut, designing a table and benches. Also, he had spotted an imminent bit of wall collapse in the NE Strip so pre-empted disaster by taking a section down and rebuilding.

Clare hefted all the hives to check the bees had sufficient stores (they did) and left them with fondant in case supplies run low. With the mild weather, the bees are more active and eating more than usual at this time of year.

Meanwhile in the hide, Adele and Rachel put their concerted efforts into making music. They had asked recently if they could play at Liddells and John and Clare were delighted to make the space available. As well and nurturing wildlife, John and Clare wish to provide a space for the arts and the imagination. Clare enjoyed a private concert while she was attending to the bees. The recording shows the birds enjoying Adele and Rachel playing Telemann’s Sonata for Flute and Violin. Adele and Rachel played for about three hours and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. What an excellent ending to the month.

Clare and John

February 29, 2020

February - colds, wind and rain

Clare and John

February 29, 2020

1st-2nd February

John and Clare carried out bird box cleaning and maintenance ready for Spring. They also moved some that had never been used, and lowered some that were out of Clare’s reach, even with a ladder. Clare now has plans to make sure there are steps added to stiles that have been built for persons under six foot tall. Clare was delighted to put up the new box that David O had made for her birthday last year. No 25 remains missing and presumably has fallen into the Liddells equivalent of the Bermuda Triangle.

Strong winds had ripped some of the sheeting for the rainwater collection so that needs further repair.

The first snowdrops of the year have appeared in the Top Strip.

5th-6th February

The trail camera is back in the Pit Wood and caught a hare, a vixen and the sound of a Tawny Owl calling and then flying off. The vixen appears to be scent marking.

7th February

John and Clare are delighted that this year Sue Dunne, a local ceramicist, and Linda France, a local poet, are going to be making monthly visits to Liddells. Linda has recently been announced as Climate Writer in Residence by Newcastle University and New Writing North.

Sue made her first visit of the year today and filled a bag with things that had caught her eye. As Neil was on the land planting nine trees he had grown at home, Sue did not escape work detail. Neil has added Limes, Horse Chestnuts, Maples and Ash to the Top Grazing.

Sue and Clare spent some time in the hide and both were delighted to see a female Siskin on the nyjer seed - another first for Liddells.

8th February

John and Sue W visited with grandchildren William and Annabelle who had to find and learn about animal homes for their homework. Liddells provided plenty to discover - squirrel dreys, a buzzard’s nest, mouse and vole holes, the bee hives, the bug hotel and more besides.

William looking every inch the experienced birder

Negotiating the Dirty Dancing Bridge en route to the squirrel dreys

10th February

John and Clare learned that Storm Ciara had taken its toll - a stretch of wall on the north boundary had collapsed - annoyingly it included the patch John and Mel had repaired only a week ago.

11th February

John had help from Dave G to start the wall repair - they started with sorting and organising the fallen stones before tackling the base layers.

12th February

With the stormy cold weather, the birds are getting through the food in the feeders very quickly. John and Clare went up to replenish them and were happy to see a Siskin make several visits. It would seem to be one of last year’s juveniles that is now developing its male colouring.

14th February

Today marks the start of National Nesting Box Week and while Clare was at the hide, she saw a Blue tit investigating Box 8 which can be seen from the hide. It was as if he knew.

16th February

George C came to visit Liddells with a view to taking down the overhanging branches on the north boundary. Clare enjoyed the contrast in woodland working garb.

John and Clare have seen the hare in daylight several times recently. The trail camera has too.

George will be seen clearly while John will merge into the landscape

18th February

Neil and Lesley make the most of half term with family and take some of them to the bird hide. Clare gave Juno, who shares this birthday with Lesley (and Pat) her first pair of binoculars.

Juno bird-watching at home. History does not relate what she saw

20th February

Nikki and Megan, two teachers from a local First School, came to visit with a view to a Forest School day. Clare and John are crossing all available digits.

The trail camera has captured the hare again, this time ruffled by the storm.

21st February

Storms, wind and bouts of what Clare’s sister refers to as ‘there’s-a-lot-of-it-about’ has meant little activity on Liddells this month, however John has been given permission to collect some Broom regeneration from a local woodland and today he and Clare planted 11 small Broom plants on the Crag.

22nd February

John is pursuing his photography challenge and has mastered the art of enlarging and cropping, so here are some of his results.

Bank vole banking on scattered bird food

Tree creeper showing clearly that it is not the short-toed variety

The RSPB says:Accentors are small, inconspicuous, streaked birds, with sharp, pointed bills and a slightly robin-like, pot-bellied shape. They live mostly close to the ground, with a quick, shuffling and hopping action when feeding.Dunnocks are ofte… — The RSPB says:
Accentors are small, inconspicuous, streaked birds, with sharp, pointed bills and a slightly robin-like, pot-bellied shape. They live mostly close to the ground, with a quick, shuffling and hopping action when feeding.
Dunnocks are often overlooked, not only are they small, brown and grey with a slender beak, they also like to creep around under bushes in a mouse-like way.
Keith points out the vermiculation, a quality he particularly enjoys in avian plumage.

Goldfinch and Siskin feeding together - often the Siskins will fight the Goldfinches off

This might be a juvenile male coming in to adulthood - an immature male will have a dark bill; this one’s bill seems to be turning yellow

Coal tit showing some of the differences from the Marsh tit - the colouring on the cheeks and the white streak on the back of the head

Male chaffinch withstanding storm Dennis

25th February

Finally wind, rain and viruses had abated sufficiently for John and Mel to tackle the partly rebuilt wall. Clare and John habitually use excellent thick leather gloves for work on Liddells and between them, have got through several pairs, however when the gloves get wet, they can leech warmth from hands. John transformed his working experience today by discovering some heavy duty waterproof gloves in a local store and wore these over fleece liners. The gloves were so efficient that John probably worked longer than was wise and now has a sore back. Maybe there are advantages in having wet, cold hands. However, much more importantly, the wall now stands.

Mel at work in the remains of Monday’s snow

Through stones, ‘through’ in this context is pronounced locally as ‘thruff’

26th February

Clare went to change the disc in the trail camera and was amazed to see a lot of water bubbling out of the original site of the Pit Wood spring; there was also considerable water running into this stream from the path under the Dirty Dancing bridge.

Clare found clear evidence of a badger’s presence very near to the camera, however it seems to have evaded the camera’s gaze.

A quick visit to the hide to top up the feeders and Clare saw four Redwings that seemed to be investigating the feeding station but were not quite bold enough to partake. Another species for John to photograph and they bring the total number of bird species seen from the hide to 26.

Maybe footprint casts have to go on the to-do list

27th February

John and Clare decided it was time to finish the half-made drainage ditch leading away from the new pond. They are making a french drain so first Clare gathered up the rubble left from the wall repair to repurpose as a bed for the drainage pipes, then she and John set about excavating more of the ditch. It was very muddy however neither managed to fall over although there was a fair amount of mud slinging. The ditch is now fully dug however needs more rubble in which to bed the pipes.

The two side pipes will feed into the central ditch which currently awaits its gravel and pipe

Peppa Pig is not the only one who likes muddy puddles

Clare and John

May 31, 2019

May - be...

Clare and John

May 31, 2019

Before further forgetfulness - Images from Easter Day

Liddells has contributed the beech branch to this decoration made by Sue W

Further follow-ups to April’s blog post:

Congratulations to those of you who correctly guessed that the Alphabet Bridge is so named because it has 26 logs in its span. A special mention to Barbara R who suggested that the mystery creature surfacing in the pond maybe one of John’s lost hearing aids. It could also be a newt. Hmm - preferred explanation? No contest.

1st May

John noticed that three of the brooms on the Crag are in flower. This is the first year they have flowered and as you can see, they are growing well. Maybe the tubes will need to be removed, however that will leave them vulnerable to browsing so alternative protection will have to be provided.

John continued wrestling with the challenge to fix guttering to one end of the sheds so that rainwater is directed into the bowser - not as easy as it sounds. Maybe it will work.

2nd May

Derek G has generously spent considerable time researching the history of Liddells for us. Today John and Clare joined him at the County Archives at Woodhorn and spent happy hours poring over old maps, documents relating to the Enclosures Act and Estate records. Derek maybe able to create a timeline of ownership included in which will be a Miss Mary Tulip who was born in 1719. The current sports writer for the Hexham Courant is Joseph Tulip - maybe a relation.

3rd May

John and Clare continued this year’s onslaught on the weeds on the path in the Top Strip. Clare thought that weeding the path before members of the Tynedale Community Choir visited (see below) maybe like cleaning the house before guests arrive. They did not finish the path - draw your own conclusions. During the weeding, they were visited by a mystery insect. Clare thought it was maybe a mayfly however Keith-who-knows-everything-about-nature is investigating further.

The algae is the big pond is diminishing so maybe the barley straw is working. Fresh barley straw added today. While John and Clare were coming up from the ponds to work on the Crag, they noticed a hare running up ahead of them towards the Top Grazing. During their work - clearing fallen wood - they noticed a hare running from the Wetland into the Pit Wood and shortly afterwards a hare running along the top of the Crag. It is possible that hares, being considered by some to be divine, maybe have the quality of ubiquitousness and/or maybe that they move in mysterious ways. John and Clare prefer the more prosaic possibility that maybe there are two hares on Liddells. Maybe they are romantically attached.

The first Cuckoo Flowers are out on the Meadow - maybe one day we will hear the first cuckoo here.

The trail camera has captured more footage of deer in the Pit Wood. One video shows a doe browsing on hawthorn, the second shows a buck anointing a branch in his path. Further footage showed his antlers are clean so he’s not fraying off the velvet. The last clip has been sent to Keith-w-k-e-a-n. Any ideas what may be making the sound? (For a follow-up to this question, see the entry for May 10th.)

6th May

Tynedale Community Choir, in which Clare sings, has for several years now, indulged in the habit of singing to the sunrise from the bandstand in the centre of Hexham on the Monday May Bank Holiday (the Morris Men dance there on May 1st). Many maybe consider this to be a bit bonkers. Participants then breakfast together in the Community Centre. Clare has sometimes followed this with a post-breakfast-chorus walk (this is usually at about 7am) round Liddells. This year she invited any choir members who felt so inclined, to join her. It was cold and wet, however, neither avian, nor the small bunch of intrepid human singers were deterred. A good time seemed to be had by all, though maybe that was due to the delicious biscuits John M provided. Liddells and baked goods seem to have an excellent relationship. (Thanks to Jane B and Sue R for photographs.) Maybe the Liddells muse joined us as Sue R was inspired to write.

Clare is thrilled that the Willow Warblers were performing as if on cue

The path through the north side of the Pit Wood, looking particularly verdant

Rosemary delighted to see how much the oak she donated has grown

Carpeting cowslips in the Pit Wood - many, many more this year after John and Robbie cleared and felled allowing more light in

9th May

Both ponies were shampooed today. Paul has an infestation of lice (not transferrable to humans thankfully) and had scratched bare patches on his face. This had happened before in the very wet winter of 2017/18. Both ponies were reasonably tolerant of the process, Paul rather more than William, however as soon as they were free to go, they indulged in some mutual comfort grooming.

10th May

John chose a walk around Liddells to check all the nesting boxes as his birthday treat. Clare is relieved he is so easily catered for. You can see the results of the survey here. Clare has noticed that the results for the previous year do not appear to have made it to the Surveys page - maybe they have disappeared into the Liddells Triangle, along with box 25, which this year has completely escaped John and Clare’s searching. (May 31st - Clare and John have realised that they didn’t carry out a nest box survey last year. They were still in the unsettled aftermath of John’s DVT.)

Maybe laid especially for John’s birthday survey

John has been working away on wall repair on the northern boundary.

Wall repair, maybe more than half completed

Keith-w-k-e-a-n not only proved to be uncertain about the insect that alighted on Clare’s arm, but declared “I divanaw, man” about the mysterious sound on the trail camera (Keith’s soubriquet will be rethought). John pointed out that Keith-w-k-?-a-n had not even hazarded a wild guess. Maybe one of John’s suggestions is correct - a barn owl on a vuvuzela - a lover's tiff between stoats - a consumptive jay.

Regarding the ‘maybe mayfly’, John availed himself of the free insect identification service offered by The Royal Entomological Society and received this very prompt reply from Professor Jim Hardie, their Director of Science:

‘It’s an ichneumonid or parasitoid wasp which parasitises other insects and there are some 2300 species in UK. This one looks like the largest (body length up to 50 mm and 100 mm including the ovipositor) and is called the sabre wasp, Rhyssa persuasoria. This is a female as she has a long ‘tail,’ the ovipositor, with which she drills into logs and lays eggs on larvae of the host insect, often wood wasps, and when the sabre wasp egg hatches the larva feeds on the host.

Harmless to humans.’

Maybe playing some Khachaturian would attract more of these creatures.

15th May

Barbara R - a friend of Clare’s from London days and avid Blog follower - came to visit. She had two requirements from her stay, a visit to Newcastle/Gateshead to see the kittiwakes and a walk around Liddells. Clare was happy to oblige with both. Clare proudly showed off John’s completed wall repair.

Barbara about to leave Liddells and just after Clare had remembered she hadn’t taken a photo to record this event.

Maybe the Kittiwakes would be envious of all the nesting boxes on Liddells - thanks to Barbara for this and the next photograph

Clare intent on listening to birdsong - maybe a Blackcap

You will maybe notice the spare stones on the left. It seems to be a rule of wall repair that there are either too few stones or too many. Maybe it’s a phenomenon that leaves you climbing the walls.

16th May

Clare, maybe drawing on her capacity for stick-to-itness (OED, 24th April: dogged perseverance) continued her efforts to rid the Top Strip path of weeds. During this activity she noticed what maybe a spider, with a pale blue bulbous body. Of course there is no point in asking Keith-w-k-?-a-n about this. There is also a question about the identity of the insects that were flying around the whole time (except when one alighted conveniently for a photograph - maybe an insect hoping for its moment in the Blog).

The first of the Blue Tit eggs have hatched.

19th May

John and Clare continued their prayerful attitude to the path in the Top Strip, weeding another ten metres or so on their hands and knees.

Clare returned home and investigated the spider with what she had thought was a pale blue body, and discovered that it is a Wolf Spider with its egg sac.

22nd May

Keith, maybe seeking to reclaim his reputation, arrived at 7am to help us with this year’s breeding bird survey. The sky was a clear blue and the birds sang generously and offered the annual is-it-a-Blackcap-or-a-Garden-Warbler challenge. If anyone else would like to have a go, try this. The morning’s highlight followed Keith hearing what he thought were maybe robin alarm calls in the Scrub. He wasn’t convinced, and his doubts were validated, as were his ears, when the calls proved to be hungry baby robins which were then fed by the parent. Maybe it is alarming to be hungry. You can see the results of the survey here.

Keith (ok, Keith-w-k-nearly-e-a-n) was also able to identify the large black insects (see 19th May) as non-biting midges. Clare had not known there were such things, having only been acquainted with the biting kind - and far too frequently. Apparently the name chironomidae derives from the Greek for pantomimist. “Oh yes it is!”

Keith was also reassuring about the algae situation which had worsened again in spite of input of barley straw and doses of barley straw extract. He recommended adding oxygenating plants, shoring up the banks where the ponies had puddled them and maybe fencing round most of the perimeter. Keith explained that disturbing the soil through the digging process had released nutrients into the water which then fostered the algae growth. The ponies were adding to that process.

And finally in the restoration of Keith’s reputation, he commented that the colour of the Wolf Spider egg sac is surprising given the spider’s need for camouflage.

23rd & 24th May - two days at the beech

John and Clare were catching up on some gardening (Clare) and sawing (John had blagged some replaced telegraph poles and was reducing them to logs; see photo below) when butterfly-Tim called to say that a very large limb had broken from one of the beeches on Liddells and was blocking the road. John went up straight away and was relieved that local farmer Derek drove up in his Manitou, saw the problem and returned with the Manitou plus forks and levered the branch until it broke off and he could drop it off the road. Clare and Tim arrived and set about clearing up the small stuff (throwing it over the wall into the Scrub) while John sawed up the smaller branches. One trailer load of wood was deposited at the Liddells log shed and a second taken home. Clare and John returned in the evening when Derek and Robbie turned up with two chainsaws that made John’s look like an electric carving knife. Derek had said it would only take ten minutes to saw up the main branch. John and Clare found this hard to believe until they watched Derek and Robbie at work. All sawing was done in 15 minutes, whereupon D&R, maybe thinking they hadn’t helped enough, set about logging the wood. Their double act - one swinging the axe in perfect rhythm, the other turning the wood underneath - was a wonder and very scary to behold. No digits, limbs or heads were lost in the process and John and Clare took another trailer load home to stack. Next morning John and Clare returned to log the remaining wood - another trailer load. So not only are John and Clare hugely grateful for the kindness of friends and neighbours, but they now have a nearly full log shed and very aching bodies.

The wounded beech - you can maybe see the dark area above the wound. It is likely that this is the site of an earlier split into which water has been seeping, weakening the joint between trunk and branch

Here is a close up of wood from the damaged joint

This does not quite do justice to the size of the branch and you can see that much work has already happened

Derek appears to be showing Robbie (a qualified woodsman) how to use a chainsaw. The photo does not reveal that Derek quickly chose Robbie’s best saw to use. Father and son rivalry maybe….

Maybe Derek and Robbie cannot hear John offering ear defenders

This vision of teamwork would maybe more complete if it showed Clare carrying all the logs to the trailer

Maybe nearly a season’s burning once it has dried

Ok, this is not about Liddells, however Clare could not resist including it so that she could add her caption.Poling station — Ok, this is not about Liddells, however Clare could not resist including it so that she could add her caption.
Poling station

24th May

Normal people sometimes receive bouquets of flowers. Clare was thrilled to find Sue R’s delivery of a bouquet of Wild Garlic in the porch. Maybe this is indicative of how Liddells has affected Clare. Huge thanks to Sue for the gift.

25th May

Clare planted the Wild Garlic in the Pit Wood. John and Clare enjoyed being at Liddells without any use of the chainsaw whatsoever.

Clare began this year’s Creeping Thistle Watch on the Meadow and bagged 122. Although she has not finished, there is only a small area left to cover. It would seem as though the numbers have more than halved since last year, so maybe pulling them out is proving a sufficient deterrent. Clare is wondering if maybe there is a Zeno-like paradox here: if the number of thistles is reduced proportionately each year, when only one thistle remains, will it be halved, and will that half thistle be similarly reduced resulting in the impossibility of completely removing thistles from the Meadow.

26th May

The trail camera has been directed at one of the nest boxes and capturing the Great Tits feeding the young inside. The first food was brought in at about five in the morning. Such is the activity, the camera has been triggered approximately every six minutes. There were about four hundred stills and videos to go through. The videos also recorded at least ten different bird species singing in the background. The last video captures a blackbird stand-off.

Here are the beneficiaries of all that activity

27th May

John and Clare are always delighted when Liddells can make some kind of contribution to others. Today Rosemary M-S collected Silver Birch leaves to use for dyeing wool. She was most complimentary about our convenient and lush foliage! She is ‘using a calendar which suggests the right plants for each month. So far, [she has] used daffodils, birch bark, and dandelions. Colours ranging from cream, to pink to yellow. Birch gives the best yellow. This time [she has] mordanted the wool. Many plant dyes are fugitive’. Thanks to Rosemary for the sequence of photographs and the imaginative challenge of fugitive dyes - from what might they be escaping….

Clare completed the Creeping Thistle eradication programme for the year - at least until she spots the ones she missed - and added 43 to the bag, making a grand total of 165. That’s a considerable reduction in two years. Plenty of thistles remain on other parts of Liddells for the pollinators. Yellow Rattle is now established on almost all of Meadow and this will help other wild flowers become established. There is already an increase in the Red Clover.

Following the Thistle triumph, Clare attempted to video Whirligig Beetles on the large pond - they do what it says on the tin. This proved to be easier said than done or maybe Clare just caught them recovering from a dizzy spell.

31st May

John and Clare are checking the trail camera regularly, hoping that it will capture a moment of fledging. Maybe there will be footage for next month’s blog post. Maybe the camera batteries will expire at the crucial moment.

A reminder - 30 Days Wild starts at midnight.

Clare and John

September 30, 2018

September - the earth moves for John and Clare

Clare and John

September 30, 2018

1st September

John was rather taken with the sight of a large patch of Creeping Thistle that had gone to seed. Clare enjoyed them too as they were outside the Meadow. This patch is a favourite one for butterflies. More fungi are appearing as autumn gets closer. Clare has heard that all fungi are edible, but some of them only once. John has made a new gate to give access through the mud barricades, which are now finished.

Please feel free to contribute identification info

4th September

Clare helped John raise the first roof panel for the shepherd’s hut to see how it will look. He realised the main supporting beam needs to be slightly raised. Clare continued her fungi discoveries.

The Turin Shroud fungus (this is not a real type of fungus, however Clare was taken by the face she could see), or possibly Larch Bolete…

…which appears to have a smiley face on the underside

6th September

Barry kindly lent us his ATV so that we could collect logs from the Wetland and the Pit Wood, while Paul recovers his confidence with hauling. To this end, Eilidh and John managed to persuade him to wear his collar again and walk round with it on.

8th September

Robbie cut logs and started felling conifers in the Pit Wood; he also removed the two trees that were inside the story-telling circle. Robert helped to haul dumpies of logs out to where we can load them into the trailer.

9th September

We borrowed some sheep again to graze off the meadow. Having brought the logs home, we filled the second shed, with a little help.

Yan tan tethera pethera pimp…no we haven’t lost our mind, just trying to count the sheep. This old method may still be used by some shepherds. After a dispute because of fidgety sheep, we settled on twenty-five, which is figgot (20) and pimp

10th September

We returned the Groundhog. Clare spotted a trio of tree stumps on the Wetland, each of which was sporting a crop of fungi.

11th September

John raised the roof beam on the shepherd’s hut and managed to cut his finger rather badly.

12th September

More fungi

There is a particularly fine crop of Fly Agaric in the Scrub

This looks likely to be Turkey Tail or Coriolus Versicolor — This looks likely to be Turkey Tail or *Coriolus Versicolor*

14th September

The trail camera caught a fox in the Orchard by the bonfire.

One of the bee colonies has been much beset by robber bees. Clare has followed all the advice available - blocking the entrance so only one bee can get in at a time (the guard bees have more time to deal with invaders), putting a glass sheet in front of the entrance (presumably the robbing bees bash their heads against it while the resident bees can reroute around it), sticking leafy branches in front of the hive (to confuse the robbers - “This doesn’t look like Kansas anymore”), covering the whole hive with a wet sheet for a couple of days (the robbers then think the hive has disappeared or become ghostly and give up); all of these were to no avail. What worked? Would you believe smearing the hive liberally with Vicks Vaporub. The robbers gave up. They can, however, breathe more easily. As of course can the bees who are no longer under threat.

15th September

We are planning to dig out a couple of ponds on the Wetland, so we spent some time marking them out. We are going to use two areas that are already wet, remove some of the rush and dam one edge of each.

One of the Spindle Trees is looking particularly autumnal.

Yet more fungi.

The underside would suggest this is a waxcap of some kind

16th September

Mike arrived to help John fix the first of the roof panels on the shepherd’s hut. Both were pleased with the result. Clare is in awe of what John is doing - he hates heights. The proliferation of fungi this year extended to the inside of one of the sheds.

Inside the shed. Possibly a Tawny Grisette

17th September

Clare helped with the fixing of the last three roof panels with a certain amount of lifting and a lot of encouraging.

18th September

All the panels are now firmly fixed in place. We moved the ponies to the Meadow for 48 hours so that their hooves would chop up the sward a bit, in preparation for sowing wildflower seeds. We started stacking logs in the log shed at Liddells which we had emptied over last winter.

Clare is concerned that John might have misunderstood her request for steps to get into the hut

20th September - Green Gym Day

We were delighted to welcome eight volunteers today, including three new recruits. Many thanks to Mark and Gill, John W, Tim, Barry, Sally, Jane E and Pat, and apologies to all for the paucity of photographs recording all the stupendous effort that went into the day. Clare was engrossed in seed sowing and rather forgot her role as recorder. By 3pm we had ticked all our tasks off the list - wall repair, adjusting the tubing to trees in the Top Strip, felling and logging after some of the damage in the wake of Storm Aileen, path weeding, clearing brambles and ivy out of the roadside wall and sowing wildflower seeds on the Meadow. Within seconds of tidying away at the end, the rain set in.

John, John and Sally seem to have an opinion about Barry’s lunch

The discerning amongst you might spot that the stakes are now secured outside the tubes rather than inside as we had done mistakenly before

The painstaking work of making small holes in the meadow and inserting pinches of seed

While we were all working, these ladybirds were indulging in their own choice of exercise. This gave rise to a question in the group as to the collective noun for ladybirds. Barry came up with ‘a Bangkok’! **

Bramble and ivy free wall, and this only shows a small section of the whole length that was cleared

A large limb off a dead tree in the Pit Wood. It’s good to leave dead trees as a habitat for insects and birds

** If you don’t get Barry’s joke, try saying the name of the insect with a Bronx accent

21st September

Eilidh began to prepare William for receiving a bit - she coated a stick with molasses. Once William realised he liked the taste, Eilidh managed to position the stick in his mouth to replicate how the bit will be. Both ended up very sticky.

There are still butterflies around. This Comma is on Purple Loosestrife in the Meadow

22nd - 26th September

John has been working on the panels that will fill the spaces below the roof on the shepherd’s hut. John and Clare finished sowing the last of the seeds on the Meadow; this included introducing our own Yellow Rattle seeds to the top quarter where the plant has yet to get established.

27th September

The first day of a week’s machinery hire. John is creating his own version of two radical movements from the Civil War and seeking to make an even platform for the hut. The first job was to make a drain behind where the hut will go.

Clare spotted this Red Admiral enjoying the late summer sun while she was on her way to reposition the trail camera

Our very own version of the Lambton Worm

Not quite a red carpet for the ponies, however we added the final touch to the extended mud barricades

28/29th September

Clare had spotted a lot of acorns in the Pit Wood and set the trail camera hoping to catch either a badger and/or a jay collecting or eating them. The camera picked up lots of activity, sadly most of it by grey squirrels although the very first capture was of a badger, even if you don’t get to see much of it. The sound is quite striking! We think the bird darting behind the tree in the fourth video, is a Jay.

29th September

Robbie arrived to dig out the first of the ponds. On the way he dug a trench for a new land drain near the spoil heaps by the Meadow. He also cleared some of the grips leading in to the pond to help with the water flow. John cut down and logged a couple of trees at the top of the Pit Wood.

30th September

Robbie finished the larger of the two ponds, adding an island with a Heron perching stone. He then moved on to work on the second pond, excavating this, creating another small island with Heron perch and establishing a roadway at the dammed end and had this all finished by early afternoon. And this from someone who was out carousing the night before - pretty impressive! John cut down more trees at the top of the Pit Wood to let light and space in for the younger planting. He also finished the drain Robbie had dug yesterday, making a French drain that is filled with gravel.

Looking north; Heron island left of centre

Looking south with opened up grips allowing for easier water flow

The spindly looking trees will not need to put on so much growth to reach the light

The smaller pond with Heron perch and opened grip

Finished! This shows the new roadway with the Meadow in the distance. Delightfully for us, Robbie is as excited about the new ponds as we are. All we need now is quite a lot of rain.

Clare and John

December 29, 2017

December 2017

Clare and John

December 29, 2017

2nd December

Paul has his hooves trimmed; William needs his doing so needs to be handled in a way that gets him ready.

4th December

John starts making a door for the shelter, not because the ponies have already bolted but to give William somewhere to be while Paul is put through his paces.

6th December

Eilidh joins John to work with Paul - Paul is like putty in her very competent hands and canters round on a lunging rein on the side he usually seeks to avoid. Eilidh takes William in hand/head collar too and begins some gentle training on the lead rein. John is thrilled to have such invaluable and experienced support.

The rest of the month

John continues to work on clearing the northern boundary in the Pit Wood.

Eilidh has been able to pick up William's feet and has been long-reining Paul.

We've had a bit of wall collapse on the Meadow/Road boundary - evidence that climbing a wall is not the best option when there is a gate and stile to use.

28th December

We are poised to launch the website. Mindful that we have used photographs taken of and by other people, surveys and creative contributions, we asked for permissions to include these. The responses have been interesting, to say the least. Phrases such as 'true colours are revealed', 'the mask slipping' and 'the shadow side of personalities' have been in our thoughts and we are left questioning the basis of some of our relationships. Thus far Clare's granddaughter's 'agent' has demanded a monthly payment of £1000 or childcare in perpetuity, Nick (he of the scything action) has replied: 'all proceeds from merchandising - sale of resin figurines of me in action, calendars featuring photos of me scything, me resting on my scythe, gazing, hand on chin, into the middle distance, wiping my brow etc - are paid to The Root Charitable Foundation, Cayman Islands.' And Neil (he who will usually be the first to offer help wherever it is needed) has said: 'Of course I am happy for you to use any material I might have provided! I'll enclose my bank details in a separate email for you to transfer the royalties...'. Keith does not ask for anything so obvious as money up front, however he does say: 'I suppose I should just mention that I have patented the terms "wildlife, environment, bird, plant, meadow, hay, butterfly, pond, deer, bee and volunteer." So as long as you avoid those it will be fine. If they are mentioned you will understand that I will, reluctantly, have to sue.'

We are redrafting our Christmas card list.

31st December

Clare paid an end of year visit to her bees and fed them sugar fondant - not individually you understand. She was very impressed by the clearing work John and Mel had done in the Pit Wood and in particular by the tidy log stacks!

Space offered for pregnant woman to give birth?

...and then another. They just need a pony to haul them.

Clare and John

February 29, 2016

February 2016 - welcome Paul!

Clare and John

February 29, 2016

3rd February

Part of the south boundary wall collapsed.

7th - 8th February

Dry-stone-walling repair!

9th February

Mark and Bill took down 3 Rowans that had been causing bulges in the south boundary wall.

10th and 12th February

Long-reining tutorials in Cumbria.

12th February

Bird hide Willows netted. Barn owl seen hunting over the Wetland and along near Top Strip.

14th February

Bird box fixed in scrub near (s) of south west corner of Meadow.

16th February

All bird boxes cleaned and checked, No 4 resited to Orchard; shed section 3 started; logs moved from top strip. (Even referring to 'shed section 3' hints that there will be more to come...)

20th February

3rd shed section completed.

21st February

Paul the Fell pony arrives!

23rd February

Meadow wet area refenced and additional stile. Seat made on old wall line. Wood cleared for chip from Rowan felled in quarry and logs split.

Between 16th February and 23rd February owl seen regularly! Pellets found.

Barn owl over Wetland

Clare and John

February 28, 2015

February 2015 - bird box alterations

Clare and John

February 28, 2015

13th February

We realised we needed a gateway to give access to the lower part of the land. Hal helped with clearing this new entrance and completing removal of hunt jump and re-walling.

14th February

Both above tasks completed. Bird box entrances altered.

19th February

Snipe on Wetland; hare on Top Grazing.