RINGLET

The little rings on the underside of the wings give the ringlet butterfly its name.

The markings on the topside of the wings are rather fainter so that it looks as if it is made of dark brown velvet with a white edge.  The colour fades to a lighter brown as they age.

Photos: Alan Watts

They are only around from June till August so  catch them while you can - not literally of course.  Even trying to catch them on camera is harder than it seems.  Although their flight seems rather weary and hesitant, I can never get close to them before they flutter on again and disappear in the grass.

It's coarse grasses that the caterpillars feed on.  Ideal grazing for them at Filnore Woods.  They hibernate through the winter and have a ten month caterpillar-life before pupating and then emerging as adult butterflies the following summer.

 

BROOMRAPE

This curious plant growing amongst ivy ground cover has no chlorophyll because it is totally parasitic on the roots of the surrounding plants.  It especially likes clover.

The rather spooky flowers are on a long stalk with vestigial leaves.

Growing in an extended group, here are some just emerging from the ground.

And here are three open flower stems from the same root.

 

HEDGE MANAGEMENT

At the latest work morning volunteers cleared the tall plants growing alongside the hedge we laid a few years ago.  To make a good habitat we need the hedge to grow wider, for which it needs light.  Cutting back the nettles and docks and other tall plants will allow the hawthorn and hazel that make up the hedge to grow out sideways as well as up.

Before the work the hedge was being overwhelmed by herbage

Afterwards it was somewhat clearer.  Once the hawthorn gets going it will ward of the competition.

 

MEADOW VETCHLING

At Filnore now the Meadow Vetchling is adding a touch of gold to the green of the grasses.  It's doing particularly well in the top meadow between posts 4 and 5.

The yellow flowers are clearly from the pea family.

And the foliage is quite distinct from the other plants which it needs to support it.

 Meadow Vetchling has tendrils but it mostly supports itself by leaning on surrounding plants.  Here you can see it scrambling up amongst the early flowers of bramble.

WHITE CAMPION

 Very similar to Red Campion - but white!  They are actually distinct species, both common throughout Britain.  But White Campion seems to be rarer in our area.

I actually took these photos in Dorset at the weekend.

RED CAMPION

A bit late now but I hope you managed to see and enjoy some red campion flowers along a hedgerow or the edge of a wood.

They come out as the bluebells are going over and can last into July

 

WHO'S BEEN EATING MY APPLES AND BEANS ?

I've been noticing a lot of shrivelling on one of my apple trees

Looking closely I saw a number of ants on the leaves, and a lot of old, dead skins.  Could the ants be causing it?

Well indirectly yes.  They place sap-sucking aphids on the leaves so that they can milk them for the sweet-tasting honeydew that the aphids exude.  Here's a flock of pink and purple aphids sucking away and a couple of ant 'shepherds' in attendance.

But as well as these villains there are also heroes.  That knobbly black character in the photo below is a young ladybird larva.  Ladybird larvae just lurve munching aphids.  Keep it up, guys.  

BTW the ladybird larvae would not be there if the apple trees were sprayed with insecticide to kill the aphids.

Further down the garden my broad beans have been covered in blackfly, another species of aphid.  And here there are more ladybird larvae at work.  These are grey with yellow spots.  Can you see two in this photo?

One up high

and one a bit lower.