WHAT'S NEW, WHAT'S OLD, WHAT'S YET TO COME - and, most of all - WHAT'S NOW!

Blackthorn flowers before

it comes into leaf.

I’ve been housekeeping the blog so it should load faster onto your screen.

Most links are now under tabs at the top of the page. I’ll soon be adding notes to explain in what ways the different sites might be of use or of interest - though many are clear in themselves.

The labels list is more concise. (Still under construction too - there must have been more than one post about Spring before this!)

The mass of Blackthorn flowers can

turn the hedgerows

solid white.

‘What I Read’ (wide-ranging and idiosyncratic) has been reduced to a short list of blogs with a similar focus to Loose and Leafy. Not that I’d be able to explain my thoughts well here - Lithops, Sri-Lankan Trees and creatures in the National Zoo in Washington DC have very little in common with the hedgerows of south-coast England. Parallels between Loose and Leafy and The Green Man and Rebecca in the Woods may be more obvious. Don’t be put off by the title of ‘Tree Care Tips’. You may not be about to go pruning but I think it will interest all who like trees. Do check on the ‘Related Blogs’ tab from time to time. I’ve lost track of some links. They will be added back in gradually and more added.

The fruits of Blackthorn
are called 'sloes' and are

used for making ‘sloe gin’

(and nothing else I can think

of because they are so tart).
(September 7th 2010.)

Yet to be included . . . an  ‘ABOUT’ tab. Whenever I visit a blog for the first time, I like to know a little about the author and where he or she lives. This ‘where’ thing is very important in a blog like this and I’ve neglected it. I introduce you to trees and plants, bushes and flowers; occasionally I offer glimpses of views; but there’s little real context; the area as a whole; what people do here; how they live. I plan to put this right, partly in posts; partly under a tab.

* * * *

September 11th 2010

I have noticed two varieties of sloes (Blackthorn fruits) ripening locally in late summer). The ‘ordinary’ kind with a ‘bloom’ on (above) - and shiny ones (on the right).

April 4th 2011

Hawthorn flowers are sometimes muddled with those of blackthorn because they too are white. However, they aren't out yet; they arrive later - AFTER their leaves. (Their flower buds, at present, are barely visible.)

The fruits of Hawthorn are called 'haws' and, unlike sloes, are red.

And finally, almost insignificantly - but part of the ‘now’ - at our feet, this . . .

Happy Spring!