There are definite signs that Autumn is upon us, I have already shown you some of the mushrooms that are starting to appear, I am sure I will be adding to them over the last section of this month, especially when I go up to the woods hunting Chanterelles, one of my favourite to eat. Other signs include the changing colour of leaves on the trees and the fact that the wife has already started to sweep the Silver Birch leaves of the paths. So though a colourful time (and I hope to capture plenty of that) it is a sign that the dreaded cold weather and Winter is on it’s way.
16th.
In the first half of this month I showed you a tight little phallic like mushroom, well it has bloomed into this beauty in the first shot, fairly large with about a 3″ diameter, unbelievable to have grown that quick.
The second fungus goes by the elaborate name of Clavulinopsis Luteo-alba (I only know that because I looked it up) and is found growing in lawns and turf, this particular clump is growing on our washing greenand I had to clear some of the grass away so you could get a better view of this tiny plant, about 1″ high.
17th.
I said I hoped this month ending would be full of colour and this plant is a good way of starting that colour. Not sure of the name but we have had it beside the pond for years and though the leaves when green are okay, it is this time of the year that it really shows off. Fairly waxy and that gives it the shine to really make it stand out.
18th.
It is a sure sign of Autumn when you get mornings like today, sun breaking through and burning of the mist from last nights rain and a overnight temperature of just 5C. But what it does do is show off the beauty of our surrounding countryside, these to shots taken out of the bedroom window when I opened the curtains.
The first shot is over Blair Walker pond/lochan where I go fishing, the second is of a small wood that in the past was used to pen the young pheasants in. The shoots seem to have virtually stopped these days, presumably because there is not much money in it . Before there was a large enclosed wire pen that held the young pheasants in and once released feeders all around the wood to keep them there. Once the shooting stopped the mature trees were removed and the Birch just left to grow on. We do see an occasional Roe Deer coming and going but that is it until they put sheep in, who love exploring the woods.
19th.
Further up Glen Tilt in amongst the woods is a rifle range, used by clubs all over Scotland because of it’s unique set up. It is in fact the longest civilian range in the world. In the shot (no pun intended) on the middle right you can see the line of white roundels that are the targets. If you follow that central line back and if you look closely you will see white poles sticking up, these are the distance markers going back to the first one, which I think is half a mile from the targets. As you can see we have a misty damp day here today but it certainly adds to the atmosphere of the photo.
A bonus few shots for today, this time of the year I visit my favourite Birch wood to hunt for what has to be one of the tastiest mushrooms going, they are Chanterelles. The first shot is the wood, the second is the mushrooms in situ and lastly in the kitchen the results of my hunt all ready to be brushed off clean and into the pan for dinner.
20th.
Way back in June I gave you a picture of a female Hybrid Wildcat that looked pregnant, though we do not see her very often we now have a different one present in our garden and we think it may well be the kitten from our grown up. The reason we think this is because it has less stripes on the tail, a lot smaller and becoming very brave to be in the garden during daylight . The main reason for this is that we put some food out for it most nights and it is coming into the garden before the mature cat to get the food first.
The photo above I took today just after 2 pm. in what we now think is where it is lying up during then day under a bush amongst some dead tree stump. This allowed me to creep out with my camera and get this shot of it watching me intently. I am afraid I had to frighten it off as we are concerned about the safety of the garden birds that feed a few yards away from this spot. But what a face.
21st.
Great satisfaction as we now have a new set of gates, the old ones were on their last legs , warped and old as they were the original gates to the house when built. The previous set were equal in size which made it a bit tight for some vehicles (or drivers) to get in without opening both gates, now with the longer side on the drive side of the entrance it will be a lot easier to swing in. and more obvious for pedestrian visitors to enter via the small gate.. Bespoke made by a local craftsman and we are so pleased with them.
22nd.
I headed this blog by saying Autumn is coming, well today is the Autumn Equinox so it is no longer coming, it is here. Though it is the Equinox, apparently the days and nights are not equal for another three days so can we say we have a few days left of summer?
Looking at our Sweet Pea wigwam I think we can say summer has finished, the near gale force gusts of wind have blown it over and we have hardly a bloom left. Though I will say it has flowered its socks off for months now and virtually everyday the wife has needed to pick a big bunch of blooms, a very successful spot to place them in, on my home made willow and beech construction. Soon be going on the compost heap and will re-build a new wigwam next year.
23rd.
Here’s a strange one, went to lay some flowers on a friends grave today in the village church and discovered this circle of higher grass in the churchyard. Now I have no idea what would cause this to occur, but I think you can see from the shot it is almost a perfect circle. I have seen in with fungus growing in this shape but never grass? is it caused by underground fungus nourishing the soil, or a deposit of different earth, but then would it come up so circular?
Of course Google gave me the answer, it is in fact the start of a fairy ring of fungus, apparently it is the fungus breaking down the nutrients in the soil causing unusual growth in the grass which will eventually turn the turf brown and die and the mushrooms will break through the surface, Isn’t nature fascinating.
24th.
I am a sucker for looking at cloud formation and this was no exception. When I opened the back door this morning to feed the birds I just looked up and saw this one cloud in a clear blue sky, rushed back to the bedroom, got the camera and took this shot , all before having a drink or anything, just liked the wispyness of it , like candy floss.
25th.
Having stated in yesterdays post that I loved clouds, storm clouds like this have very little appeal to me. If I looked to my left it was lovely sunshine (as can be seen on the tree tops), but looked to the right, and as this shot illustrates it was extremely black and menacing. Underneath that cloud is a Munro mountain so it just shows how low those clouds were. Not nice, especially if you were up that hill at the time.
26th.
A few of days ago on this blog I told you about us having new gates and me being so tight with wood for burning has stripped down one of the old gates , sawn it up and it is in for the next fire we have in our log burner. In know people say we should not burn pine on the fire as it clogs the chimney up with tar but if you get it swept regularly I have not seen much deuteriation in our liner. Apart from that it’s free wood and who doesn’t want to burn free wood and this will keep us warm for a night or two.
27th.
Decided to have a couple of days away, for a change and of course for my beloved to hit the shops of Edinburgh. We like staying in Leith as it is away from the hustle and bustle of the city centre and managed to get a waterside view from our Premier Inn bedroom. Went for a walk at sunset and was able to see the the three main crossings of the Firth of Forth from outside our room. The solid one is the railway crossing, the middle upright is the old road crossing and the double upright is the new bridge, all with a glorious sunset behind them.
28th.
Just as we woke up on day two of our little adventure we pulled back the curtain of our room to witness this small fishing boat on it’s way out for the day, obviously a local as it seemed to be ignoring the route through the navigation buoys. The second shot is of the variety of different boats in this little harbour of Newhaven , fishing and leisure. An enjoyable couple of days away, highlighted (for me anyway) by the quality food we ate in a great tapas Bar in George Street Edinburgh and the fish restaurant in Newhaven.
29th.
Not included in this years shots, but I think way back I showed you these wooden carvings that adorn our local park, showing the various animals that can be seen in the countryside around Blair Atholl. All four of which can either be seen in or around our garden, the only one that does not come in the garden is the Hare , if it did I doubt I would have many plants to show you in the blog. Cannot remember just how long these carvings have been up but the poor old Hare is now missing an ear and the Wildcat has been cut in half where the wood has split, but still a good addition to the park.
30th.
Looks a bit strange I know, but these are the tender plants that are to large to bring in for the Winter, so have to be wrapped in fleece from now on. Why so early I can hear you Southerners say? Well last night our overnight temperature went down to Minus one C , and it might even have been to late in protecting these and other plants we normally bring in until Spring.
Well that is another month done, just one hundred days to Christmas day, which means one hundred and six days to complete my New year resolution of a different shot every day of the year on this blog. See you next month.