Man orchid revisited

An early morning visit to Barnack Hills and Holes provided me with a myriad of botanical treats. I went to see the man orchids, which are having a good year, after a run of rather low numbers. Although large parts of the reserve are roped off to protect the rare flowers, I found plenty of accessible specimens - just so beautiful in the low sunlight. There were also carpets of yellow rock-rose and horseshoe-vetch, and swathes of the purple flowered milk-vetch, another very uncommon species. 

I returned home for a shower and then it was time to head off to Ferry Meadows, where Pete and I led a joint bug and flower hunt as part of the finale of Peterborough's Wildlife Week . We spent all our time in one quite small area, but found plenty of interesting species including sheets of knotted clover and a good population of bur-chervil. It was also fun catching up with lots of old friends before and after the walk.

By the time we arrived home the skies had clouded over, and we decided not to go out again - probably just as well as my knee was starting to complain. Instead I planted out more annuals - hopefully they'll survive snail attacks!