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Nature Notes for 1906
Gowan Bank, Olton, Warwickshire
Cycled to the withy-beds within half a mile of Bushwood. It was a dull day with frequent showers of rain, so the country looked rather cold and grey. There was no sunshine to light up the ruddy blossom on the Elm and Alder trees. As I cycled between the hedges, I saw numbers of birds carrying on their house0building operations. I went a little out of my way, down the lane to King's-wood to visit the steep banks where the blue Periwinkle grows. There were numbes of flowers just opening; I only found one blossom fully expanded. The beds of white Violets and the bank where the white Periwinkle used to grow, that I had come to see, were some way off the road, and I had to carry my cycle nearly a quarter of a mile down a steep, muddy fordrough, set thick with thorns, with high banks on each side. On these sheltered banks, I found numbers of the Small Celandine blossom and the first flowers of the little Strawberry-leaved Cinquefoil. When I got to the bottom of the lane, I set my bicycle against a bank and pic-niced on a fence. A beautiful Jay in all the glory of his Spring plumage flew screaming across the lane into a spinney of of larch trees opposite. He seemed to resent the intrusion of a human being in such an unfrequented spot. I was glad to find the white Periwinkle still "trailing its wreathes" on the bank, but the flowers were only in bud; and the Violets too, were just uncurling their buds under their fresh green leaves. Among the notes of the numberous birds I recognised those of the Thrush, Blackbird, Hedge Sparrow, Sky-lark, Wren, Great Tit, Chaffinch, Green-finch, Pied Wagtail and Yellow Bunting. The latter was specially conspicious, perched up on top of the hedge with his bright yellow plumage; repeating his cry - one can hardly call it a song - with it's last, peculiar, long drawn out note, over and over again. 'A little bit of bread and no che-ese' the country people liken it to. In Cumberland they say it says "Devil, devil dinna touch me-e". This bird is called Yeldrin and Yellow Yowlie in Scotland. I noticed that the white Periwinkle blossoms have five petals, while the blue only have four. I wonder if this is always so.
Extract from "The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady", an illustrated nature diary written by Edith Holden in 1906.
The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady (tm)
© Rowena Stott (Designs) Ltd and RW.UK Ltd 2006
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