Beautiful Bluebells

 

You know that feeling when you look under a cushion and find a £20 note that must have fallen out of your pocket unnoticed? No nor do I, it is more likely to be a till receipt or a tissue in my house. But just imagine how good it would feel. Well that is sort of how I felt earlier today when I picked up my camera to get a couple of macro shots of a mysterious bug on our garden wall (more of that at a later date). After I had got a few decent shots I scrolled through to find a load of pictures from a recent day out that I had forgotten I had, then to make things even better I found a load of pictures from a day out before that too. I was so pleased I could hardly wait until I finished work to upload them.

So although the bluebell season has ended I still have a few pictures that I haven't processed yet, I don't want to overload this post with too many pictures so I will spread them over a day or two. Unlike my last post which was from a walk in Boilton Woods these were taken at Burton Mere, I think you will agree that these are quite special, such beautiful flowers and now they are gone for another year it is nice to still be able to enjoy their beauty.

I am so grateful for the beauty of nature and I am grateful that I found these almost forgotten images (I would have liked to find £20 too).

The Lenten Rose

 Last Saturday was a beautiful sunny spring day and I was faced with the prospect of a visit to a well know DIY/Home improvement store. For me that is akin to torture so I rebelled and proposed a day out instead. I ended up at Bodnant gardens in North Wales which is always a lovely place to visit. As it is so early in the season there was not a great variety of flowers in bloom but there were lots of buds with the promise of much more to come as spring advances. There were however some early blooms scattered around and these were inviting lots of bees which was good to see.

I have quite a few pictures to sort through and I am starting with these three shots of a Hellebore. I have to say that I am not normally a fan of hellebores however this particular variety (Helleborus x hybridus Ashwood Strain) really caught my eye with its dark edged petals and when you look below the drooping heads you find a brightly coloured centre (is it yellow or green?) holding the pollen and nectar which proved to be very attractive to several bees. 

I have learned today that Hellebores are native to Greece and Turkey and that they are part of the buttercup family.

A fancy flock

On Wednesday morning as I was walking to work I passed through Covent Garden and I was greeted by a number of Shaun the Sheep in different guises. By late afternoon as I passed through again there were about 50 in total and I have posted a few of my favourites.

There have been two Shaun the Sheep trails, in Bristol and in London and now it seems that all 120 of the sculptures will be together in Covent Garden until Sunday and then they will be auctioned to raise funds for the Wallace and Grommet children's charity. What a great cause and what a great way to raise money. Who couldn't love these colourful creations.

Although there are just a few pictures here if you want to see more but can't get to Covent Garden then visit my Facebook page chipster63photograpy where I have created an album with pictures of all the sheep that had been put in place, sadly I didn't see all 120. While you are there you can like my page and find links to other blog pages.