Friday morning walk (Coombe Wood)

The morning started off bright and sunny and once again various plants caught my attention because they were spotlit by the sunshine.

Orange reflections in the pond. 

So many seed developing

and berries. So many of the stems are red not brown as I imagine when I don't look closely. 

Faces turned to the sun. 

Grass seeds glitter as the long stems sway in the gentle breeze.

Pods are promises of new life.  

Love-in-a-mist pod. 

Brittle papery Golden Rain Tree pods deepening in colour.

I was surprised to see how red some of the grass fronds further back are.

Zebra grass - there a spray of seeds opening at the top left

Getting a better look at the seeds.

Looking along one of the side paths I noticed another tree illuminated by the sun.

Many of the leaves have fallen from this acer which makes it easier to see the winged seeds that remain on the tree.

Looking down the path towards the "burning bush"

 and up another path where there's still a little pocket of thin mist.

A cloud of tiny insects swirling about under the branch (right - all the white spots) with their wings lit up by the sunlight.

More illuminated leaves. 

My shadow in a pool of light, on the sawdust under the big beech tree. I like it when the light is low and my shadow looks tall and slim!

I went back to the pond to meet a friend and after chatting over a leisurely cuppa in the cafe we walked for a while and I thoroughly enjoyed my friend's enjoyment of the plants that I enjoy looking at. 

The leaves/needles on this little tree are so soft and delicate - the ones on the dying branch towards the middle are very red. 

The Autumn crocus has no leaves when it flowers. Just look at the gorgeous vein markings - aren't they fabulous! The centres don't look like the centres of spring crocuses which have bigger stigmas and shorter stamens.

The leftovers of the tiny sapphire blue flowers - more surprising splashes of red.

The little white flowers are still going strong

some have turned into balls of fluffy seeds. 

Looking closer at the crinkly patterns

The bees are still very interested in these red flowers.

My friend and I both love the textures and patterns of nature. We spent quite a while looking at these.

My friend noticed the tiny caterpillar at the bottom of this cluster of yellow flowers.

Cyclamen leaves - lovely patterns. 

Acer leaves with the "burning bush" in the background. 

Here it is again - the "burning bush". 

One of the cats came to see us. 

These heart shaped leaves are incredible. They're going through an incredible range of colours.

From the big tree near the little hut. 

 All of the slices of wood have been removed from under the big beech tree now

and the rotten wood and the collection of stones have been removed from the wound on the side of the tree.

The other side of the hedge there are a lot of beech nuts all over the ground and a few sprinkled on the plants too. Here's one on a sedum.

Looking through the hedge from the herbaceous border.

There are still loads of buds on the cosmos plants. This pastel pink flower has very clear starry shapes around the edge of its centre - there are so many different structures here.

Busy bee.

 These are huge and are a really deep red. 

Sage seed pods. 

Thank you very much for joining me.