Coombe Wood (Friday morning - that's 3 times this week!)

A lovely sunny morning and after a sleep to try to clear the leftovers of a migraine I went for a walk to see if that would see it off.

Fluffy bulrush seeds waving in the breeze.

Pink roses and lovely clear blue sky. 

Clematis

Wine red Fuchsias lit up by the sun

Young grasshopper

The more I look at flowers the more I notice about them and the more I want to know about them! I've been looking up what happens with pollen. The pollen in the anthers swells and the outer casing of the anther dehydrates until it splits open - in various different ways depending on the particular flower. It's called dehiscence! Wikipedia says that Dehiscence (in botany) is "the spontaneous opening at maturity of a plant structure, such as a fruit, anther or sporangium, to release it's contants."

In this photo you can see the anthers have split open vertically and the outer coating spread back to reveal the pollen. 

These anthers are a different shape - not sure how they open to reveal the pollen.

Looking closer, I don't think they are doing it yet. 

Different anthers again and I think most of the pollen has gone from these.

Can't resist a poppy photo!

Acer seeds. 

 Thallictrum buds.

These are like little cheerful jewels opening up. 

I like the way the petals uncurl - dark on the outside and lighter on the inside.

It was quite breezy. The wind in the trees sounded like the sea and the tall grasses swayed and danced.

 Unusual coloured ferns. 

Tiny flowers on the plant that has leaves like arrowheads (shown in my previous walk). Purple anthers.

So the next thing I have been wondering is whether all pollen is yellow inside the different coloured anthers. I thought probably not because bees pollen sacs contain different coloured pollen.

I've just  looked it up - pollen does come in different colours including red, white, orange, yellow, brown, purple and blue (yes really!) Most plants have shades of yellow to attract bees and flying insects but butterflies and birds are also pollinators and they are attracted to shades of red. I don't know what is attracted to blue and purple though.

Different shades of green against that lovely blue sky. 

The acer seeds on this tree are getting quite big now. 

Candyfloss tree leaves darkening. 

Fern shadows. 

Spindle berry flowers with petals like popcorn. 

Poppies

Sea holly looks quite fluffy now but don't be deceived - they're still spiky and sharp.

A poppy pod and a bud.

 More poppies. 

A fat legged beetle in a poppy looks as if it's enjoying some pollen.

I'd never dream of putting red with purple but nature does it and it looks fabulous! 

Poppy seedhead. 

More poppies (well they will have finished soon - I have to make the most of them while they're here!)

Some very neat alliums. 

I'm not sure what these are but I love the colours and stripes. (Salvia hot lips behind it.)

The beech tree is doing its best in spite of the loss of several big limbs over the last couple of years.

This is what it looked like 6 years ago. 

Heading for the gate past the newly planted sunflowers etc. They look very settled and are already growing fast.

An allium seed head. 

Poppy seedhead further advanced than the previous ones in this post.

Leaves with ripple patterns. 

Damsel flies. 

Looking back towards another newly planted bed - with banana plants etc.

Thank you very much for joining me. 

And back again on Tuesday! (Coombe Wood)

A visit with one of my sisters and one of my daughters.

It had rained quite a lot in the night but not hard enough to clear the pollen layer on the pond.

Raindrops on leaves. 

Judas tree pods. 

Something has been eating a thalictrum flower before it's even had the chance to open.

It's obvious who's been eating the Crown Imperial Fritillary seed pods. Red lily beetle.

Gorgeous pattern of flower bud. 

Honesty pod - they go from pale green through purple and then turn white and papery.

Incredible leaves on this plant - like arrow heads. 

The patch of red leaves I'd noticed saw the day before but from a different angle.

Cornus showing more pinky areas. 

Stamens disintegrating - anthers falling off their filaments.

Some turning brown. 

We were heading back to the gate when we saw a beautiful butterfly.

and two more. 

Time for a quick photo of the riot of feathery foliage and tiny bright flowers.

Thank you very much for joining me.