#365daysofbiking Sparser:
September 18th – The flowers are getting sparser now, and soon the only real blooms will be the gorse, and the odd winter stragglers. On the grass verge outside work, the birdsfoot trefoil – egg and bacon – is still going strong, and you can see well how it found its name: the seed heads look like bird’s feet.
#365daysofbiking A bitter pear:
September 17th – The pear tree in Clayhanger has had a good season, against my expectations.
I had thought the crop this year would be poor due to the dry summer and ravenous birds, but it’s been heavy and the fruit are large and softer than the usual small, bitter offerings. And mercifully free of bird-pecks.
But oh my goodness they’re sharp!
A lovely thing to see.
#365daysofbiking Still hanging on:
September 15th – Back on the canal in Brownhills on the way back home, the autumn was far more subtle. The hawthorn hedgerows are very, very crimson this year with hawthorn berries showing a particularly heavy harvest, and the reed beds, grass and waterside trees are still pretty green.
If I tried hard, I could just forget the oncoming season and still convince myself these were the end days of a great summer.
#365daysofbiking Tinges:
September 15th – Nipping top Shenstone and Aldridge on errands, I stopped on the railway bridge to survey the classic view over the rooftops of the village, to note that autumn was coming here now – and not just the accelerated leaf drop of the leaf-miner affected horse chestnuts, either – but tinges of red and brown in most of the trees.
Soon this will be a riot of colour, and then bare trees again to close out the year.
Where has 2018 gone?
#365daysofbiking That old imperative:
September 13th – First of the year for me, I would wager that conkers are irresistible to any British male of any age. We can’t simply walk past one of these beautiful shiny nuts lying on the ground.
In our childhoods, we hunted and sought these out, and today, they’re plentiful; but I still can’t resist collecting a few when I see horse chestnuts.
There lovely examples were in Lichfield Road near the Butts.
One of the nicer things about autumn.
#365daysofbiking The rise and gall:
September 12th – I’ve been watching the robin’s pincushion gall I found in Darlaston mature as the weeks pass by. I’m interested to see if it shows any sign of being vacated by the insects who grow inside it, and also observe how it decays, to find out what’s under the ‘fur’.
It’s grown redder, and the fur seems to be dying away, with a cavity open on the upper side. I wonder if the wasps have left?
These creations of parasites – unique to wild and dog roses – are absolutely fascinating and I’ll be keeping an eye on this one as autumn draws on.
#365daysofbiking Up the junction:
September 10th – A quick hop up on to Catshill Junction Bridge which is always a good spot to note the passage of the seasons.
Forgetting the weather (which is decidedly grim right now) there’s a definite tinge of autumn in those trees, towpaths, banks and bushes. It’s still quite, quite green – but there is the kiss of gold at the extremities, and the green looks dark and weary.
And the season’s wheel grinds on.
#365daysofbiking Springing up for autumn
August 31st – A welcome return with the damper weather has been the fungi, which has been mostly absent all through the dry summer.
I love to see toadstools and fungus in all it’s variety and this example on the towpath – some sort of Suillus I suspect – was glistening in the morning rain and was alive with bugs feasting on it.
#365daysofbiking Spirit of the water
August 30th – Returning home at sunset after a long day I noticed that Autumn is now encroaching. The evenings feel chilly and damp, although not yet cold; the greenery has the beginnings of the season’s golden jacket and things just look duller.
Still it was beautiful, and nice to see the canal so full after the leak in the summer.
#365daysofbiking Light and shade
August 29th – I passed through Kings Hill Park twice during the morning – once on my way to work, when it was dull and overcast, and once at lunchtime, when the sun was out.
The appearance of the twin sisters – the Catholic and C of E churches at Wednesbury differed markedly, and not just because they were taken from either end to he park.
The sun shows the gathering autumn, and the brightness of the verdigris on the one church roof. I like the way it picks out the coin tiles and clock face, even though the clock is currently stuck resolutely at one o’clock.
I never tire of this view. I hope the timepiece is fixed soon – few things speak more eloquently of urban decay than a stopped public clock.
I must say, the Canon G1X really does show it’s chops when pushed.
BrownhillsBob's #365daysofbiking 