Alder leaves (Alnus glutinosa) against a backdrop of the silky waters of the Wharf
The catkins are dying away now and the leaves are sprouting on the shrubby waterside trees around the Wharf (old Bute East Dock) next to our office in Cardiff’s County Hall.
I went out for a walk at lunchtime on April 26 to take these pictures – and was pleased to find that my earlier identification of many of the species seems to have been correct.
Alders (Alnus glutinosa)
Alder leaves and old and new female catkins
More alder leaves and a solitary remaining male catkin
Willows (Salix)
There are several species of willow, but I can only differentiate by the leaf shape at the moment…
Round-leaved willow with maturing female catkins
Broad-leaved willow with male catkins
The broad willow leaves
More male catkins
These are catkins of a narrow-leaved willow…
…and when I enlarged the image I saw this long-bodied black fly with pincers almost forming a circle at the tail – any ideas?
Maples (Acer)
This pretty little plant seems to have self-seeded from trees on the far side of the Wharf…
…similar leaves on the trunk of a maple tree across the water…
…which has these flowers
Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus) is one of the few maples I can recognise immediately…
…and here’s another sapling
Poplars (Populus)
These shiny green leaves look like a poplar of some sort…
This seems to be the parent tree of the sapling…
…pictured here
There is also a red-leaved version – if these are poplar, I wonder what the species is?
Pine (Pinus)
There are pines on the far side of the Wharf, shielding it from the main road and the steelworks…
…new growth like candles on a Christmas tree
Other species
Wild cherry (Prunus), perhaps?
The dogwood (Cornus, possibly red-stemmed Cornus sanguinea) is coming into flower
A sapling of ash (Fraxinus excelsior)
This is my favourite time of year, when it is still possible to see the details in nature. When exuberant summer comes it will all be a little bit too much!
The Squirrelbasket 
So much new life happening! My favourite time of year. Hope you’re enjoying the long weekend Pat. We’re planning on Kimmeridge Bay today despite the possible traffic hold ups.
Hope that went well!
I remember visiting the Kimmeridge shale when I was a student, but I would love to go back there.
Great weather at the moment, isn’t it?
All the best 🙂