Posted in Nature, Trees, Uncategorized, tagged elm, Nature, Pontcanna, Trees on July 13, 2017| 3 Comments »
Elms in Pontcanna Fields, Cardiff, on July 10
This month for a change I visited the 100 disease-resistant elms, Ulmus ‘New Horizon’, in Pontcanna Fields in the early evening, having usually made it a morning date.
This was after a few weeks of very dry, sunny weather, so I was pleased to see that the trees were all still very green and healthy.
Over the next 24 hours we had thoroughly soaking rain, so hopefully that has also topped up their resources. (more…)
Posted in Nature, Trees, Uncategorized, tagged Trees on July 7, 2017| 11 Comments »
Fruits on a young hornbeam tree (Carpinus betulus) outside Cardiff and Vale College in Dumballs Road, Cardiff
The monthly tree-following link box has now closed for another month. To explore everyone’s updates, please go straight to the bottom of this post.
Why don’t you join us and follow a tree, too? You can start at any time and you don’t have to contribute every month if that’s too much of a commitment for you.
Here in Cardiff it has been sunny for a few weeks with the occasional day of light, drizzly rain and, as I mentioned in my previous post, I am currently spending a lot of time in a different part of Cardiff, studying for a month at Cardiff and Vale College in Dumballs Road, in the Bay area. (more…)
Posted in Languages, Uncategorized, tagged Cardiff, languages on July 2, 2017| 16 Comments »
Cardiff and Vale College in Dumballs Road, Cardiff Bay
I think I had better explain why I haven’t published a blog post for over a week! Last Monday I started an intensive four-week course at Cardiff and Vale College (CAVC) and have had even less spare time than I expected. I will still be publishing the tree-following link box on July 7 and I hope to share some monthly tree news from all over the world, but if there is not much else you will know why.
Having been made redundant from newspapers twice in the last two years, I am now embarking on a new career, even though I am past what used to be a woman’s retirement age. (more…)
Posted in Non-digital archive, Photography, Uncategorized, tagged France, photography on June 22, 2017| Leave a Comment »
A place to cool off – this fountain in Lyon bears a line of poetry – ‘Permets m’Amour penser quelque folie’, which I have seen translated as ‘Do not chide me for this play on words’, from the 18th sonnet of Louise Labé, who lived in Lyon in the 16th century
We are having a mini heatwave in the UK at the moment and I am struggling to cope. It’s strange how there would be no problem with these temperatures if I were on holiday abroad. I have been going through my old 35mm negatives again and decided to share these images of one of my favourite French cities – Lyon, which sits on the rivers Rhône and Saône not too far from the border with Switzerland.
Once again I realise what better pictures I could take today with a digital camera. But for now I at least have my memories of this sunny city with its wonderful fountains, statues and old buildings. (more…)
Posted in Cardiff, Nature, Trees, Uncategorized, tagged Cardiff, elm, Pontcanna, Trees on June 11, 2017| 8 Comments »
A field of tents beyond the row of elms in Pontcanna Fields
The 100 disease-resistant elms, Ulmus ‘New Horizon’, in Pontcanna Fields saw a different background in early June, as soccer’s European Champions League final came to Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium.
In the game on June 3 Real Madrid beat Juventus by four goals to one, which was a bit disappointing and one-sided after all the build-up.
The whole city was affected and in expectation of a huge number of visitors a special campsite was set up in the fields, right beside the elm trees.
So of course I went to explore a few days before the match. (more…)
Posted in Nature, Trees, Uncategorized, tagged Nature, Trees on June 7, 2017| 11 Comments »
Soldier beetle spotted on my monthly visit to the 100 elms (I guessed Rhagonycha fulva but Paul Seligman thinks it might be Cantharis livida – there are many ‘soldier beetles’) …
The monthly tree-following link box has now closed for another month. Please explore everyone’s updates below.
Here in Cardiff June has started with cold, wet and windy weather after a hot, dry and sunny spell in May.
I have made my monthly visit to the 100 elm trees I am following in Cardiff’s Pontcanna Fields and shared a post, but here are a couple of pictures taken of a nearby maple tree. (more…)
Posted in Books, Uncategorized, Words, tagged Books, science, Words on June 4, 2017| 4 Comments »
Three books I read recently…
In January I signed up to the Reading Challenge on Jera’s Jamboree (details here). Shaz was encouraging us to step outside our comfort zone and read books we might not have considered before.
I decided to read something from EVERY category listed and you can see how I am getting on by looking at my blog page here.
Occasionally I will do a review and this time I am making notes on a non-fiction book, a book of poetry and a book chosen for me. (more…)
