IF you’re one of many estimated 10million hay fever victims in Britain, you would possibly wish to look away now. One of many essential causes of this situation is grass pollen, and the vegetation are in full bloom (simply in time to coincide with college exams).
I’ve observed when strolling that there’s a nice selection within the form of the flower heads and I’ve been eager to do a column about grasses for some time, however the issue is getting photos – when you take {a photograph} of a patch of grass it inevitably appears like a patch of grass. Final week I hit on a greater concept and armed myself with a provider bag and scissors to snip off the flowering heads (fortunately I don’t have hay fever) and take them dwelling to {photograph}.
The primary two photos are the results of a one-mile stroll from the following village on Thursday morning. Â
That is the results of a half-mile stroll in the other way on Thursday afternoon.
There’s a specific amount of duplication as a result of the heads can look fairly completely different in response to the age of the flower and the way a lot mild it will get, and clearly the leaves don’t assist a lot in identification, plus I’m very ignorant about grasses. Nevertheless I consider the 38 stalks in these photos there have to be getting on for 30 varieties. Each is a miniature treasure, as this close-up of cocksfoot grass (Dactylis glomerata) reveals:
The tiny grains of pollen comprise proteins that may irritate and inflame the nostril, eyes, throat and sinuses. They are usually spherical or bean-shaped. I couldn’t discover a inventory image of a grass pollen grain however listed below are some daisy grains a lot magnified and you’ll see what nasty little blighters they’re.
There are about 160 species of grass in Britain, and 10,000 worldwide, making them some of the quite a few plant households. Their success is because of the truth that not like most vegetation, they develop from the bottom. If broken, maybe by a grazing animal (an enormous selection feed on grass, from elephants and cows to grasshoppers and caterpillars) they normally proceed to develop. The tallest on the earth is the dragon bamboo (Dendrocalamus giganteus) which regularly exceeds 100ft. The tallest up to now measured was 138ft in India.
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Sheep of the Week
THIS is the Dutch Noticed sheep, which I had by no means heard of, not to mention seen, however I’d like to.
It was first recorded within the west of the Netherlands round 1800. The realm was reclaimed from swamp by a system of embankments and farmers wanted a hardy breed of sheep to keep up the grass and eat any saplings. The sheep had to have the ability to stroll lengthy distances owing to the size of the embankments and in addition to face up to the acidity of the peat bogs. They chose the standard Dutch Noticed sheep for the duty and in the end the breed performed an necessary position in remodeling the peat bogs into sod robust sufficient to hold cows. Â
They’re pretty new to the UK however are gaining in reputation because of their look and easy-going temperament, making them appropriate for each giant farms and smallholders.
Here’s a video:
You may learn extra, and see some nice photos, on the Dutch Noticed Sheep Society web site.
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 . . . however is giving the spelling competitors a miss.
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HERE are two small wild flowers I discovered shut collectively that are straightforward to confuse except you have a look at the leaves.
That is bugle (Ajuga reptans), which has easy, shiny, virtually metallic leaves.
That is floor ivy (Glechoma hederacea), which has virtually furry leaves. (It’s nothing to do with ivy, however is a member of the mint household.)
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FINALLY, don’t overlook that reader Kathy Nel (‘linuslimmy’) is collating anecdotal proof about chook and bug numbers, both will increase or decreases (and even static). Ship your feedback and observations to this tackle: missingcritters@yahoo.com. For those who go away a remark under the road, we want a geographical location to have the ability to use it.
