25th August 2010

Previous journal entry.

Only a short time ago, I was recording signs of new growth and the behaviour of nesting birds but there are already indications that we are rushing towards the end of summer.

I was staying at Naburn Lock, on the outskirts of York, a few days ago and noticed how many berries are ripening in the hedgerows.

Around the camping field, purging buckthorn has been used as a hedging plant and was carrying many black berries. It was when I sat down to do a watercolour of the berries that I realised how autumnal some of the shrubs were looking.

Purging buckthorn is one of those shrubs which is easy to miss in a mixed hedgerow but it becomes more conspicuous when the berries develop, making it stand out from neighbouring plants such as dogwood or blackthorn.

Judging by its name, purging buckthorn had its uses in the past - as a laxative - but I think it is one of those plants which should be treated with respect. Natural medicines aren’t always as user-friendly as the modern alternatives.

At our local boating lake, there were thousands of feathers blowing around on the edge of the artificial beach earlier today. These have been shed by the mallards, which are just beginning to come out of their ‘eclipse’ plumage. In other words, the males are starting to regain their showy plumage, rather than looking dull and brown like the females, as they do during August.