The rain has passed, the sun is out and so are too many people to make social distancing easy to achieve. Understandably the Centurion Way is popular, especially with cyclists but we need to keep away from any source of infection. It’s noticeable that some people are distinctly fearful now, really making an effort to keep clear. Usually it’s older people, unfortunately younger families are less responsible.
Once in the fields hardly anyone follows us which is much better so we can appreciate the lush green hedgerows and trees that abound. Over the past few days the Bracken really has sprung up; once it gets going the young shoots seem to change on a daily basis. From small shoots they’ve now risen to become strong plants almost waist
high.
The spring flowers carpet the edges of the fields that are, thankfully, unaffected by spraying. Here some dandelions are surrounded by bluebells; it’s noticeable that several have flowered and gone to seed already. The weeds growing profusely amongst the crops have also gone to seed, more evidence that the farmer has given up. They’re plenty of butterflies around, especially orange tip, apparently they are white ones that had an encounter with some Orange juice.
The trees get ever greener, it’s the Oak that’s now fully clothed competing with the Horse Chestnut in the rush to gain as much as possible from the increasing sunlight. The leaves of a tree with round
balls we couldn’t identify earlier have now come out making it clear that it’s a London Plane. It’s not surprising as they’re all in cultivated areas.