27th April from the West Cliff Green, Bournemouth
Heavy grey clouds leaving just a knife edge narrow strip out over the bay where the sun shines through with an intense silver light on the water. The sea itself is rough and choppy and makes an angry hissing sound as it lunges and parries with the beach. Two big mowers roar as they criss cross the green. On the cliff top the long grass ripples under the combing breeze. Nearly every tree and bush is showing signs of green except for the old oak which is keeping its leafy cards close. There is no ash tree nearby to tell whether its going to be a wet summer or not. Under the trees it is calm and quiet and the uncut grass is lush and green. People passing to and fro have dug out their winter coats again. Pigeons coo and the rain falls.
From 27th April 2022
It's been a long spring and despite the storms and persistent cold wind I would still say that everything is well ahead of normal. (Some would say up to a month early) And now on this very chilly day, things are definitely moving in the direction of summer. Blackberry bushes have suddenly sprung up to fence high in places. The funny fiddle heads of braken are unfurling on the clifftop. The little yellow flowers of black medick are sprinkled among the grasses at the path edge. Cleavers are climbing up among the branches of the rhododendrons. Over the past few weeks, the arborists have been making safe and tidying up the damage caused by the earlier storms. Today they took down one of the big pines. These are quick growing and don't always live to a great age. I counted 86 rings so first planted in the 1930s. I noticed how close together the rings were in its 20s and wide apart in its thirties (Our 1950s and 1960s) denoting years of hardship and years of plenty. My hands are now covered in a gummy resin that will not wash off with soap and water and I'm sticking to everything I touch. At least they smell nice. #bournemouth #westcliffgreen #spring #April
From 27th April 2021
It's not unusual to have cold weather in April. In fact we get frost and even snow quite late in the month. This April has been notable for the fact that we've had a cold easterly airstream that has continued from the winter so that we've not had more than a couple of days of warmth since January. But more significant is that fact that it has been so dry and even though the sun is climbing higher every day, the spring flowers are already flagging. Everything's done its best but the bluebells look dry and uncomfortable. The whole length of the path is lined with the distinctive seed heads of cranesbill (if you're not familiar they really do look like tiny, long beaked birds) and ribworts. The mass of dandelions have already turned into woolly seed heads. The summer plants are trying to fill the gaps There are bright purple vetches twining through the clifftop grasses and the fiddle heads of the bracken are showing up jauntily. The plant that seems to be doing well this year is the periwinkle that always seems to be a stranger with its big blue flowers and glossy leaves. A dunnock sings in the evening from a still bare branch.
