Fungus time

              The memories of a hot summer are pretty faded now after what seems like weeks of rain, wind and damp conditions. It has been a pretty mild Autumn so far and it has been a good one for fungi with the combination of warmth and wet a good stimulus.  Crow Wood hosts a good number of species, a few are edible and a few I can actually name. 

The Stinkhorn....it lives up to its name, and is certainly popular with flies

These are Ceps, also called Penny Buns and one of the tastiest toadstools, these were dried to add to soups. Such a good size and quite a prize to find even though slugs had found them first.

A new approach ! My hope is that the slippery tarp will stop the Squirrels accessing the owl box

A wet woodland.....

The Blueberries give fruit in the Summer and great colour in the Autumn

Water, water everywhere

it has been a good year for Fly Agaric

                      So far the strong winds have not caused too much damage. When the ground is as saturated as it is, the tree roots are easily pulled out of the ground and I expect to have some trees down but this has not been the case so far. The winds have blown all of the chestnuts down and we have gathered up quite a few to eat over the coming weeks. It is a bit of a race with the local squirrels as to who gets the best ones - they chew their way through dozens. I moved the owl box several weeks ago to make it easier to access but the squirrels have been quick to fill it with their nesting material, but at least now I do not need a very tall ladder to get up to it. I am hoping I will be able to keep the little wretches out this year by making it harder for them to climb up or down the tree.  Then perhaps the owls will win this annual tussle.....time will tell.