Hemblington Church: archaeology and botany-blitz!

Good friend Sue gave a talk today about the history and archaeology of our little church. As expected, the morning was an absolute delight: well-attended, beautifully delivered and followed by tea and cheese scones!  I learned a great deal that I hadn't suspected about the church and its surroundings, much of which was discovered during various renovations and building projects over the past few years.

The event was organised by the Bure Valley Conservation Group, under the stewardship of David Savory and Tina Woodrow, and two local botanists were on hand to undertake a mini-survey of the churchyard. As usual, I carried out a bird count, finding;

Wren,
Blue Tit,
Great Tit,
Long-tailed Tit,
Blackbird,
Starling,
Linnet
Blackcap
Whitethroat,
Lesser Black-backed Gull,
Goldfinch,
Wood Pigeon,
Collared Dove

The three in red are new for the churchyard (as far as I know!) Flying across the neighbouring fields and in the trees by the 'carpark',  I saw Buzzard, Marsh Harrier and Treecreeper: not a bad haul for an isolated patch of hedges and poplars. Some of the more interesting plants are shown below, and include Oxlip, Cowslip, Meadow Saxifrage, Pig Nuts and Yellow Rattle.