Ely

The town of Ely lies just over an hour's journey from home and we made the journey in August, towards the end of the summer holidays.  We left mid-morning and went through Thetford forest, where a pleasant place to lunch is the Hare Arms in the village of Stow Bardolph.  Just over the road from the pub are these attractive alms houses.

Before the fens were drained Ely was an island and the cathedral was known as the ship of the fens, as it can be seen from miles around and would have given the appearance of sailing in the surrounding water.  Here is the bell tower.

The nave ceiling is of is beautifully painted wood, a nineteenth century addition.

The stained glass windows are a significant feature of the cathedral.

The ornate high altar.

The 1931 organ by Harrison & Harrison, refurbished in 2001.

Wooden carvings grace the choir.

The west façade from Palace Green.

The south west transept towers.

St Mary's Cottage (circa 1550).

The octagonal tower.

Magnificent tudor chimneys.

Late summer flower baskets decorate the streets.

We spent the night in Ely, travelling back home the next day.

Some Pests

The horse-chestnut leaf miner (Cameraria ohridella) made its appearance in England a few years back and its moths are thought to have been brought over from mainland Europe travelling on trucks.  Certainly it is very obvious that trees closest to roads are the ones worst affected.  It is now a common sight for horse-chestnut trees to look as if they are heading for autumn in mid-August, some trees completely brown by the end of August.  There was some opinion when the moth first appeared that this could spell the end of these trees in England, much as Dutch elm disease had removed mature elms from the countryside in the 1960s.

A pest when you are out walking, it also has medicinal uses: stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) can be found in impenetrable colonies like this one all over the countryside.

Impenetrable is probably a word much better used to describe brambles (Rubus fruticosus), here seen attractively growing around some straw bales left in the field since last year.  It's about this time that the fruits start ripening and blackberry picking becomes a common weekend activity.

Striking red berries of Bitter Nightshade (Solanum dulcamara) are eaten by birds, which accounts for their very successful distribution.  They are, however, very poisonous to cattle and people, although it also has some medicinal uses.

Mildew can be found on many oaks at the end of a hot, wet summer.  Much more of a problem for the trees is the gall wasp, which lays its eggs in the buds of the trees.  The size of the gall is determined by the number of larvae competing for space within the gall.

Finally, I have no idea what killed off this young beech tree, but it was possibly a succession of dry years and a poorly developed root system unable to cope.

Seeding

In late August it's still really summer, but the seasons start to change with the first appearance of seeds and fruits.  We've reached that time of the year when

Golden tropft Blatt um Blatt

nieder vom hohen Akazienbaum.

Sommer lächelt erstaunt und matt

in den sterbenden Gartentraum.

Lange noch bei den Rosen

bleibt er stehn, seht sich nach Ruh.

Langsam tut er die großen,

müdgewordenen Augen zu.

(Hermann Hesse, September)

[Gold drops leaf by leaf

From the tall acacia

And summer smiles, weak and enraptured

By the dying dream of the garden.

Yearning for rest,

It lingers among the roses.

Slowly it closes

Its large eyes, grown weary.]

So I start with two beautifully evocative images of late afternoon sunshine in Wriggle Street.

In Mutton Lane great willowherb is shedding is scattering its feathery seeds.  Even as summer comes to a close, Nature's astonishing regenerative powers are at work.

Even as a large bee pollinates some late flowers of knapweed, seedheads are forming on adjacent stalks.

A single blue sloe's inviting appearance belies its bitter taste.

The glorious mauve of thistle has given way to the soft browns of its seed heads.

Angelica genuflexa holds aloft its fronds of drying seeds.

The everlasting sweet pea (Lathyrus latifolius) flowers through a large part of the summer.

Like the knapweed, its seeds can often be found on plants which are still in full bloom.

The tall heads of wild teasel (Dipsacus fullonum) can be seen growing on verges or in fields through the summer.  While some are still flowering, others have their striking cones drying in the late summer sun.

These heads are near the end of their flowering cycle.  The florets first appear in a circumference halfway down the cone.  The delicate lilac band gradually broadens and as the first florets in the centre die, two rings of new florets separate.  Here one has moved down to the base, the other to the top.

Evening sunlight catches these giant heads dramatically.

Lords-and-ladies or cuckoo-pint (Arum maculatum) can be easily spotted in hedgerows and its bright orange berries look inviting.  It is, however, very poisonous, containing quantities of oxalic acid.

Finally, the ubiquitous Cleavers, also known as Goosegrass, Robin-run-the-hedge or Sticky Willy (Galium aparine), nuisance to hikers and domestic pets.