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From the balcony of the Mantra Twin Towns, looking out over the roundabout that is pretty much the nsw queensland border.
You may view more of my images of Ickworth House, Park and gardens, by clicking "here" !
Please do not insert images, of group invite, thank you!
Ickworth Park. With over 1,800 acres of parkland designed by Capability Brown, the house and its grounds were created as an homage to Italy, the country so beloved by Frederick Augustus Hervey, the 4th Earl of Bristol. The Earl-Bishop spent his life travelling the continent, gathering together a vast collection of paintings, sculpture and artefacts. Already possessed of several houses, he conceived Ickworth primarily as a museum for his treasures. At his death only the Rotunda - the giant circular structure at the centre of the two wings, described by Hervey's wife as 'a stupendous moment of Folly' - was nearing completion. The house was eventually finished by his son. Although Hervey's treasures, confiscated during the French invasion of Italy, were destined never to occupy Ickworth, his descendants made it their life's work to rebuild what has become an exceptional collection of art and silver. Paintings housed in the galleries include works by Velázquez, Titian and Poussin, while the collection of 18th-century portraits of the family is exceptionally fine, featuring canvases by Gainsborough, Reynolds, Vigée-Lebrun and Hogarth. In addition to one of the very best British collections of Georgian Huguenot silver, Ickworth is also home to an impressive array of Regency furniture, porcelain, and domestic objects. More made a career of producing idealised Italian landscapes. His Landscape with Classical Figures, Cicero at his Villa, painted in 1780 and funded in 1993, is a typical work, the misty soft-focus and pastel light adding to its appeal. Hugh Douglas Hamilton's The Earl Bishop of Bristol and Derry Seated before the Prospect of Rome shows Hervey seated at what is thought to be the southern tip of the Borghese Gardens.
Ickworth's parklands and gardens can provide a day's activity in their own right. The south gardens are modelled on the formal Italian style, while the gardens to the west of the house are more informal. Visitors can walk or cycle out into the park itself and up to the Fairy Lake. Bright and modern, The West Wing Restaurant overlooks the gardens and can be guaranteed to catch any sunlight on offer. It serves everything from hot meals to snacks, and at weekends the restaurant is open for breakfast. If you're after something rather more formal, try Frederick's restaurant at Ickworth Hotel in the grounds.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To view more of my images, of Stowe Landscape Gardens please click "here"
I would be most grateful if you would refrain from inserting images, and/or group invites; thank you!
The gardens (known as Stowe Landscape Gardens), a significant example of the English garden style, along with part of the Park, passed into the ownership of The National Trust in 1989 and are open to the public. The parkland surrounding the gardens is open 365 days a year. National Trust members have free access to the gardens but there is a charge for all visitors to the house which goes towards the costs of restoring the building. In the 1690s, Stowe had a modest early-baroque parterre garden, owing more to Italy than to France, but it has not survived, and, within a relatively short time, Stowe became widely renowned for its magnificent gardens created by Lord Cobham. The Landscape garden was created in three main phases, showing the development of garden design in 18th-century England (this is the only garden where all three designers worked). From 1711 to c.1735 Charles Bridgeman was the garden designer and John Vanbrugh the architect from c.1720 until his death in 1726. They designed an English baroque park, inspired by the work of London, Wise and Switzer. After Vanbrugh's death James Gibbs took over as architect in September 1726. He also worked in the English Baroque style. In 1731 William Kent was appointed to work with Bridgeman, whose last designs are dated 1735 after which Kent took over as the garden designer. Kent had already created the glorious garden at Rousham House, and he and Gibbs built temples, bridges, and other garden structures. Kent's masterpiece at Stowe is the Elysian Fields with its Temple of Ancient Virtue that looks across to his Temple of British Worthies. Kent's architectural work was in the newly fashionable Palladian style. In March 1741, Capability Brown was appointed head gardener. He worked with Gibbs until 1749 and with Kent until the latter's death in 1748. Brown departed in the autumn of 1751 to start his independent career as a garden designer. In these years, Bridgeman's octagonal pond and 11-acre (4.5 ha) lake were extended and given a "naturalistic" shape, and a Palladian bridge was added in 1744, probably to Gibbs's design. Brown contrived a Grecian valley which, despite its name, is an abstract composition of landform and woodland, and developed the Hawkwell Field, with Gibbs's most notable building, the Gothic Temple (now one of the properties leased from the National Trust but maintained by The Landmark Trust). As Loudon remarked in 1831, "nature has done little or nothing; man a great deal, and time has improved his labours". After Brown left, Earl Temple, who had inherited Stowe from his uncle Lord Cobham, turned to a garden designer called Richard Woodward, who had been gardener at Wotton House, the Earl's previous home. The work of naturalising the landscape started by Brown was continued under Woodward and was accomplished by the mid-1750s. At the same time Earl Temple turned his attention to the various temples and monuments. He altered several of Vanburgh's and Gibbs's temples to make them conform to his taste for Neoclassical architecture. To accomplish this he employed Giovanni Battista Borra from 1752 to 1756. Also at this time several monuments were moved to other parts of the garden. Earl Temple made further alterations in the gardens from the early 1760s. This is when several of the older structures were demolished and this time he turned to his cousin Thomas Pitt, 1st Baron Camelford who was assisted by Borra, whose most notable design was the Corinthian Arch. The next owner of Stowe, the Marquess of Buckingham, made relatively few changes to the gardens. He planted the two main approach avenues, added 28-acre (11 ha) to the garden east of the Cobham Monument and altered a few buildings. Vincenzo Valdrè was his architect and built a few new structures such as The Menagerie with its formal garden and the Buckingham Lodges at the southern end of the Grand Avenue, and most notably the Queen's Temple. He also created the formal gardens within the balustrade he added to the south front of the house and demolished a few more monuments in the gardens. The last significant changes to the gardens were made by the next two owners of Stowe, the 1st and 2nd Dukes of Buckingham and Chandos. The former succeeded in buying the Lamport Estate in 1826, which was immediately to the east of the gardens, adding 17 acres (6.9 ha) to the south-east of the gardens to form the Lamport gardens. This work was overseen by the head gardener, James Brown, who remodelled the eastern arm of the Octagon Lake and created a cascade beyond the Palladian Bridge. From 1840 the 2nd Duke of Buckingham's gardener Mr Ferguson created rock and water gardens in the new garden. The architect Edward Blore was also employed to build the Lamport Lodge and Gates as a carriage entrance, and also remodelled the Water Stratford Lodge at the start of the Oxford Avenue. As Stowe evolved from an English baroque garden into a pioneering landscape park, the gardens became an attraction for many of the nobility, including political leaders. Indeed, Stowe is said to be the first English garden for which a guide book was produced. Wars and rebellions were reputedly discussed among the garden's many temples; the artwork of the time reflected this by portraying caricatures of the better-known politicians of history taking their ease in similar settings. Stowe began to evolve into a series of natural views to be appreciated from a perambulation rather than from a well-chosen central point. In their final form the Gardens were the largest and most elaborate example of what became known in Europe as the English garden. The main gardens, enclosed within the ha-has (sunken or trenched fences) over four miles (6 km) in length, cover over 400 acres (160 ha), but the park also has many buildings, including gate lodges and other monuments. Many of the temples and monuments in the garden celebrate the political ideas of the Whig party and include quotes by many of the writers who are part of Augustan literature, also philosophers and ideas belonging to the Age of Enlightenment.
Stowe House is a grade I listed country house in Stowe, Buckinghamshire, England. It is the home of Stowe School, an independent school and is owned by the Stowe House Preservation Trust who have to date (March 2013) spent more than £25m on the restoration of the house. Stowe House is regularly open to the public and can be explored by guided tour all year round or during the school holidays you can explore at your own pace with a multimedia guide.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To view a map of the gardens, please click "here"
To view more my images from Felixstowe Ferry please click "here"!
From the archives, reprocessed, using Photoshop CC 20225.
I would be most grateful, if you would refrain from inserting images, and/or group invites; thank you.
Bawdsey Manor stands at a prominent position at the mouth of the River Deben close to the village of Bawdsey in Suffolk, England, about 74 miles (119 km) Northeast of London. Built in 1886, it was enlarged in 1895 as the principal residence of Sir William Cuthbert Quilter. Requisitioned by the Devonshire Regiment during World War I and having been returned to the Quilter family after the war, it was purchased by the Air Ministry for £24,000 in 1936 to establish a new research station for developing the Chain Home RDF (radar) system. RAF Bawdsey was a base through the Cold War until the 1990s. The manor is now used for PGL holidays and courses, and has a small museum in the Radar Transmitter Block. Bawdsey Manor was built in 1886 and enlarged in 1895 by William Quilter who was an art collector, one of the founders of the National Telephone Company and was Liberal/Liberal Unionist Member of Parliament for Sudbury. He established a steam-powered chain ferry across the River Deben in 1894 to access the nearest railway station at Felixstowe. It was known as the Bawdsey Ferry and ran until 1931. The ferry now operates using a motor-launch at weekends during the summer. In February 1936 research scientists, including Robert Watson-Watt moved into the Manor to begin research and development into radar for practical military use and it became known as RAF Bawdsey. Stables and outbuildings were converted into workshops and 240 ft wooden receiver towers and 360 ft steel transmitter towers were built. Bawdsey was the Air Ministry's secret radar research establishment until this moved away on the outbreak of war in 1939. Most of the key radar scientists of the day, and the first generation of RAF and WAAF radar personnel, were trained there. From 1937 Bawdsey was operational as the first of the RDF (radar) Chain Home, and during World War 2 also acquired Chain Home Low and Coast Defence/Centimetric equipment for tracking enemy ships. It continued as a radar station through most of the Cold War. Demolition of the 10 towers began in the 1960s, and all are now gone. Bawdsey Manor continued as an RAF base through the Cold War and Bloodhound Missiles were sited on the cliffs until the Bloodhound force ceased operations in 1990, when all the missiles were withdrawn to RAF West Raynham. RAF Bawdsey was closed in 1991. Maude Marion Quilter (born about 1868) of Bawdsey Manor, daughter of Sir William Quilter, 1st Baronet, married Frederick Denny in 1888 and later had Horwood House as her country residence. It was at Bawdsey Manor that she knew of Harry Thrower, the father of Percy Thrower, as he was a gardener there, it being his first gardening position. When Maude wanted a head gardener at Horwood House, she recruited Harry and he remained there the rest of his life. The Manor, grounds and associated buildings were used from 1994 to 2016 to house Alexanders College, a boarding and day school for children from ages 11 to 18. The Transmitter Block is a museum, with limited opening hours, and was featured in the BBC Restoration programme. The exhibit is known as "The Magic Ear", and is operated by the Bawdsey Radar Group.
Felixstowe Ferry is a hamlet in Suffolk, England, approximately two miles northeast of Felixstowe at the mouth of the River Deben with a ferry to the Bawdsey peninsula. Local businesses include the Ferry Cafe and the Ferry Boat Inn, freshly caught fish is usually available at the quay side. St. Nicholas's Church was built in 1954 on the site of the prior church, which was built in 1870 and destroyed by German bombing in 1943. Two Martello towers dominate the sea front. The Felixstowe Ferry Millennium Green Trust was set up in 2001 to save an area of land from building development and put it to use as a community open space for recreational use. The land became known as the Millennium Green.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To view more of my images, of Snowshill Manor & Gardens, please click "here" !
Snowshill Manor was the property of Winchcombe Abbey from 821 until 1539 when the Abbey was confiscated by King Henry VIII during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Between 1539 and 1919 it had a number of tenants and owners until it was purchased by Charles Paget Wade, an architect, artist-craftsman, collector, poet and heir to the family fortune. He restored the property, living in the small cottage in the garden and using the manor house as a home for his collection of objects. He gave the property and the contents of this collection to the National Trust in 1951. There are two aspects of Snowshill Manor: its garden and the manor house, which is now home to Wade's eclectic collection. The garden at Snowshill was laid out by Wade, in collaboration with Arts and Crafts movement architect, M. H. Baillie Scott, between 1920 and 1923 as a series of outside rooms seen as an extension to the house. Features include terraces and ponds. The manor house is a typical Cotswold house, made from local stone; the main part of the house dates from the 16th century. Today, the main attraction of the house is perhaps the display of Wade's collection. From 1900 until 1951, when he gave the Manor to the National Trust, Wade amassed an enormous and eclectic collection of objects reflecting his interest in craftsmanship. The objects in the collection include 26 suits of Japanese samurai armour dating from the 17th and 19th centuries; bicycles; toys; musical instruments and more. On 5 October 2003, the house was closed and its entire contents removed in order to effect a number of repairs. In particular, the electrical wiring needed updating, new fire, security and environmental monitoring systems were installed, and the existing lighting was improved. The house reopened on 25 March 2005.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To view more of my images, of Orford, in Suffolk, please click "here"!
Please, no group invites; thank you!
Orford is a small town in Suffolk, England, within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB. Like many Suffolk coastal towns it was of some importance as a port and fishing village in the Middle Ages. It still has a fine mediaeval castle, built to dominate the River Ore. The main geographical feature of the area is Orford Ness, a long, wide shingle spit at the mouth of the Ore. Orford Ness has in the past been used as an airstrip testing facility and in the early 1970s it was the site of a powerful radar station as part of the Cold War defences against low flying attacking aircraft; today it is a nature reserve run by the National Trust. Orford provides the only point of access to the nature reserves of Orford Ness and Havergate Island. Both sites can only be accessed via ferry boat from Orford quay. The Orford Ness ferry runs on selected days between April and October and the Havergate Island ferry on selected Saturdays. The population of Orford greatly increases during the summer months due to its flourishing sailing club. As well as the Castle, Orford's attractions include river cruises, three pubs, a traditional post office which sells fresh bread, a traditional bakery, a smokehouse and a restaurant; the Butley-Orford Oysterage.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A 20 sec exposure of the Humber bridge in the mist, the light from the bridge was bouncing around in the mist, giving some great reflections in the water.
I have cropped the image.
I was walking around Arbroath harbour nice and early. Out the corner of my eye I saw a big bird, I thought it was a sea gull, but when I turned and looked it was a heron, well I didn't have time to change settings on camera, so I tried to pan it, its not good by any means but in some way its interesting. I think the Herons silhouette and the colours in the sky just give it an interest.
To view more of my images, of Stowe Landscape Gardens please click
"here"
Please, no images, or group invites, thank you!
The gardens (known as Stowe Landscape Gardens), a significant example of the English garden style, along with part of the Park, passed into the ownership of The National Trust in 1989 and are open to the public. The parkland surrounding the gardens is open 365 days a year. National Trust members have free access to the gardens but there is a charge for all visitors to the house which goes towards the costs of restoring the building. In the 1690s, Stowe had a modest early-baroque parterre garden, owing more to Italy than to France, but it has not survived, and, within a relatively short time, Stowe became widely renowned for its magnificent gardens created by Lord Cobham. The Landscape garden was created in three main phases, showing the development of garden design in 18th-century England (this is the only garden where all three designers worked). From 1711 to c.1735 Charles Bridgeman was the garden designer and John Vanbrugh the architect from c.1720 until his death in 1726. They designed an English baroque park, inspired by the work of London, Wise and Switzer. After Vanbrugh's death James Gibbs took over as architect in September 1726. He also worked in the English Baroque style. In 1731 William Kent was appointed to work with Bridgeman, whose last designs are dated 1735 after which Kent took over as the garden designer. Kent had already created the glorious garden at Rousham House, and he and Gibbs built temples, bridges, and other garden structures. Kent's masterpiece at Stowe is the Elysian Fields with its Temple of Ancient Virtue that looks across to his Temple of British Worthies. Kent's architectural work was in the newly fashionable Palladian style. In March 1741, Capability Brown was appointed head gardener. He worked with Gibbs until 1749 and with Kent until the latter's death in 1748. Brown departed in the autumn of 1751 to start his independent career as a garden designer. In these years, Bridgeman's octagonal pond and 11-acre (4.5 ha) lake were extended and given a "naturalistic" shape, and a Palladian bridge was added in 1744, probably to Gibbs's design. Brown contrived a Grecian valley which, despite its name, is an abstract composition of landform and woodland, and developed the Hawkwell Field, with Gibbs's most notable building, the Gothic Temple (now one of the properties leased from the National Trust but maintained by The Landmark Trust). As Loudon remarked in 1831, "nature has done little or nothing; man a great deal, and time has improved his labours". After Brown left, Earl Temple, who had inherited Stowe from his uncle Lord Cobham, turned to a garden designer called Richard Woodward, who had been gardener at Wotton House, the Earl's previous home. The work of naturalising the landscape started by Brown was continued under Woodward and was accomplished by the mid-1750s. At the same time Earl Temple turned his attention to the various temples and monuments. He altered several of Vanburgh's and Gibbs's temples to make them conform to his taste for Neoclassical architecture. To accomplish this he employed Giovanni Battista Borra from 1752 to 1756. Also at this time several monuments were moved to other parts of the garden. Earl Temple made further alterations in the gardens from the early 1760s. This is when several of the older structures were demolished and this time he turned to his cousin Thomas Pitt, 1st Baron Camelford who was assisted by Borra, whose most notable design was the Corinthian Arch. The next owner of Stowe, the Marquess of Buckingham, made relatively few changes to the gardens. He planted the two main approach avenues, added 28-acre (11 ha) to the garden east of the Cobham Monument and altered a few buildings. Vincenzo Valdrè was his architect and built a few new structures such as The Menagerie with its formal garden and the Buckingham Lodges at the southern end of the Grand Avenue, and most notably the Queen's Temple. He also created the formal gardens within the balustrade he added to the south front of the house and demolished a few more monuments in the gardens. The last significant changes to the gardens were made by the next two owners of Stowe, the 1st and 2nd Dukes of Buckingham and Chandos. The former succeeded in buying the Lamport Estate in 1826, which was immediately to the east of the gardens, adding 17 acres (6.9 ha) to the south-east of the gardens to form the Lamport gardens. This work was overseen by the head gardener, James Brown, who remodelled the eastern arm of the Octagon Lake and created a cascade beyond the Palladian Bridge. From 1840 the 2nd Duke of Buckingham's gardener Mr Ferguson created rock and water gardens in the new garden. The architect Edward Blore was also employed to build the Lamport Lodge and Gates as a carriage entrance, and also remodelled the Water Stratford Lodge at the start of the Oxford Avenue. As Stowe evolved from an English baroque garden into a pioneering landscape park, the gardens became an attraction for many of the nobility, including political leaders. Indeed, Stowe is said to be the first English garden for which a guide book was produced. Wars and rebellions were reputedly discussed among the garden's many temples; the artwork of the time reflected this by portraying caricatures of the better-known politicians of history taking their ease in similar settings. Stowe began to evolve into a series of natural views to be appreciated from a perambulation rather than from a well-chosen central point. In their final form the Gardens were the largest and most elaborate example of what became known in Europe as the English garden. The main gardens, enclosed within the ha-has (sunken or trenched fences) over four miles (6 km) in length, cover over 400 acres (160 ha), but the park also has many buildings, including gate lodges and other monuments. Many of the temples and monuments in the garden celebrate the political ideas of the Whig party and include quotes by many of the writers who are part of Augustan literature, also philosophers and ideas belonging to the Age of Enlightenment.
Stowe House is a grade I listed country house in Stowe, Buckinghamshire, England. It is the home of Stowe School, an independent school and is owned by the Stowe House Preservation Trust who have to date (March 2013) spent more than £25m on the restoration of the house. Stowe House is regularly open to the public and can be explored by guided tour all year round or during the school holidays you can explore at your own pace with a multimedia guide.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To view a map of the gardens, please click "here"
A shot of The South Esk as it makes it way through Glen Clova under the New Gella bridge which I am standing on, the Esk meanders it way through Brechin and then onto the the Montrose Basin where it meets the North sea.
You may view more of my images of Ickworth House, Park and gardens, by clicking "here" !
Please do not insert images, of group invite, thank you!
Ickworth Park. With over 1,800 acres of parkland designed by Capability Brown, the house and its grounds were created as an homage to Italy, the country so beloved by Frederick Augustus Hervey, the 4th Earl of Bristol. The Earl-Bishop spent his life travelling the continent, gathering together a vast collection of paintings, sculpture and artefacts. Already possessed of several houses, he conceived Ickworth primarily as a museum for his treasures. At his death only the Rotunda - the giant circular structure at the centre of the two wings, described by Hervey's wife as 'a stupendous moment of Folly' - was nearing completion. The house was eventually finished by his son. Although Hervey's treasures, confiscated during the French invasion of Italy, were destined never to occupy Ickworth, his descendants made it their life's work to rebuild what has become an exceptional collection of art and silver. Paintings housed in the galleries include works by Velázquez, Titian and Poussin, while the collection of 18th-century portraits of the family is exceptionally fine, featuring canvases by Gainsborough, Reynolds, Vigée-Lebrun and Hogarth. In addition to one of the very best British collections of Georgian Huguenot silver, Ickworth is also home to an impressive array of Regency furniture, porcelain, and domestic objects. More made a career of producing idealised Italian landscapes. His Landscape with Classical Figures, Cicero at his Villa, painted in 1780 and funded in 1993, is a typical work, the misty soft-focus and pastel light adding to its appeal. Hugh Douglas Hamilton's The Earl Bishop of Bristol and Derry Seated before the Prospect of Rome shows Hervey seated at what is thought to be the southern tip of the Borghese Gardens.
Ickworth's parklands and gardens can provide a day's activity in their own right. The south gardens are modelled on the formal Italian style, while the gardens to the west of the house are more informal. Visitors can walk or cycle out into the park itself and up to the Fairy Lake. Bright and modern, The West Wing Restaurant overlooks the gardens and can be guaranteed to catch any sunlight on offer. It serves everything from hot meals to snacks, and at weekends the restaurant is open for breakfast. If you're after something rather more formal, try Frederick's restaurant at Ickworth Hotel in the grounds.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The pheasant (Phasianus colchicus; plural pheasants or pheasants) is a species of bird in the order Galliformes. As with other pheasants, the rooster stands out with its colorful plumage and its significantly longer tail feathers. Hens show a brownish camouflage coloring. The call of the rooster is a loud, characteristic and often sequenced gö-göck.
The natural range of the pheasant extends from the Black Sea through the dry areas of Central Asia to East Asia. While the numerous Central Asian distribution islands are largely isolated from one another, the East Asian populations in China, Korea and Siberia inhabit a large contiguous area where numerous other subspecies live, some of which mix with one another at the borders of their distribution areas. The Japanese colorful pheasant is also assigned to this species by some authors.
The pheasant was naturalized in Europe, the USA and other parts of the world primarily for hunting purposes, but a stable population can usually only be maintained in the long term through conservation measures and releases. In southern Europe, the species was probably introduced during antiquity as an ornamental bird and for its tasty meat and was kept both wild and in captivity. The Romans probably spread it to Central and Western Europe. Since the early Middle Ages, pheasants have been kept in isolated cases at princely courts and monasteries, and wild stocks or one in large pheasantries have been known since the late Middle Ages or the early modern period.[1] However, many parts of Europe – such as Northern Europe – were not settled until the 19th century. Today the majority of the European stock can be found in Germany, France, Great Britain, Denmark, Hungary and Romania. The birds living here are mostly hybrids of different subspecies, mainly of the torquatus type, whose males show a white neck ring and a gray rump, and the colchicus type, which lacks the neck ring and has red-brown rump plumage.
The pheasant inhabits semi-open landscapes, light forests with undergrowth or wetlands with reeds, which offer good cover and open areas for foraging. In Europe it is often found in the cultural landscape. It feeds mostly on plant food such as seeds and berries, but also likes insects and other small animals. The neozoon pheasant devours large numbers of the neozoon potato beetle, which otherwise eat the leaves of the potato plants as larvae. During the breeding season, a rooster usually lives with one or two hens. The pheasant usually overwinters in the breeding areas. Sometimes in winter it evades over short distances to habitats that offer more cover or food.
Der Fasan (Phasianus colchicus; Plural Fasane oder Fasanen) ist eine Vogelart aus der Ordnung der Hühnervögel. Wie bei anderen Fasanenartigen fällt der Hahn durch sein farbenprächtiges Gefieder und seine deutlich längeren Schwanzfedern auf. Hennen zeigen eine bräunliche Tarnfärbung. Der Ruf des Hahns ist ein lautes, charakteristisches und oft gereihtes gö-göck.
Das natürliche Verbreitungsgebiet des Fasans reicht vom Schwarzen Meer über die Trockengebiete Mittelasiens bis in den Osten Asiens. Während die zahlreichen zentralasiatischen Verbreitungsinseln größtenteils voneinander isoliert sind, besiedeln die ostasiatischen Populationen in China, Korea und Sibirien ein großes zusammenhängendes Areal, wo zahlreiche weitere Unterarten leben, die sich teils an den Grenzen ihrer Verbreitungsgebiete untereinander mischen. Von einigen Autoren wird auch der japanische Buntfasan dieser Art zugeordnet.
Vor allem zu Jagdzwecken wurde der Fasan in Europa, den USA und anderen Teilen der Welt eingebürgert, ein stabiler Bestand kann sich aber auf Dauer meist nur durch Hegemaßnahmen und Aussetzungen halten. In Südeuropa wurde die Art vermutlich schon während der Antike als Ziervogel und wegen ihres wohlschmeckenden Fleisches eingeführt und sowohl wild als auch in Gefangenschaft gehalten. Die Römer sorgten wahrscheinlich für eine Verbreitung in Mittel- und Westeuropa. Seit dem frühen Mittelalter ist die Fasanenhaltung vereinzelt an Fürstenhöfen und Klöstern belegt, und seit dem ausgehenden Mittelalter oder der frühen Neuzeit ist ein freilebender Bestand oder ein solcher in großen Fasanerien bekannt.[1] Viele Teile Europas – wie beispielsweise Nordeuropa – wurden aber auch erst im 19. Jahrhundert besiedelt. Heute ist der Großteil des europäischen Bestands in den Ländern Deutschland, Frankreich, Großbritannien, Dänemark, Ungarn und Rumänien zu finden. Die hier lebenden Vögel sind meist Mischformen verschiedener Unterarten, hauptsächlich des torquatus-Typs, dessen Hähne einen weißen Halsring und einen grauen Bürzel zeigen, und des colchicus-Typs, dem der Halsring fehlt und der rotbraunes Bürzelgefieder hat.
Der Fasan besiedelt halboffene Landschaften, lichte Wälder mit Unterwuchs oder schilfbestandene Feuchtgebiete, die ihm gute Deckung und offene Flächen zur Nahrungssuche bieten. In Europa findet man ihn häufig in der Kulturlandschaft. Er ernährt sich zumeist von pflanzlicher Nahrung wie Sämereien und Beeren, gerne auch von Insekten und anderen Kleintieren. So vertilgt das Neozoon Fasan große Mengen des Neozoons Kartoffelkäfer, die sonst als Larven die Blätter der Kartoffelpflanzen kahlfressen. Ein Hahn lebt zur Brutzeit meist mit ein bis zwei Hennen zusammen. Der Fasan überwintert zumeist in den Brutgebieten. Bisweilen weicht er im Winter über kurze Strecken in mehr Deckung oder Nahrung bietende Lebensräume aus.
(Wikipedia)
I saw this on Monifieth beach, the water giving the rock a nice shine, showing the contours and the ripples as the waves came up the beach then back out.
To view more of my images, of Aldeburgh, please click
"here" !
I would be most grateful if you refrained from inserting images, or group invites; thank you!
Aldeburgh is a coastal town in the English county of Suffolk. Located on the River Alde, the town is notable for its Blue Flag shingle beach and fisherman huts where freshly caught fish are sold daily, and the Aldeburgh Yacht Club. The internationally renowned Aldeburgh Festival of arts, which takes place at nearby Snape Maltings, was created in 1948 by the resident and acclaimed composer Benjamin Britten. A popular weekend destination, with second homes making up roughly a third of its residential property, particular attractions are the ancient Moot Hall (where the town council still meets), Napoleonic-era Martello towerto the south, sheltered yachting marina at Slaughden, and two family run shops serving fish and chips, one of which is often cited as among the best fish and chip shops in the UK. Alde Burgh means "old fort" although this structure, along with much of the Tudor town, has now been lost to the sea. In the 16th century, Aldeburgh was a leading port, and had a flourishing ship-building industry. Sir Francis Drake's ships Greyhound and Pelican (later renamed Golden Hind) were both built in Aldeburgh. The flagship of the Virginia Company, the Sea Venture is believed to have been built there in 1608. When the River Alde silted up and was unable to accommodate larger ships, the area went into decline. Aldeburgh survived principally as a fishing village until the nineteenth century, when it became popular as a seaside resort. Much of its distinctive and whimsical architecture derives from this period. The river is now home to a yacht club and a sailing club. Aldeburgh is on the North Sea coast and is located around 87 miles (140 km) north-east of London, 20 miles (32 km) north-east of Ipswich and 23 miles (37 km) south ofLowestoft. Locally it is 4 miles (6.4 km) south of the town of Leiston and 2 miles (3.2 km) south of the village of Thorpeness. It lies just to the north of the River Alde with the narrow shingle spit of Orford Ness all that stops the river meeting the sea at Aldeburgh - instead it flows another 9 miles (14 km) to the south-west. The beach is mainly shingle and wide in places with fishing boats able to be drawn up onto the beach above the high tide. The beach was awarded the Blue flag rural beach award in 2005 and becomes narrower at the neck of Orford Ness. The shingle bank allows access to the Ness from the north, passing a Martello tower and two yacht clubs at the site of the former village of Slaughden. Aldeburgh was flooded during the North Sea flood of 1953 and flood defences around the town were strengthened as a result. The town is within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and has a number of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and nature reserves in the local area. The Alde-Ore Estuary SSSI covers the area surrounding the river fromSnape to its mouth, including the whole of Orford Ness. This contains a number of salt marsh and mudflat habitats. The Leiston-Aldeburgh SSSI extends from the northern edge of the town to cover a range of habitats including grazing marsh and heathland. This includes Thorpeness Mere and the North Warren RSPB reserve an area of wildlife and habitat conservation and nature trails run by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. Two smaller geological SSSI units are also found on the southern edges of the town. Aldeburgh Brick Pit is a 0.84 hectares (2.1 acres) site showing a clear stratigraphy of Red Crag deposits above Corralline Crag. It is considered a significant site for demonstrating the stratigraphy of Red Crag. Aldeburgh Hall Pit is a shallow pit of 0.8 hectares (2.0 acres) area. The site features a section of Corralline Crag and is considered to be one of the best sites in Britain for Neogene fauna. It has a number of churches including the Anglican pre-Reformation church of St Peter and St Paul and the Catholic Church of Our Lady and St Peter.
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To view more of my images, of Dinton Pastures Country Park, please click
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From the Achieves, reprocessed using Photoshop CC 2022!
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Dinton Pastures Country Park is a country park in the civil parish of St Nicholas Hurst, in the borough of Wokingham, near Reading in the English county of Berkshire. The park is 450 acres (180 ha) in size. It has seven lakes, two rivers, three public bird hides, and meadows. One of the lakes, Lavells Lake is designated as a local nature reserve. The two rivers that flow through the park are the River Loddon and the Emm Brook. The Museum of Berkshire Aviation and the headquarters of the British Entomological and Natural History Society are both located in the park. The site is popular for a number of sports including sailing, angling, kayaking, and canoeing. Other facilities include play areas and a café. Anglo Saxons farmed the park's river meadows and called the area Whistley, where “wisc” means marshey meadows and “lei” means a woodland clearing. From the start of the 17th century, much of the area then belonged to Windsor Forest. The present day cafe was originally a farmhouse built in 1904, which was called 'High Chimneys'. In 1924 the area was sold to a farmer who renamed the farm after his home village of Dinton, near Aylesbury. The country park is part of the river Loddon's flood plain and so makes a good source of gravel, between 1969 to 1979 an extensive gravel extraction program was done where much of the gravel was used to construct the M4 and the A329(M). In 1979 Dinton Pastures was opened to the public. In 1992, part of the country park, Lavells Lake, was declared as a local nature reserve by Wokingham Borough Council.
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Bored at home from work due to a head cold, thought I would try some of this fancy magic stuff. Too much hard work for me really and still far from geometrically perfect but interesting concept. So a composite photo from Vivid 2018, and added the eclipse/super moon from the other night for an exercise. Obvioulsy I was in Toowoomba, not in Sydney, but will surely be in Sydney for VIVID in August, unless we are hit with some travel restrictions, that is a non negotiable.
The beauty of the Glen, taken in Glen Clova, Angus.
The golden autumn colours coming through heathland, just as the dawn light starts to engulf the glen.
To view more of my images, of Azalea & Rhododendron, please click "here" !
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Rhododendron is a genus of 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae), either evergreen or deciduous, and found mainly in Asia, although it is also widespread throughout the Southern Highlands of the Appalachian Mountains of North America. It is the national flower of Nepal. Most species have showy flowers. Azaleas make up two subgenera of Rhododendron. They are distinguished from "true" rhododendrons by having only five anthers per flower. Rhododendron is a genus characterised by shrubs and small to (rarely) large trees, the smallest species growing to 10–100 cm tall, and the largest, R. protistum var. giganteum, reported to 30 m tall. The leaves are spirally arranged; leaf size can range from 1–2 cm to over 50 cm, exceptionally 100 cm in R. sinogrande. They may be either evergreen or deciduous. In some species, the undersides of the leaves are covered with scales (lepidote) or hairs (indumentum). Some of the best known species are noted for their many clusters of large flowers. There are alpine species with small flowers and small leaves, and tropical species such as section Vireya that often grow as epiphytes. Species in this genus may be part of the heath complex in oak-heath forests in eastern North America. They have frequently been divided based on the presence or absence of scales on the abaxial (lower) leaf surface (lepidote or elepidote). These scales, unique to subgenus Rhododendron, are modified hairs consisting of a polygonal scale attached by a stalk. Rhododendron are characterised by having inflorescences with scarious (dry) perulae, a chromosome number of x=13, fruit that has a septicidal capsule, an ovary that is superior (or nearly so), stamens that have no appendages, and agglutinate (clumped) pollen. The Rhododendron genus is the largest of the genera in the Ericaceae family, with 1,024 species, though estimates vary from 850-1000 depending on the authority used, (Fayaz 2012) and is morphologically diverse. Consequently the taxonomy has been historically complex. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To view more of my images, of Snowshill Manor & Gardens, please click "here" !
Snowshill Manor was the property of Winchcombe Abbey from 821 until 1539 when the Abbey was confiscated by King Henry VIII during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Between 1539 and 1919 it had a number of tenants and owners until it was purchased by Charles Paget Wade, an architect, artist-craftsman, collector, poet and heir to the family fortune. He restored the property, living in the small cottage in the garden and using the manor house as a home for his collection of objects. He gave the property and the contents of this collection to the National Trust in 1951. There are two aspects of Snowshill Manor: its garden and the manor house, which is now home to Wade's eclectic collection. The garden at Snowshill was laid out by Wade, in collaboration with Arts and Crafts movement architect, M. H. Baillie Scott, between 1920 and 1923 as a series of outside rooms seen as an extension to the house. Features include terraces and ponds. The manor house is a typical Cotswold house, made from local stone; the main part of the house dates from the 16th century. Today, the main attraction of the house is perhaps the display of Wade's collection. From 1900 until 1951, when he gave the Manor to the National Trust, Wade amassed an enormous and eclectic collection of objects reflecting his interest in craftsmanship. The objects in the collection include 26 suits of Japanese samurai armour dating from the 17th and 19th centuries; bicycles; toys; musical instruments and more. On 5 October 2003, the house was closed and its entire contents removed in order to effect a number of repairs. In particular, the electrical wiring needed updating, new fire, security and environmental monitoring systems were installed, and the existing lighting was improved. The house reopened on 25 March 2005.
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Another attempted at a long exposure, the moving turbine blades which i hoped would have blurred and show a bit more than they have.
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From the Achieves, re-processed, using Photoshop CC 2025.
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Walberswick is a village on the Suffolk coast in England, across the River Blyth from Southwold. Coastal erosion and the shifting of the mouth of the River Blyth meant that the neighbouring town of Dunwich was lost as a port in the last years of the 13th century. Following a brief period of rivalry and dispute with Dunwich, Walberswick became a major trading port from the 13th century until World War I. Almost half of the properties in the village are holiday homes. A small rowing boat ferries passengers across the river Blyth to Southwold during the high season. The name Walberswick is believed to derive from the Saxon Waldbert – probably a landowner – and "wyc" meaning shelter or harbour. At the top of the village is the 15th century St. Andrew's Church. The size of the St. Andrew's ruins demonstrate how large the parish once was. The name 'Walleburyswyke', appearing in a Latin legal record, dated 1440, may refer to the village. With over 1,000 acres (4 km2) of heath and marshland protected within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Walberswick has good varied local habitats for birds. The village and surrounding beach and marshland have long attracted residents drawn from the arts, film and media. In the 1890s and 1900s the village became associated with Philip Wilson Steer and his circle of English Impressionists. It was home to the noted artist and architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh from 1914. It was also the birthplace of Oscar nominated documentary film maker Humphrey Jennings famous for his World War II documentaries. The World War Two defences constructed around Walberswick have been documented. They included a number of pillboxes, landmines and flame fougasse installations. The beaches were protected with extensive barriers of scaffolding. The ornate metalwork village sign on the Green is a replica of the one erected in 1953 to commemorate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. The original sign went missing in the 1980s but after changing hands has since been returned and restored to mark the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. The restored sign has been erected opposite the church. Considering its size, an inordinate number of British celebrities own or have owned holiday homes in the village including the late Sir Clement Freud and his wife Jill, and their daughter, Emma Freud and her husband Richard Curtis. Martin Bell, and Geoffrey Palmer, maintain properties here while Paul Heiney and Libby Purves live nearby. Film director Paul Greengrass has a house in the village, as does ITV's Director Peter Fincham. The village is the setting for Esther Freud's novel, The Sea House, thinly disguised as 'Steerborough' - presumably a coded reference, or in-joke, towards one-time resident, Philip Wilson Steer (see above). Esther Freud, the cousin of Emma Freud and daughter of painter Lucian Freud, also has a house in the village with her husband, actor David Morrissey. The village was famous for its annual crabbing competition - The British Open Crabbing Championship, last held in August 2010. The person who caught the single heaviest crab within a period of 90 minutes was declared the winner. The proceeds supported many charitable causes. A derelict windmill stands on the marshes near Walberswick. The area around the village makes up the Suffolk Coast National Nature Reserve, a protected area on 1,340 hectares (3,300 acres) with a range of wetland and heathland habitats.
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They looked pretty good with the setting sun behind us, however managed to get a little over exposure going on at the cloud tops. 20kms down the road the rain was that intense I had to stop, only a couple of bolts though.
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From the Achieves, and re-processed, using Photoshop CC 2025
I would be most grateful if you would refrain from inserting images, and/or group invites!
Seckford Hall is a Tudor period house in Seckford Hall Road, Great Bealings, near Woodbridge, Suffolk. In the same road are Seckford Golf Club and Seckford Farm. The hall is now a luxury hotel. The hall was constructed in the 1530s as the family home of Thomas Seckford. It is built of local brick in two storeys to an E-shaped plan with a 9-bay frontage. The hall passed down in the Seckford family until 1673, when it was bequeathed to Seckford Cage, after which it passed through several hands by purchase. In May 1940 Sir Ralph Harwood purchased the neglected building from a demolition contractor, but it was soon afterwards commandeered by the Army for the duration of the Second World War. The property was returned after the war and early in 1946 Sir Ralph began to restore and modernise the property using materials rescued from other stately homes and churches. In 1950 the property was acquired by the Bunn family and converted to a first-class country house hotel and restaurant. The hotel is said to contain furniture that was once used in Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle, including the chair that King Henry VII is said to have died on. The hotel again changed hands in September 2012.
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The blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus, Syn.: Parus caeruleus) is a species of bird of the genus Cyanistes in the family Tit (Paridae). The small bird is easy to identify with its blue-yellow plumage and is very common in Central Europe. Its preferred habitats are deciduous and mixed forests with a high proportion of oak trees; the blue tit is also often found in parks and gardens. Apart from Europe, it occurs in some neighbouring areas of Asia, in North Africa and on the Canary Islands. The Canary Islands population is often considered a separate species (African Blue Tit, Cyanistes teneriffae).
The blue tit prefers animal food, especially insects and spiders. Outside the breeding period, the importance of seeds and other plant food increases. When foraging, the blue tit is conspicuous for its dexterity; it can cling to the outermost branches and also search for food while hanging upside down.
Blue tits usually breed in tree hollows, but nest boxes are also frequently used. The main competitor for nesting cavities and food is the much larger great tit.
Die Blaumeise (Cyanistes caeruleus, Syn.: Parus caeruleus) ist eine Vogelart der Gattung Cyanistes aus der Familie Meisen (Paridae). Der Kleinvogel ist mit seinem blau-gelben Gefieder einfach zu bestimmen und in Mitteleuropa sehr häufig anzutreffen. Bevorzugte Lebensräume sind Laub- und Mischwälder mit hohem Eichenanteil; die Blaumeise ist auch häufig in Parkanlagen und Gärten zu finden. Außer in Europa kommt sie in einigen angrenzenden Gebieten Asiens vor, in Nordafrika und auf den Kanarischen Inseln. Die Population der Kanaren wird oft auch als eigene Art angesehen (Afrikanische Blaumeise, Cyanistes teneriffae).
Die Blaumeise bevorzugt tierische Nahrung, vor allem Insekten und Spinnen. Außerhalb der Fortpflanzungsperiode steigt die Bedeutung von Sämereien und anderer pflanzlicher Kost. Beim Nahrungserwerb fällt die Blaumeise durch ihre Geschicklichkeit auf, sie kann sich an die äußersten Zweige klammern und auch kopfüber hängend nach Nahrung suchen.
Blaumeisen brüten meist in Baumhöhlen, auch Nistkästen werden häufig angenommen. Der Hauptkonkurrent um Bruthöhlen und bei der Nahrungssuche ist die deutlich größere Kohlmeise.
Wiki
The great tit (Parus major) is a species of bird in the tit family (Paridae). It is the largest and most widespread species of tit in Europe. In addition, their range extends across the Middle East and through the temperate zone of Asia to the Far East.
The original habitat of the great tit is deciduous and mixed forests with old trees; however, due to its adaptability, it can be found in almost any habitat where it can find cavities for nesting. It is usually one of the most common bird species. The food is very diverse, but mainly insects and their larvae as well as plant food such as seeds or nuts are eaten. Nests are built in tree cavities, nesting boxes or other cavities and usually between six and twelve eggs are laid in them. Most great tits remain in their breeding areas in winter, where they sometimes roam in small groups and also socialize with other tits. Birds from more northern regions sometimes also migrate to more southern regions.
From early spring and sometimes even in winter, the quite conspicuous, metallic-light song can be heard, which can be a two-syllable tsi-da ... tsi-da ... tsi-da or, for example, as tsi-da-tsit ... also three syllables. In addition, the great tit has a very wide repertoire of calls such as a high pink and a warning dädädä.
More than 30 subspecies of the great tit used to be counted. Due to genetic studies, however, the East and South Asian populations were classified as separate species (Parus minor and Parus cinereus), which currently have no German names. Only 15 subspecies are assigned to the great tit.
Die Kohlmeise (Parus major) ist eine Vogelart aus der Familie der Meisen (Paridae). Sie ist die größte und am weitesten verbreitete Meisenart in Europa. Darüber hinaus erstreckt sich ihr Verbreitungsgebiet über den Nahen Osten und durch die gemäßigte Zone Asiens bis nach Fernost.
Der ursprüngliche Lebensraum der Kohlmeise sind Laub- und Mischwälder mit alten Bäumen; aufgrund ihrer Anpassungsfähigkeit kommt sie jedoch in fast allen Lebensräumen vor, in denen sie Höhlen zum Nisten findet. Sie zählt meist zu den häufigsten Vogelarten. Die Nahrung ist sehr vielfältig, jedoch werden hauptsächlich Insekten und deren Larven sowie pflanzliche Nahrung wie beispielsweise Samen oder Nussfrüchte gefressen. Nester werden in Baumhöhlen, Nistkästen oder anderen Hohlräumen gebaut und meist zwischen sechs und zwölf Eier hineingelegt. Die meisten Kohlmeisen bleiben im Winter in ihren Brutgebieten, wo sie teilweise in kleinen Trupps umherstreifen und sich auch mit anderen Meisen vergesellschaften. Vögel nördlicherer Regionen wandern zum Teil auch in südlichere Gegenden ab.
Ab dem zeitigen Frühjahr und teilweise auch schon im Winter ist der recht auffällige, metallisch-helle Gesang zu vernehmen, der ein zweisilbiges tsi-da … tsi-da … tsi-da oder beispielsweise als tsi-da-tsit … auch dreisilbig sein kann. Daneben verfügt die Kohlmeise über ein sehr breites Repertoire an Rufen wie beispielsweise ein hohes pink und ein warnendes dädädä.
Früher wurden über 30 Unterarten zur Kohlmeise gezählt. Aufgrund genetischer Untersuchungen wurden die ost- und südasiatischen Populationen jedoch als eigene Arten (Parus minor und Parus cinereus) abgegliedert, die derzeit noch keine deutschen Namen haben. Der Kohlmeise werden danach nur noch 15 Unterarten zugerechnet.
Wiki
Ein Fasan ist eine Vogelart aus der Ordnung der Hühnervögel. Er hat ein farbenprächtiges Gefieder und einen langen Schwanz. Der Fasan stammt ursprünglich aus Asien, wurde aber schon in der Antike nach Europa gebracht. Er wird oft als Ziervogel oder Jagdwild gehalten. Der Fasan lebt in halboffenen Landschaften, wo er sich von Samen, Beeren, Insekten und anderen Kleintieren ernährt. Er ist ein Standvogel, der das ganze Jahr über in seinem Revier bleibt. Zur Brutzeit bildet er kleine Harems aus einem Hahn und mehreren Hennen. Der Fasan ist in vielen Teilen der Welt verbreitet und hat viele Unterarten, die sich in Aussehen und Verhalten unterscheiden.
A pheasant is a species of bird from the order of fowl. It has colourful plumage and a long tail. The pheasant originates from Asia, but was brought to Europe in ancient times. It is often kept as an ornamental bird or game bird. The pheasant lives in semi-open landscapes where it feeds on seeds, berries, insects and other small animals. It is a resident bird that stays in its territory all year round. During the breeding season it forms small harems of one cock and several hens. The pheasant is widespread in many parts of the world and has many subspecies that differ in appearance and behaviour.
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Dahlias are a genus of bushy, tuberous, herbaceous perennial plants native to Mexico. A member of the Asteraceae (or Compositae), dicotyledonous plants, related species include the sunflower, daisy, chrysanthemum, and zinnia. There are 42 species of dahlia, with hybrids commonly grown as garden plants. Flower forms are variable, with one head per stem; these can be as small as 2 in (5.1 cm) diameter or up to 1 ft (30 cm) ("dinner plate"). This great variety results from dahlias being octoploids—that is, they have eight sets of homologous chromosomes, whereas most plants have only two. In addition, dahlias also contain many transposons—genetic pieces that move from place to place upon an allele—which contributes to their manifesting such great diversity. The stems are leafy, ranging in height from as low as 12 in (30 cm) to more than 6–8 ft (1.8–2.4 m). The majority of species do not produce scented flowers or cultivars. Like most plants that do not attract pollinating insects through scent, they are brightly colored, displaying most hues, with the exception of blue. Perennial plants, with mostly tuberous roots. While some have herbaceous stems, others have stems which lignify in the absence of secondary tissue and resprout following winter dormancy, allowing further seasons of growth. As a member of the Asteraceae the flower head is actually a composite (hence the older name Compositae) with both central disc florets and surrounding ray florets. Each floret is a flower in its own right, but is often incorrectly described as a petal, particularly by horticulturalists. The modern name Asteraceae refers to the appearance of a star with surrounding rays. The dahlia was declared the national flower of Mexico in 1963. The tubers were grown as a food crop by the Aztecs, but this use largely died out after the Spanish Conquest. Attempts to introduce the tubers as a food crop in Europe were unsuccessful.
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Lower Slaughter is a village in the English county of Gloucestershire, located in the Cotswold district, 4 miles (6.4 km) south west of the town of Stow-on-the-Wold. The village is built on both banks of the River Eye, which also flows through Upper Slaughter. At the west end of the village there is a 19th-century water mill with an undershot waterwheel and a chimney for additional steam power. There is a ford where the river widens in the village and several small stone footbridges join the two sides of the community. While the mill is built of red brick most of the 16th and 17th century homes in the village use Cotswold sandstone and are adorned with mullioned windows and often with other embellishments such as projecting gables. Records exist showing that Lower Slaughter has been inhabited for over 1000 years. The Domesday Book entry has the village name as “Sclostre”. It further notes that in 1066 and 1086 that the manor was in the sheriff's hands. Lower Slaughter Manor, a Grade-II listed 17th-century house, was granted to Sir George Whitmore in 1611 and remained in his family until 1964. The 13th century Anglican parish church is dedicated to St. Mary the Virgin. Much of the current structure was built in 1866; however, the spire and peal of six bells was recently restored. In May 2013 it was reported in the national news that the Parish Council were fiercely opposed to the presence of an icebox tricycle selling ice creams for seven days a week, six months of the year, citing that the trading times were excessive, increased footfall would prevent the grass from growing and that children could climb on the trike and fall into the nearby river.
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The Slaughters Country Inn is privately owned and offers a relaxed ambience, a style that is sympathetically balanced between the original features of a 17th Century building and contemporary design. The blend of old and new creates the perfect retreat in a beautiful country location
To view more of my images, of Dinton Pastures Country Park, please click "here" ! Click any image to view large!
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Dinton Pastures Country Park is a country park in the civil parish of St Nicholas Hurst, in the borough of Wokingham, near Reading in the English county of Berkshire. The park is 450 acres (180 ha) in size. It has seven lakes, two rivers, three public bird hides, and meadows. One of the lakes, Lavells Lake is designated as a local nature reserve. The two rivers that flow through the park are the River Loddon and the Emm Brook. The Museum of Berkshire Aviation and the headquarters of the British Entomological and Natural History Society are both located in the park. The site is popular for a number of sports including sailing, angling, kayaking, and canoeing. Other facilities include play areas and a café. Anglo Saxons farmed the park's river meadows and called the area Whistley, where “wisc” means marshey meadows and “lei” means a woodland clearing. From the start of the 17th century, much of the area then belonged to Windsor Forest. The present day cafe was originally a farmhouse built in 1904, which was called 'High Chimneys'. In 1924 the area was sold to a farmer who renamed the farm after his home village of Dinton, near Aylesbury. The country park is part of the river Loddon's flood plain and so makes a good source of gravel, between 1969 to 1979 an extensive gravel extraction program was done where much of the gravel was used to construct the M4 and the A329(M). In 1979 Dinton Pastures was opened to the public. In 1992, part of the country park, Lavells Lake, was declared as a local nature reserve by Wokingham Borough Council.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To view more of my images, of Snowshill Manor & Gardens, please click "here" !
I would be most grateful if you would refrain from inserting images, and/or group invites; thank you!
Snowshill Manor was the property of Winchcombe Abbey from 821 until 1539 when the Abbey was confiscated by King Henry VIII during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Between 1539 and 1919 it had a number of tenants and owners until it was purchased by Charles Paget Wade, an architect, artist-craftsman, collector, poet and heir to the family fortune. He restored the property, living in the small cottage in the garden and using the manor house as a home for his collection of objects. He gave the property and the contents of this collection to the National Trust in 1951. There are two aspects of Snowshill Manor: its garden and the manor house, which is now home to Wade's eclectic collection. The garden at Snowshill was laid out by Wade, in collaboration with Arts and Crafts movement architect, M. H. Baillie Scott, between 1920 and 1923 as a series of outside rooms seen as an extension to the house. Features include terraces and ponds. The manor house is a typical Cotswold house, made from local stone; the main part of the house dates from the 16th century. Today, the main attraction of the house is perhaps the display of Wade's collection. From 1900 until 1951, when he gave the Manor to the National Trust, Wade amassed an enormous and eclectic collection of objects reflecting his interest in craftsmanship. The objects in the collection include 26 suits of Japanese samurai armour dating from the 17th and 19th centuries; bicycles; toys; musical instruments and more. On 5 October 2003, the house was closed and its entire contents removed in order to effect a number of repairs. In particular, the electrical wiring needed updating, new fire, security and environmental monitoring systems were installed, and the existing lighting was improved. The house reopened on 25 March 2005.
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Another road trip and this time Its the end of the road ! I don't think the old truck would make it up that terrain.
You may view my other images of our Roses, from our garden "here"
A Rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species and thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be erect shrubs, climbing or trailing with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers vary in size and shape and are usually large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows and reds. Most species are native to Asia, with smaller numbers native to Europe, North America, and northwest Africa. Species, cultivars and hybrids are all widely grown for their beauty and often are fragrant. Rose plants range in size from compact, miniature roses, to climbers that can reach seven meters in height. Different species hybridize easily, and this has been used in the development of the wide range of garden roses. The name rose comes from French, itself from Latin rosa, which was perhaps borrowed from Oscan, from Greek ρόδον rhódon (Aeolic βρόδον wródon), itself borrowed from Old Persian wrd- (wurdi), related to Avestan varəδa, Sogdian ward, Parthian wâr. The leaves are borne alternately on the stem. In most species they are 5 to 15 centimetres (2.0 to 5.9 in) long, pinnate, with (3–) 5–9 (–13) leaflets and basal stipules; the leaflets usually have a serrated margin, and often a few small prickles on the underside of the stem. Most roses are deciduous but a few (particularly from South east Asia) are evergreen or nearly so. The hybrid garden rose "Amber Flush" The flowers of most species have five petals, with the exception of Rosa sericea, which usually has only four. Each petal is divided into two distinct lobes and is usually white or pink, though in a few species yellow or red. Beneath the petals are five sepals (or in the case of some Rosa sericea, four). These may be long enough to be visible when viewed from above and appear as green points alternating with the rounded petals. There are multiple superior ovaries that develop into achenes. Roses are insect-pollinated in nature. The aggregate fruit of the rose is a berry-like structure called a rose hip. Many of the domestic cultivars do not produce hips, as the flowers are so tightly petalled that they do not provide access for pollination. The hips of most species are red, but a few (e.g. Rosa pimpinellifolia) have dark purple to black hips. Each hip comprises an outer fleshy layer, the hypanthium, which contains 5–160 "seeds" (technically dry single-seeded fruits called achenes) embedded in a matrix of fine, but stiff, hairs. Rose hips of some species, especially the dog rose (Rosa canina) and rugosa rose (Rosa rugosa), are very rich in vitamin C, among the richest sources of any plant. The hips are eaten by fruit-eating birds such as thrushes and waxwings, which then disperse the seeds in their droppings. Some birds, particularly finches, also eat the seeds. Rose thorns are actually prickles – outgrowths of the epidermis. While the sharp objects along a rose stem are commonly called "thorns", they are technically prickles — outgrowths of the epidermis (the outer layer of tissue of the stem). (True thorns, as produced by e.g. Citrus or Pyracantha, are modified stems, which always originate at a node and which have nodes and internodes along the length of the thorn itself.) Rose prickles are typically sickle-shaped hooks, which aid the rose in hanging onto other vegetation when growing over it. Some species such as Rosa rugosa and Rosa pimpinellifolia have densely packed straight prickles, probably an adaptation to reduce browsing by animals, but also possibly an adaptation to trap wind-blown sand and so reduce erosion and protect their roots (both of these species grow naturally on coastal sand dunes). Despite the presence of prickles, roses are frequently browsed by deer. A few species of roses have only vestigial prickles that have no points.