A Year in the Valley

You will notice the willows are in leaf.  The taller alders seem to be later to start growing.  We are being entertained by sheep and lambs in the field opposite.  The stream is still high and flowing fast, sometimes very brown with ‘run-off’ after prolonged spells of rain.  The Hemlock Water Dropwort is looking like a mini-forest over the other side of the valley.  The clumps are about a meter high now and flourishing in this wet weather.  The overall look of the valley is green with only a few straw-like tussocks of last years grass standing tall.  The rest has been trampled down by the weather and is now forming a mulch for this year’s green shoots.  Out of the picture are lines of trees edging the fields – all with a fuzzy bloom of green and many in white blossom.