More January - making a splash, poles and dancing

11th January

John says there's not much going on at Liddells at the moment and then we reposition the trail camera and there are two deer. Educational opportunity - the photo shows clearly that the deer in the middle of the frame is a doe. Her 'target' (Clare only learnt this application of the word today - its the white patch on her backside) looks like a spade from a pack of playing cards. The buck's target looks more like a sideways-on kidney. You can also see the 'anal tush' - the tuft of white hair hanging below the target. This appears one the doe is about 18 months old and lengthens during the winter. I bet you all feel better for knowing all that.

12th January

Clare celebrated being discharged from physio by walking round Liddells with Sally. On the way an ermine ran across the road in front of the car - very lordly it looked too! We saw a kestrel hovering over the Top Grazing and a grey heron fly onto the land from the west. We were delighted to witness the tenacity of willows - a bundle of cuttings we'd been given in the autumn and had, in haste, stuck in a wet patch on the Wetland and then abandoned, were all sprouting. Clare was reminded of Judi Dench, in a programme about her love of trees, quoting a Chinese saying that the best time to plant a tree is fifty years ago; the next best time is today. Must get planting! A further educational opportunity arose when we spotted an owl pellet, and fox and deer droppings all very close together. So in what order did they appear and who ate what - answers on a postcard please...

John has been researching his mother's family, particularly the farming diaries she and her father kept. He has discovered this photo of his mother with the farm's working horses. So that's where it all began!

And Clare went to the Laing Art Gallery to see an exhibition of Paul Nash's work and liked that he 'tried to paint trees as though they were human beings' and found them to be 'dominating presences in nature with particular qualities' and distinct personalities. The Wikipedia page on him only shows his work as a war artist, the Tate's page on the exhibition does a bit more justice to his other work.

19th January

Liddells covered in snow and tracks everywhere.

20th January

John was on the land in the morning and saw two deer walking slowly towards him across the Top Grazing apparently unaware of his presence - a young buck in velvet and a doe - they jumped the fence into the Scrub.

24th January

Clare planted into pots 62 conkers that our land neighbour Monica had collected and donated.

25th January

Work continues with John, Eilidh, Paul and William - the humans took the ponies to the Military Road so William could meet the traffic. They returned via the field pond and Paul had a good splash. William is as yet only dipping his hoof in the water. Frustratingly hands full of ponies are not compatible with photography so please use your imagination.

28th January

We planted 100 English bluebell bulbs in the Pit Wood in the area John and Mel have cleared. Signs of spring are evident.

31st January

The first thing we saw on the Top Grazing was a mixed flock of fieldfares and redwings. We've often seen fieldfares on the land, however the redwings were welcome new visitors. Clare worked as official photographer for John and Eilidh's session with the ponies. William dared to make a splash for the first time and responded well to Eildih's encouragement for him to trot on the leading rein. It's all new for a young pony. Paul was encouraged to lift his feet over poles, however the ground was a bit too wet and slippy. John did rather well. Then Mel came and he John and Clare set to work on the west end of the Top Strip path and cleared off weedy chip (this is not a judgement, the chip was full of weeds) and replaced it with the chip we had made in the autumn.