The Meadow Brown is one of Britain’s most common butterflies and symbolises the arrival of summer as their numbers swell towards Summer Solstice. It is reliant on unkempt, scruffy places such as roadside verges and uncultivated fields because it lays its eggs at the base of long grass. With the loss of hay meadows and …
The Peacock butterfly is widespread in Europe during summer and always looks spectacular. Its scientfic name is beautiful – Aglais Io. Io was a princess in Greek mythology so lovely that Zeus fell in love with her. She also lends her name to one of Jupiter’s moons. The Peacock butterfly has distinctive markings which look …
Bees are one of the lynchpins of our life on Earth. Almost 90% of wild plants and 75% of leading global crops depend on animal pollinators. Bees are important pollinators and, given that 1 in every 3 mouthfuls of our food is pollinated, we need to care for our bees. Quite apart from being crucial …
Comfrey has had a long relationship with humans. It grows in sun or shade in damp areas. Look for it near ditches or river banks. Or in damp wasteland or grassland. It appears throughout summer and has white or pink flowers. It’s one of those plants you don’t notice until you do, and then you …