Island Life Magazine Ltd December 2007/January 2008 | Page 56

life

COUNTRYSIDE, WILDLIFE & FARMING

By Tony Ridd

Countryside
Fire in the
Countryside
By Tony Ridd

With winter now well
and truly upon us, and
the hope of an Indian
summer a distant
memory, is everything
outside dull and grey?
Tony Ridd , shows us
that the countryside
can still be viewed in
techni-colour what
ever the season.
The vibrant autumn coloured
leaves, that our northern
counties witness, tend not
to be mirrored on the island
because of our slightly warmer
climate. This winter, because
a lot of the leaves have stayed
on the branches longer, it has
been a slight exception. We
have been treated to some
bright yellow Acer’s, burnt
deep red brambles and, I’ve
particularly noticed, a lot of

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dark burgundy dogwoods.
The Field maple, our only
native Acer, brightens up
hedgerows and woodland
edges and it has, been almost
matched by some wonderful
pastel yellow sycamores,
whose large leaves fall to
the ground forming a yellow
carpet below its branches.
Although not common,
the European Larch shows
off, its yellow plumage
and when planted amongst
dark green conifers, such
as, the Monteray or Scots
Pines, gives a magnificent
contrast of colours.
But winter colour in the
countryside is not to be
confined to leaves alone.
Berries and fruit, can still
hang on, some well beyond
the new-year. With the most
bitter, inedible and poisonous
being left until last. Here,
‘red’ wins the day, with the

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