Thank you again for your dispatch, as ever thought provoking and thought easing. On my spiritual home this week Uist. At one time it was the Isle of Skye but as the crowds moved in I moved on. How do we get the right balance? This island is one of the few places where the silence is deafening. Walking on the beach this morning accompanied by my dog and nature’s voices I felt privileged and concerned, most of Uist is below the relative sea level so what will the future hold. At best we must hold what is here whilst knowing it is impermanent.
Admirable writing from you both Andrew and Emma. So much depth and knowledge which always makes me pause for thought and reflection. Thank you again. Xx
Appreciate the dilemma of 'hidden gems' being overrun by less considerate humans once they have been revealed on media. On a less depressing note - love the coffee table and the butterfly joint, great work.
I remember well the day I first heard the bell like song of the Goldfinch as I walked through an industrialised area of inner-city Manchester and my delight to spot the bird singing that song perched on a barbed wire fence. I also remember letting the hedge of the garden overgrow with thistles after researching their love for the seeds and sure enough they turned up in numbers. They brought joy to what could often be a challenging and dismal environment at that time.
As for Emma's nature notes I definitely think it's worth doing as a standalone and each could reference the other to keep the continuity. Go for it!
Thanks, Hadge. I love the idea of those bright and cheerful looking goldfinches set against the industrial urban environment. Nature's capacity to bring people small moments of joy seems much overlooked and undervalued.
It is so delightful to know a group of goldfinches is a charm! I feel this way about the simple house finches which were everywhere in Pittsburgh when I was in undergrad. Also the difficulty of not wanting to gate keep, while also wanting to see natural spaces thrive — it's an increasing dilemma out in Colorado as well that I haven't managed to emotionally work through just yet.
Thank you, Anja. Yeah, the collective noun for goldfinches is just perfect isn't it? I agree, it's a tough line between gate keeping and hoping that our wilder places manage to retain an element of wildness. I was really conscious of that when writing last week's issue. Sorry to hear you're facing the same dilemma out there in Colorado!
There's so much litter where we live now and the disrespect just blows my mind. There's an electrician that regularly comes and dumps their waste in our local nature reserve and I dream of catching them! I was speaking to some fellow foragers the other week who said they've stopped telling people where to look for certain things, or will take a sample of a leaf of wild garlic for example, rather than take people on foraging walks to a patch growing in the wild as they've seen people from their walks go back and completely strip them! I always want to expect the best from people (particularly those with an interest in nature), but some of the stories I have heard lately are very concerning.
Love your goldfinch video. I am chuffed to have enticed some over to our garden too, with a combo of niger seed (which they have decimated and I don't think I can keep up with!) and dandelions (which thankfully are free and in abundance!). I'm sure I planted some oxeye daisies but nothing has come up, so I sowed some more seeds a week or so ago... not sure if it's too late, but we'll see.
Yeah, sadly respect for the land, and for Nature seems to be in short supply. Who on earth would dump rubbish in a Nature Reserve?! We too always give people the benefit of the doubt and expect the best from people, but are increasingly often let down.
So glad you have goldfinches in your garden too! Fully recommend planting some common sorrel; the sparrows seem to like the seeds too and also a redpoll came to give them a try. Emma says the seeds are edible for humans too and taste citrusy, like the leaves of wood sorrel.
You probably already know, but oxeye daisies flower in their second year; the first year is dedicated to growing leaves and strong roots so any you plant now probably won't flower for a while. Once they're established though they'll keep coming back year after year!
I wish there was more people in the world like you guys... would love some recipes ...
I grew up in the Royal National Park in NSW... so i have a very strong connection with nature... we used to catch the ferry to school everyday... very cool...
Thanks Greg, we appreciate the kind words and we're happy to hear you've retained a strong connection to Nature. Catching the ferry to school sounds like a wonderful way to start the day!
Dear Andrew and Emma (and Benji, of course) ... what a delight. We loved the Lake District when we visited in 2021, a few days of exploring turning into 3 weeks of loitering. Full of admiration for your writing about life up there. The nature notes could easily stand alone, Emma. JoJo has done the same with her ‘Notes from the Potager’ and photos really add to the (already wonderful) storytelling. There seems to be an audience for Nature here on Substack. Andrew, your heartfelt words really struck a chord. Brilliant expressed. Love reading your words. Barrie and JoJo
Thank you guys, what a lovely encouraging comment. I think you've persuaded us to make Nature Happenings a stand alone feature. All the best from the three of us.
Thank you again for your dispatch, as ever thought provoking and thought easing. On my spiritual home this week Uist. At one time it was the Isle of Skye but as the crowds moved in I moved on. How do we get the right balance? This island is one of the few places where the silence is deafening. Walking on the beach this morning accompanied by my dog and nature’s voices I felt privileged and concerned, most of Uist is below the relative sea level so what will the future hold. At best we must hold what is here whilst knowing it is impermanent.
Take good care
Stuart
Admirable writing from you both Andrew and Emma. So much depth and knowledge which always makes me pause for thought and reflection. Thank you again. Xx
Thank you, as always for the encouraging words!
Appreciate the dilemma of 'hidden gems' being overrun by less considerate humans once they have been revealed on media. On a less depressing note - love the coffee table and the butterfly joint, great work.
I remember well the day I first heard the bell like song of the Goldfinch as I walked through an industrialised area of inner-city Manchester and my delight to spot the bird singing that song perched on a barbed wire fence. I also remember letting the hedge of the garden overgrow with thistles after researching their love for the seeds and sure enough they turned up in numbers. They brought joy to what could often be a challenging and dismal environment at that time.
As for Emma's nature notes I definitely think it's worth doing as a standalone and each could reference the other to keep the continuity. Go for it!
Thanks, Hadge. I love the idea of those bright and cheerful looking goldfinches set against the industrial urban environment. Nature's capacity to bring people small moments of joy seems much overlooked and undervalued.
It is so delightful to know a group of goldfinches is a charm! I feel this way about the simple house finches which were everywhere in Pittsburgh when I was in undergrad. Also the difficulty of not wanting to gate keep, while also wanting to see natural spaces thrive — it's an increasing dilemma out in Colorado as well that I haven't managed to emotionally work through just yet.
Thank you, Anja. Yeah, the collective noun for goldfinches is just perfect isn't it? I agree, it's a tough line between gate keeping and hoping that our wilder places manage to retain an element of wildness. I was really conscious of that when writing last week's issue. Sorry to hear you're facing the same dilemma out there in Colorado!
There's so much litter where we live now and the disrespect just blows my mind. There's an electrician that regularly comes and dumps their waste in our local nature reserve and I dream of catching them! I was speaking to some fellow foragers the other week who said they've stopped telling people where to look for certain things, or will take a sample of a leaf of wild garlic for example, rather than take people on foraging walks to a patch growing in the wild as they've seen people from their walks go back and completely strip them! I always want to expect the best from people (particularly those with an interest in nature), but some of the stories I have heard lately are very concerning.
Love your goldfinch video. I am chuffed to have enticed some over to our garden too, with a combo of niger seed (which they have decimated and I don't think I can keep up with!) and dandelions (which thankfully are free and in abundance!). I'm sure I planted some oxeye daisies but nothing has come up, so I sowed some more seeds a week or so ago... not sure if it's too late, but we'll see.
Yeah, sadly respect for the land, and for Nature seems to be in short supply. Who on earth would dump rubbish in a Nature Reserve?! We too always give people the benefit of the doubt and expect the best from people, but are increasingly often let down.
So glad you have goldfinches in your garden too! Fully recommend planting some common sorrel; the sparrows seem to like the seeds too and also a redpoll came to give them a try. Emma says the seeds are edible for humans too and taste citrusy, like the leaves of wood sorrel.
You probably already know, but oxeye daisies flower in their second year; the first year is dedicated to growing leaves and strong roots so any you plant now probably won't flower for a while. Once they're established though they'll keep coming back year after year!
Have a lovely Nature filled weekend!
I wish there was more people in the world like you guys... would love some recipes ...
I grew up in the Royal National Park in NSW... so i have a very strong connection with nature... we used to catch the ferry to school everyday... very cool...
Cheers
Greg
Thanks Greg, we appreciate the kind words and we're happy to hear you've retained a strong connection to Nature. Catching the ferry to school sounds like a wonderful way to start the day!
Dear Andrew and Emma (and Benji, of course) ... what a delight. We loved the Lake District when we visited in 2021, a few days of exploring turning into 3 weeks of loitering. Full of admiration for your writing about life up there. The nature notes could easily stand alone, Emma. JoJo has done the same with her ‘Notes from the Potager’ and photos really add to the (already wonderful) storytelling. There seems to be an audience for Nature here on Substack. Andrew, your heartfelt words really struck a chord. Brilliant expressed. Love reading your words. Barrie and JoJo
Thank you guys, what a lovely encouraging comment. I think you've persuaded us to make Nature Happenings a stand alone feature. All the best from the three of us.
So looking forward to reading them. Happy Sunday