Apocalypse Deferred Just A Tiny Little Bit

On By Mick CanningIn kent, sussex, walking, Weald

Yesterday, I went for a walk around parts of Sussex and Kent. The sun shone – Hooray! I managed the whole walk without aching too much afterwards – Hooray again! I said good morning to some sheep and patted a very nice horse. I just knew it was going to be a Good Day.

At one point I went along a footpath I haven’t used for several years, and was delighted to see this:

And then another four miles or so later there was this:

The council have made this area a Designated Roadside Nature Reserve. Established for several years now, it has a rich variety of wildflowers and grasses, and is fairly humming with insect life.

Perhaps there is a little hope for us, after all.

37 thoughts on “Apocalypse Deferred Just A Tiny Little Bit”

  1. A good day indeed! 😀 Great news about the new flood plain and it seems to be flourishing already. Uplifting natural beauty to soothe the soul! At the moment every time I’m heading out for a walk it rains and came back drenched on Sunday … so much so I couldn’t stop laughing! 😀 Hope you’re having a lovely week, Mick!

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    1. Thanks, Jill. It was very lovely. BUT No, the government does not care more about nature than profit. It proclaims the importance of the environment and then does nothing to protect it unless it is dragged kicking and screaming there. It would far rather allow its rich chums to dig out more fossil fuels and maintain environment deserts like grouse moors. No, the government does not give a f***ing toss about nature. Initiatives like this are all by either local councils or voluntary bodies.

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      1. Ahhhh … so your government is no different than our own … they pay lip service to the environment, then return to pandering to the wealthy corporate interests. Sigh. Sadly, there will be a price to pay, and we will all pay it, likely sooner than we think.

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  3. Jane Sturgeon

    What a lovely post, Mick and thank you for sharing your walk. The flood plain and wildflower area are flourishing already. Up here on the Wirral, there was a council-led decision this year to leave the grass verges uncut and they are now teaming with insects and wildflowers. It’s wonderful to see.

    I love your header painting.

    ❤

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  4. I’ve recently concluded that there is a correlation between right-leaning town councils and green spaces that are mowed to within an inch of their life. Last administration, progressive, let the lawns along the lakeshore flower at least once before they sent out the machines. The current management is all about clean up and beautification and bylaws that specify the height of your grass.

    I love your country for so many reasons. This is one of them.

    (Hope the aches are under control.)

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          1. There are poplars being grown in India especially in Haryana and forms an important part of wood industry as it is used to make blockboards. But black poplars? I have not heard before.

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  7. See? There is hope! The comments reminded me of something I neglected to mention in our exchange yesterday. Even when mowing takes place along the highways and other state controlled, non-refuge areas, they do wait until after seeding has taken place. Lady Bird Johnson was one of the forces behind highway beautification and the promotion of native plants. She used people’s love of our bluebonnets and Indian paintbrush as a way to begin a life-long education effort.

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    1. It does sound as though your councils are ahead of ours in that respect. It’s only recently that any of them have begun to allow grassy areas to develop a little wildness rather than scalping them every week or so, and there are still quite a few that think grass should be no more than an inch high and preferably without a single weed to be seen.

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  10. This is great news on all fronts – that you had a good walk without feeling sore, the planting, and the roadside nature reserve. What a great idea – there are so, so many places that could be done. Just get rid of the invasives (not so easy, I know), plant native trees and understory plants, tend it for a few years to give it a head start and then leave it alone. Don’t mow!! Don’t “improve!” Thank you for posting this. 🙂

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