pumpkinstrokemarrow

If you stand at the North end of platform 11 at Clapham Junction on a summer's afternoon you can see a line of aircraft heading in West to land at Heathrow. I think I have had as many as four in sight at one time, although three is a more usual day-best. They are on their final descent so they are going to hold their course until they land. But if you stood in my garden yesterday morning at around 0700 the sky was a striking patch work of vapour trails of varying ages, mostly very high up. Evidence that our turn on the rota for aeroplanes has come around again. But the thing is, where are these planes going to or coming from? Heading West over Clapham Junction takes you nowhere near Epsom and I think they also mostly take off heading West which also takes you nowhere near Epsom. That is to say, both taking off and landing in the direction of the prevailing wind. And I thought that the big holding stacks where aircraft are queued up are over the Thames estuary - where - say at Purfleet - on a clear summer's night you get a spectacular sky show. So what are are they doing over Epsom? Maybe the aircraft heading East turn around West of London then swing back over Epsom on their way East - which would account for their height. Or the ones coming in from the West get to the holding stacks in the estuary by flying over Epsom. How long would it take to find out the way all this is organised in our public library? Or on Google. If I get bored this afternoon maybe I will find out. My bet is that Gatwick has nothing much to do with it all.

Yesterday to Epsom and Ashtead commons. Where we were pleased to learn that the cows belonging to the ecos' toy farm are being held at Coulsdon for their innoculation against blue tongue. Also pleased to see our first nuthatch for years. We used to get them on our bird feeder in the winter but with the feeder having passed over, no more nuthatches in the garden. Lots of small butterflies. No deer - BH telling me that they tend to come out late afternoon - also that the bark a dog makes when it sees a squirrel is distinguishable from that when it sees a deer. A good crop of foxgloves. One oak tree with something sticking out of the side of it which was the size and shape of a saddle fungus but which appeared to be made of the same bark as the rest of the tree. Just below a large branch so it seems unlikely that it was the remnant of a branch. A pile of sawdust at the bottom of one small tree which appeared to be the product of woodworms. And lots of large birch trees. I had forgotten that they came so large on these commons.

Having a problem with hornbeams (see May 4 and elsewhere). The trees in Garratt Lane deemed to be hornbeam on account of their plaited bark, now turn out to have pinnately compound small round leaves - which means that they are not hornbeams. Another trip to the library indicated, my store of tree books being exhausted.

And now it is time for soup. A new one: take half a pound of stewing steak, cut into very small strips and four ounces of pearl barley. Boil up for an hour. Add some finely sliced summer cabbage. Simmer for a few more minutes and serve. We shall see how it goes shortly.