Wild flower meadows of Kingcombe

These fields at Kingcombe were farmed by generations of the same family using traditional methods. In 1987 this land was put up for auction. Much of it was bought by Dorset Wildlife Trust and others who were keen to preserve it and carry on farming without pesticides and ripping out hedgerows.


 The meadows were so rich with flowers (there are over 400 ) and insects it was difficult to know what to photograph!

 These were  among some of my favourites - orchids,buttercups, huge dandelion type seed heads and ragged robin.

A flagship meadow in each county has been identified to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Queen's Coronation. It is hoped these Coronation Meadows will help to restore and preserve this habitat for many generations to come. It is fitting, that one of the meadows at Kingcombe was chosen for Dorset's meadow. Are there any Coronation Meadows near you too?

We only managed to get one photo of an insect- a yellow shell moth. Does anyone have any tips on how to photograph butterflies or insects they just move to fast for me?



 The River Hooke flows through parts of the nature reserve.


As we drove along the winding lanes homeward bound we came across an obstruction on the road. A mother partridge and her 10 little ones were taking a stroll along the road. She obviously hadn't taught them the green cross code yet! I had to get out of the car and try and shoo them into the hedge to allow us to pass.


 A wonderful day out full of flowers, wildlife and sunshine!

Welcome to my new followers Caroline at Scraps of us, Clare at Self sewn, Deborah at Simply Miss Luella, and Ivana at Oblak, thank for for joining me.

Val in Portgual has lost all her followers so if you previously followed her or haven't visited her before do pop by and say hello http://valrosa59.blogspot.co.uk/.

Hope everyone had a great weekend, I am off now to catch up with all your news!
Sarah x



Comments

  1. Hello Sarah!

    Reading your lovely post has reminded me to ask you whether you have read Katherine Webb's latest novel "A Half Forgotton Song"? It takes place in a small coastal village in Dorset in the late thirties, mostly and is an enjoyable read, I think.

    Looking at your wild flowers in the Coronation Pasture makes me think of the plants mentioned in that book.

    Have a lovely week, Sarah. I hope the sun continues to shine for you.

    Stephanie

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    1. Hi Stephanie,
      I haven't heard of this book but it looks very interesting so I have just ordered it from the library. Thank you for recommending it.
      Sarah x

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  2. what a gorgeous meadow, so lovely to see. Those chicks are so cute! That is a lovely bird, we have them in the fields at the back of our house but I rarely see them, sometimes I hear it in the morning when I'm getting dressed. I hope you don't mind me telling you it's not a quail though, it's a red legged partridge :) from the same family I think, so similar to a quail. I believe they are becoming quite common.

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    1. Thanks Louise for letting me know that it was a partridge. I have never seen either!
      Sarah x

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  3. Don't you just love outings like this? The animals, the fields of flowers, the bodies of water.....magic. And to me, that is what summer is about, to bring out the magical child in us who want to see it.

    SARAH! Thank you for coming to visit me today! Let's hope that the new way to receive our blog updates works...I have no idea what it's all about, be we shall see! Give Daisy a squeeze! Anita

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  4. I do love a meadow lots of lovely wild flowers. Your photo of the moth is wonderful. I let out a big awww when I saw mummy partridge with her babies x

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  5. Wow, that moth....just wish they wouldn't keep eating my t-shirts! :) x

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  6. Beautiful atmosphere's you show us. Those orchids.....gorgious! It's always nice to follow you.
    Bye Lilian

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  7. I just love your posts! It feels like I'm right there with you.

    Thank you for the lovely walk!

    xox

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  8. Beautiful, beautiful. What a wonderful idea to preserve meadows like this.

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  9. Hello Sarah, Lovely fields of wildflowers, meandering streams and beautiful birdlife.. ALl very glorious to see. Thanks for sharing all your photos. Hugs Judy

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  10. Ooh I don't think I've seen a partridge before. Cute babies. Is River Cottage Australia showing on your pay tv?? It just started here last week and is a lovely farmhouse set up in dairy country with green hills in southern NSW. Hugh was in the first episode and now the Australian will host it. xx

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    1. I will have to watch out for River Cottage Australia, it would be wonderful to see it. I sure you must been enjoying it.
      Sarah x

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  11. What a lovely way to spend a day walking in a medow full of wild flowers, so very pretty.

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  12. A lovely post Sarah, and many thanks for it, you prompted me to find my nearest Coronation Meadow and I'm already planning a trip there!

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  13. Oh my what beautiful pictures, that wildflower meadow is gorgeous. I just want to run through it like the girls used to on the titles of Little House on the Prairie, skipping and jumping amongst the flowers ... thank you for sharing ~ Sarah x

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  14. The wildflower meadow is beautiful. I'm certainly going to keep visiting my nearest Coronation Meadow in the future, it's such a wonderful initiative. I love the moth; I've been lucky photographing most butterflies this year except for a Brimstone, which just won't settle! The Partridge and chicks are adorable.

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  15. It's so good that the trust has preserved this land and keeps it looking as gorgeous as it is. We actually have not seen many butterflies at all this year when we go out and we keep wondering, where have they gone! We've seen moths a plenty though. We have those lovely orchids by Little Bracebridge pool in Sutton Park. Thanks for a lovely post. Suzy x

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  16. This would be my first time "seeing" a partridge. Imagine having 10 little ones to take care of :D

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  17. Meadows are beautiful, we have a few along the coastal path and I always stop to take them in. Nothing I can find in Torbay area for a coronation meadow...sadly. Lovely post as always. I am struggling with butterflies too, I know what you mean, they always fly away too quickly! I'm booked on a wildlife photography course at the end of this month at Berry Head, so may pick up some tips and will pass on. I have left an area of grass in my back garden to go wild and I think it's lovely. I dont have ordinary lawn grass, it's the original grass that was here when it was just fields, so lovely things come up.

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  18. Love that moth! I've not had one of those yet. Moths can be put in a pot in the fridge for a few hours quite safely (they don't need air holes in the pot for a few hours), the cooler temperature quietens them down and you can usually get a good picture that way. Not sure about butterflies though :-)
    We're off to a local wildflower meadow this weekend - thanks for reminding me, it's been on my list of to do's for ages!

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  19. How nice there is an effort going on to preserve some of the meadows. The wildflowers in your pictures are so pretty, and so different too from flowers one plants in a garden. That's so funny you had to get out and direct the partridge family across the street!

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  20. ~ A beautiful summery post! My favourite thing to do is just to simply 'bee' in a meadow full of the sweetness of summer....Long may it last. LOVE the picture of mummy with her 'wee' one! Don't you just love the way they slow things down and make you stop and think! Hugs for a lovely new week, Sarah! Maria x

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  21. You took wonderful pics Sarah,I feel I'm there following the mother partridge and her babies...Nothing more relaxing than strolling through summer meadows...
    Have a nice sunny week!

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  22. Wild flower meadows are one of my favourite things in the world. So good to see some being preserved. And that photograph of the moth is fabulous!

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  23. Lovely photos.. especially love the wild flower meadow..they are so special and there should be more of them to help our pollinators.
    The partridge and her babies, are so sweet :o)

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  24. What a beautiful place Sarah, there is something so quintessentially English about an ancient meadow..
    so sad there are not many left due to over farming,
    I am off to find Val now
    Happy summer days
    Thea x

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  25. Love this post - butterflies just tend to be too quick for me to most of the time. The trick I think is to try and catch them when they're on buddleihas as they tend to stay longer on them and to be very patient. The partridge is so cute.
    June

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  26. What a beautiful place to visit! Thank goodness there are still a few traditional wildflower meadows being grown and protected. The bees need all the help they can get.

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  27. Hi Sarah! That meadow is beautiful, really. I went to the mountain last sunday for a stroll and there were orchids everywhere in the fields up there: beautiful! That partridge mum is lovely, i didn't know partridges prefer walking rather than flying I haven't seen one before...

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  28. oh my heart is sighing! It looks idyllic!


    noodleBubble X

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  29. Hello Sarah! What a beautiful post - I am in love with wild flower meadows and country fields full of wild flowers! After reading your post I wondered whether there were any wild flower meadows down south, but alas, they are none, except for a small wild flower meadow which I think is in Wickham. I shall have to find out. Beautiful photos and one cannot help but enjoy a glorious day out like that! Have a lovely week! Sharon

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  30. oh I would love a meadow like this near me!!

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  31. Lovely photos Sarah I love the wild orchid

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  32. Sarah your photos are wonderful. What a beautiful place to spend a day. Thank you for sharing with us.
    Have a wonderful day.

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  33. Ah takes me back to childhood days playing in the fields near home. Stunning photos Sarah and I can almost smell the countryside. Thanks for sharing.
    Patricia x

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  34. What a beautiful meadow that is Sarah. Can't share any tips on how to photograph insects, birds and such like, they never pose for me no matter how hard I try :-(

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  35. Your photography question echoes my own :) Only since starting to blog two years ago have I frequently tried to capture glimpses of the world around me [and can afford to do so thanks to digital cameras] You reminded me that for my last post I tried to capture a shot of a pretty moth, but when I was editing the post I overlooked the moth! I am going back to see if I can find him :) Thanks for your beautiful blog, Sarah!!!
    Gracie xx

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