Coughton Court

The sun finally came out yesterday after what has felt like three weeks of continuous rain, and how glorious it felt! A trip to Coughton Court in search of colour

and we were not disappointed

first exploration - the walled garden

these are so gorgeous

iris - dancer's veil

the garden was full of them

and I can't get enough of them.

the white garden

followed by the red garden and tulips are still going strong

isn't that stunning? Both colour and form?

and one that is not quite open yet

it is that time of year....

here, the wisteria has not flowered yet. The ones in town are in full bloom, so I expected these to be flowering as well. Never mind, we will have to come back

Now we walk towards the wood, The Wild Wood of Arden, which may be the surviving area of the Ancient Forest of Arden, which Shakespeare used as the setting for 'As You Like It'.

Because thick carpets of bluebells take hundreds of years to form, they can indicate ancient woodland.

The Forest of Arden was first documented in the 11th century. The area was never identified as a royal forest so large sections were cleared through time to provide fuel, building materials and grazing land.

A forest economy still existed in the middle Mediaeval period. The nature of the local soils meant that once the original birch and oak woodland was removed, heath land developed. Heath was preferable to the wild wood, which was viewed by people with fear and suspicion.

We were a bit late in seeking the bluebells this year, but it has been impossible with all the rain we have been having

the wood and the rape field in the distance

blue sky and hardly any cloud in sight

the rape field on our right as we leave the wood

wild garlic on either side of the riverside walk

the smell is overpowering

there is so much of it

and now we enter the bog garden

lots of foliage

and now we have come to the lake

I saw these two geese earlier and could not understand why one was hissing at me

but now I know.

the sun has hidden behind a (very small) cloud and the light has changed.

back through the tree lined avenue on the way back home.