A Year in the Life of an English Country Garden - 2016 - The End

Nothing much to add, Jenny, but I'm still looking in and admiring your pictures. Not much longer until the end of the year now.
 
Nothing much to add, Jenny, but I'm still looking in and admiring your pictures. Not much longer until the end of the year now.

Thanks for your support, Dave. Yes, it has been a long haul. Just a few weeks left, thank goodness!
 
I have been away for the last week and did not manage to post anything. However, there are a couple of fungi shots that I took just before I left.

This is a different coral fungus to the one I posted previously. It is more white/grey in colour although it looks more cream-coloured in the late afternoon sunshine.

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I found this big patch of Stag's Horn fungus (also called Candlesnuff) near the pond. I think it is probably growing on a buried tree stump. It was very difficult to get this photo and there was not much light.

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We have experienced a temperature drop of 37 degrees C since arriving back from holiday! It was -7C last night but gloriously sunny during the day. I think there may be some frost photos for next week.

Most of the leaves have fallen from the trees except for some of the oaks. We could do with some wind to blow them away.

Comments welcome as usual.
 
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Back on track again after my holiday. It has been mostly very cold and icy at night but with beautiful sunshine during the day.

The other morning I saw a lone roe deer in the garden and took a few shots. Unfortunately he was mostly in the shade and it was quite dark so I had to use very high ISO. These shots are a bit noisy. One thing to notice are his antlers. Roe deer shed them every year and regrow them. His are just coming through.

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The final shot was when he moved into the sunlight but he was a bit too close!

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Next, I managed some frost shots but I should have tried to get closer to get a better view of the ice crystals. They were really intriguing shapes.

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We have spent most of the week raking leaves and I disturbed a toad who was hiding among them. Good opportunity for a photo.

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There are still plenty of things of interest in the garden. I am hoping the weather remains fine to get some final decent shots.

Comments still welcome.
 
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You were either well hidden or the roe deer is very confiding for you to get such a close up picture. :)
 
You were either well hidden or the roe deer is very confiding for you to get such a close up picture. :)

I think he was deaf and blind. I took the shots from inside the house with a 400mm lens. There was no way I could get out of the house and creep up close to him. However, I had to go out and chase him away when he started eating my Heuchera :mad:
 
The swings and roundabouts of having wildlife visit the garden!
 
There has been little opportunity for photography this week. The weather has been remarkably mild but very grey with some rain. Not ideal conditions but the sun did make an appearance today.

We have been raking leaves most of the week. It is a massive job because there has been very little wind and the leaves are just lying where they fall. However, there are signs of spring everywhere. The first shot is a patch of daffodils just poking through the leaf cover.

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Next, a shot looking down the hill towards the field next door. I love the long shadows at this time of year.

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After yesterday's rain the fallen leaves were soaking wet. The next shot was an experiment which did not really work. However I like the way the raindrops enlarge the veins of the leaf.

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I feel as though I have done full circle. One of the first photos I posted at the beginning of the year was a hardy little Vinca flower which was blooming in January. I am pleased to say it has been blooming all year and in spite of temperatures down to -7C, it is still soldiering on!

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The Mahonia is also adding a splash of colour to the garden.

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Finally, my favourite photo of the week. One of the clematis has some magnificent seed heads just crying out for a photo.

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I have been trying to photograph birds this week because they have been sadly neglected in this thread, but the weather has just not been suitable. Hopefully next week.
 
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The daffodil picture reminds me how the buds we associate with spring actually form in autumn as the old leaves fall. Whenever I see them during the winter they cheer me up knowing that warmer weather will return sooner than we think.

Not long left now, Jenny. I hope you get the pictures you want to round this project off.
 
The daffodil picture reminds me how the buds we associate with spring actually form in autumn as the old leaves fall. Whenever I see them during the winter they cheer me up knowing that warmer weather will return sooner than we think.

Thanks for your comments, Dave. I hate winter and it is the signs of spring that keep me going through it! However, we have had some exceptionally mild winters recently. We have not had even a flake of snow here since 2013 but mild winters are usually grey and dreary :(

Not long left now, Jenny. I hope you get the pictures you want to round this project off.

Yes, thank goodness, but there are quite a few shots that I still need to take.
 
I am so close to the end of this marathon and there are so many things that I have not yet photographed - many of the little birds on the feeders and the ground feeders, red kites, buzzards, rabbits and a disappointing number of hares. I will do my best to capture them but time is running out. The weather is not helping. The first photo summarises the weather for most of the week, murky, although the sun did poke through on a few occasions.

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The resident pheasant has become friends with one of the other guys who he would not tolerate a few months ago. They seem inseparable at the moment (at least until the spring). Here they are on our garden bench in the rain and looking miserable.

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He needs to be careful not to look too appetising. He may end up as Christmas lunch :eek:

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Not sure what he was doing today, standing in the bird bath calling to someone.

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The high-jumping squirrel has also been a nuisance this week. He is the only one that can jump the vertical 3 or 4 feet onto the baffle that protects the feeder. On the ground he looks as though butter would not melt in his mouth . . .

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I know different!

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The light levels have been so low that some of this weeks photos are quite noisy and not as sharp as they could be. But, I am posting this one anyway. Never completely sure whether it is a Marsh or Willow Tit.

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Finally, my favourite image of the week. I am very pleased with the detail in the feathers.

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I need to be careful what I wish for but it would be great if we could have some snow before the end of the year. I feel the project is not really complete without some "real" winter photos.

Comments welcome.
 
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The first photo summarises the weather for most of the week, murky, although the sun did poke through on a few occasions.

Murky, maybe. But I like it. :)
 
I find it hard to believe we're nearly at the end of another year.

I love the picture of the Blue tit, both the pose and the detail and I do like the picture of the trees. The colour of the leaves that are still on the trees seem to shine out of the gloom.
 
I find it hard to believe we're nearly at the end of another year.

I love the picture of the Blue tit, both the pose and the detail and I do like the picture of the trees. The colour of the leaves that are still on the trees seem to shine out of the gloom.

Thanks for the comments, Pete. It has been a long year for me and I will be glad to get to the end of it. I won't be doing this challenge again!

I was very pleased with the blue tit shot although it would have been better if the tree branch was in focus, too.
 
Merry Christmas to one and all! The project had to take a back seat to Christmas so I am a bit late in posting last week's images.

There were some interesting skies and cloud formations this week. The first shot is not particularly good (no subject) but I was trying to capture the cloud formation. We don't get good sunsets here because we are surrounded by trees to the west. This was the best I could manage.

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Sunrises are a different matter. We get some amazing ones, like this shot . . .

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The sky really was that colour. The only real processing I did was to brighten below the horizon because it was a bit underexposed.

The squirrel has been a pest again. Annoyed I shaved a few hairs off his tail.

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My main focus has been on trying to capture the birds. They have been hyperactive around the bird feeders but the light has not been kind to capture them. The next shots have been taken at high ISO.

Pity this little tit did not turn around and face into the sun.

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There must still be plenty of ants in the lawn for the woodpecker.
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Finally, it would not be Christmas without a Robin :) I like this shot.

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Only one more week left, but comments are still welcome.
 
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Final day! I feel like throwing my camera in the bin tomorrow. It has been tough to keep it up.

Taking stock, there are so many things I have missed during the year and I tried to get as many in the last week as I could. However, many of the "regulars" I have missed completely - dunnock, chaffinch, buzzards, red kites, etc. Annoyed about that.

I will post this week's offerings in two separate posts because there are a lot of them. Firstly, I should mention that the weather has been horrible - very foggy, sometimes lasting all day. Sometimes the sun broke through for a while. Not ideal photography weather. That is my excuse for the first two quite bad photos but I am posting them anyway just to show that these animals are still around. They were taken this morning in very low light conditions and mist so they are noisy and not very sharp.

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The next one was taken from a long way away so is a heavy crop.

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Now for some better images. The Winter Jasmine has been flowering for weeks and is a welcome splash of colour by the back door.

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A few weeks ago I posted a shot of a clematis seed head. Well this is what it looks like when it has dried - very feathery. I rather like this shot.

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Next, some lichen. There is lots around but this one caught my eye as being a bit different. Not an expert on lichen so not 100% sure about the name.

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I will post my final images in the next post.
 
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Here are the rest of them. I have been mainly concentrating on birds. Firstly, could not resist another Robin.

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All of them have been taken at very low light levels and high ISO so are noisy.

Finally, I thought it would be interesting to take a pano around about 130 degrees over the valley. The mist lies there and this was taken not long before the sunset behind and to the right. I had to make it very narrow to crop out our garden fence which is such a funny shape that it looked odd.

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I would like to thank everyone who has commented during the year. I really appreciated all of your comments and they have kept me going. I will be making a book like I did last time and will post a link to it when it is finished.

Thanks again for your support and Happy New Year to everyone.
 
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I really enjoyed looking through this thread, wonderful colours and detail (on my phone) looks really good. Looks like you have a good eye for detail. I look forward to seeing more luke this in 2017[emoji106]
 
A pity the weather set you back this week, Jenny, but the lichen is an interesting one and the clematis seed head is lovely. And it's always good to see familiar wildlife still around. I'm sure the book will be as good as your last one. Looking forward to whatever you have in store for 2017.
 
It's not your average English country garden but all the better for it. A great effort across the year and I have enjoyed following the thread, congratulations on completing the year and thanks for posting.Happy new year
 
I really enjoyed looking through this thread, wonderful colours and detail (on my phone) looks really good. Looks like you have a good eye for detail. I look forward to seeing more luke this in 2017[emoji106]

Thanks, Graham. Glad you liked the thread. I will take photos at my leisure in 2017 rather than feeling obliged to post every week!

A pity the weather set you back this week, Jenny, but the lichen is an interesting one and the clematis seed head is lovely. And it's always good to see familiar wildlife still around. I'm sure the book will be as good as your last one. Looking forward to whatever you have in store for 2017.

Thanks, Dave. I wish I had included more lichen in the thread because you can photograph them indoors and the weather does not really matter. Thanks for your support throughout the year.

It's not your average English country garden but all the better for it. A great effort across the year and I have enjoyed following the thread, congratulations on completing the year and thanks for posting.Happy new year

Thanks, Chris, glad you enjoyed it. Yes, it has been a huge effort. I won't know what to do with myself tomorrow!
 
What a lovely set to finish with Jenny.

It's been a joy to follow your garden images throughout the year and well done indeed for keeping it up - it can't have been easy.

All the best for 2017 and a very Happy New Year to you.
 
What a lovely set to finish with Jenny.

It's been a joy to follow your garden images throughout the year and well done indeed for keeping it up - it can't have been easy.

All the best for 2017 and a very Happy New Year to you.

Happy New Year, Pete! Many thanks for your comments and I am pleased you enjoyed the thread. I have appreciated your support during the year.
 
I think you have gone from strength to strength with this project, well done jenny, you have posted some cracking pics.

Thanks, Walter. The whole idea of the project was to practise and improve. Hopefully, I have done that! Thank you very much for your support during the year (y)
 
Jenny your garden is wonderful and you've shown it off beautifully on your thread ..... very well done for keeping it going throughout the year.

Thanks for your comments, Susie. Much appreciated. It was definitely tough keeping it up for the whole year!
 
Hi Jenny,

I have popped into this thread on and off through the year and although I haven't commented much I have very much enjoyed looking through your images. Well done for completing the year and thank you for the pleasure they have brought.

Love the last pano to finish off your year.
 
Hi Jenny,

I have popped into this thread on and off through the year and although I haven't commented much I have very much enjoyed looking through your images. Well done for completing the year and thank you for the pleasure they have brought.

Love the last pano to finish off your year.

Thanks, Steve. Glad you enjoyed the thread. I think it is interesting to have a full record of the year. I too liked the pano. It is just a pity that I had to crop it so narrow.
 
Jenny it's been a while since I had the opportunity to get logged into the site and one of the first things I thought of was your challenge. I've just looked through the last of your images and I have to say I wasn't disappointed in any way. Well done on completing, you did an amazing job. I've loved every one of your photos and your blogs for each day. It's been a very interesting and visually lovely journey for us as spectators! You should be extremely proud of yourself in what you've achieved, just wonderful!! :clap::cool:
 
Jenny it's been a while since I had the opportunity to get logged into the site and one of the first things I thought of was your challenge. I've just looked through the last of your images and I have to say I wasn't disappointed in any way. Well done on completing, you did an amazing job. I've loved every one of your photos and your blogs for each day. It's been a very interesting and visually lovely journey for us as spectators! You should be extremely proud of yourself in what you've achieved, just wonderful!! :clap::cool:

Hi Claire, it's good to hear from you again. Thank you very much for your comments. I have to admit that the project really took it out of me and I still have not made the book I promised. Probably a bit late now. However, it did give me a sense of achievement and I learnt a lot at the same time. Thanks for following the project and for your encouragement.
 
Hi Claire, it's good to hear from you again. Thank you very much for your comments. I have to admit that the project really took it out of me and I still have not made the book I promised. Probably a bit late now. However, it did give me a sense of achievement and I learnt a lot at the same time. Thanks for following the project and for your encouragement.

You're very welcome, and it's not too late for that book!!
 
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