Wednesday 20 August 2014

The scent of fennel

I had a couple of hours between my dental appointment and a meeting just round the corner from the dentist's, so what better to do than pop down to nearby Cramond for a spot of birdwatching?

First passing this lovely sight in a now cleared area of derelict housing near the dentist's

and there were plenty of goldfinches flying round here, attracted by the thistle seeds.

Actually there weren't many birds around at Cramond (apart from four great crested grebes floating round and a lot of gulls and crows). The black headed gulls are already losing their summer black heads



These umbellifer plants were all in seed, filling the air with the subtle fragrance of fennel. I'm pretty sure now that they're sweet cicely, though I'm sure I've misidentified them in the past (umbellifers can be so confusing!).



7 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

a pretty break between appointments!

Optimistic Existentialist said...

I love goldfinches. I love the way the look in flight with that "dip" they do.

Maureen @ Josephina Ballerina said...

That first pic reminds me again of Lady Bird Johnson's First Lady project to beautify America's highways by the planting of wildflowers. What a tribute to her memory every time I see some.

Draffin Bears said...

Hi Juliet,

Lovely place to while away some time.
Hope all went well at the dentist.

Carolyn

dosankodebbie said...

the air must be so fragrant around there...

Bill said...

on the way
to the dentist's office
the scent of fennel

Hope you don't mind that I've reversed your order. Do poets still have license?

Crafty Green Poet said...

dosankodebbie - it is amazingly fragrant, lovely!

Bill, poets definitely still have license, nice ku, thanks

Draffin Bears - yes all went well at the dentist, just need a small repair to a filling