A Few Things about Trees

I blogged a while ago about the European Tree of the Year 2014 (the results of which will be announced at a ceremony in Brussels on 19 March 2014.)

Now, preparations have already started for the European tree of the Year 2015.

Scottish Tree of the Year is a new competition organised by the Woodland Trust Scotland, which  aims to find the nation’s best loved trees. The competition is open to any living tree in Scotland that has a great story to tell, and anybody can nominate a tree. Applications close on Friday 9 May. An independent panel of judges will shortlist six trees and in September, the public will vote for the winner. The winner of the competition will go on to be Scotland’s entry in the European Tree of the Year competition in 2015. 

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If you have a favourite tree, how about blogging about it through the year? Tree Following is a project set up by Lucy Corrander, which encourages people to blog at least monthly about a chosen tree and the animals and plants associated with it. I haven't decided whether to take part yet! 

This project is similar to Tree Year, which I took part in back in 2011. As you will see if you follow the link, I observed one of the cherry trees opposite our flat and a group of hornbeams along the Water of Leith.

As ever, red text contains hyperlinks that take you to other webpages where you can find out more.

Lauriston Castle

It was a blustery morning for our visit to Lauriston Castle earlier today. The castle, which is more a country house than an actual castle, is set in lovely grounds, with impressive statuary dotted around.

Our favourite part of the grounds is the Kyoto Edinburgh Friendship garden, which is a lovely japanese style garden.

The old Doric column from the original gardens makes a nice focal point to the garden

 which also has lovely views over the Firth of Forth and Cramond Island. 

We also had a wonderfully close view of a kestrel, which I added to this year's bird list!

Larger drawstring bags

Chopstick bags continue to be the most popular item in the Crafty Green Poet Etsy shop. As well as recently adding some more of these bags to the shop, I thought I'd branch out a bit and make some slightly larger bags, suitable for storing a descant recorder or incense sticks, among other possible uses. As ever these are made from good quality repurposed materials. I've added one to the shop already and there will be another to follow quite soon.

 
I now have over 50 items for sale in the shop, which according to some people is supposed to magically bring in more views, favourites and sales (though the same effect is much greater when you hit over 100 items in your shop, a goal which I'm sure is beyond me!).I haven't seen any such effect as yet, but I have been pleased with how many items I've sold over the past year or so. Thanks to everyone here who has bought items!

As ever, red text contains hyperlinks which take you to other webpages where you can find out more.

haiku and poetry publishing news

sunset -
the dusky singing
of a blackbird

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I'm delighted to have had two poems published recently, you can follow the links below to read them:

What is Left on The Bijou Poetry Review.

.In the Office on The Work Literary Magazine.  

Assault on Nature by Gary Beck

I have been delighted to publish some of Gary Beck's poetry on Bolts of Silk and so was delighted to be offered the chance to review his poetry collection Assault on Nature.

The title gives a clue to the obsessions and concerns of this collection - our destructive relationship with nature and the earth and the breakdown of relationships between different groups of people. It can feel like a depressing read, Beck is straightforward and blunt in his expression of the issues:

oh the bullets fly, our leaders lie,
our conscience goes to sleep.
We watch the war on TV sets 
and we forget to weep. 

from War Song

This is a refreshing change from the roundabout way of saying things used by some poets, but in a collection this length, it can lead to a sense of unremitting gloom. Which is perhaps, an accurate reflection on reality, but doesn't make this a book you want to devour in one sitting.

There are some moments of lightness and hope, Ghost Ships for example talks about recycling of ships and maritime structures, while Rope discusses the benefits of rope and knots. Sometimes Beck's clever use of rhyme and meter can give a poem a bouyant feel, as in Gravity:

Gravity's got me down
got me tight in its grip 
Don't matter how I try 
I can't get loose of it 

even though the poem ends with a note of doom:

but gravity grinds me down
pulls me to the final crash. 

Hidden away in the middle of the book though is Journey, a beautiful love poem

how far I travel 
on your highways
mutilated stranger
distant as stars.

It's a collection that very much has something to say, and the intent of the message is loud and clear. Read this book, but not in one sitting and not if you're feeling low.

Assault on Nature by Gary Beck published by Winter Goose Publishing

As ever, text in red contains hyperlinks that take you to other webpages where you can find out more.

Jackdaws at Cammo Tower

I took my birdwatching class to Cammo Estate today.We saw lots of birds, including a grey wagtail, a grey heron, a buzzard and song thrushes. Great spotted woodpeckers were drumming in the trees, skylarks were singing over the fields and great tits were demonstrating a small selection of their vast repertoire of calls.

I don't take my camera to my birdwatching classes, but here's a selection of photos from our visit to Cammo on Saturday.

Cammo Tower is an early nineteenth century water tower that is today a notable landmark in the Cammo Fields.

These days it's boarded up, with pigeons sneaking in through the cracks to nest. When we were there on Saturday, this pair of jackdaws seemed to be checking out the top of the tower as a potential nest site. Jackdaws are small crows with very pale eyes. Scientists have recently shown that the jackdaws use their pale eyes to scare other birds away from their nest sites.

If my sense of direction isn't deceiving me, the green field in the photo below is the one that is threatened with a housing development, despite it's being home to five declining species of farmland birds which are listed specifically in the Edinburgh Local Biodiversity Action Plan (ELBAP) as being vital for conservation and are rarely found in other areas of Edinburgh. Click here for my previous blog posts about the campaign to save Cammo fields.

As ever, red text contains hyperlinks that take you to other webpages where you can find out more. Also, as ever, if you click on the photos you should get a bigger view.

Snowdrops and a friendly robin

Yesterday we went to Cammo Estate to see the snowdrops in the Walled Garden, which traditionally put on a wonderful display. We weren't disappointed! The bright sunshine helped of course.

We made friends with a lovely robin that wanted to be photographed by Crafty Green Boyfriend.

We were also delighted to hear skylarks singing high above the Cammo fields and see linnets hopping around in the hedges. These are the fields that may be built on, despite being home to five declining bird species that are mentioned specifically in the Edinburgh Local Biodiversity Action Plan (LBAP) and most of which are rarely seen anywhere else in Edinburgh. When I wrote to a local councillor, she assured me that I shouldn't worry as Edinburgh Council takes the LBAP very seriously when considering where to build new developments. When I pointed out that in that case the council shouldn't even consider building on these fields, she didn't reply.

You can read more about Cammo Fields and the campaign to save them in these earlier blog posts on Crafty Green Poet.

You can keep in touch with the Cammo Residents campaign to save Cammo Fields on Facebook and by following them on Twitter @Cammo_Residents.

I'm taking my birdwatching class to Cammo tomorrow and will blog more of yesterday's photos then. (I don't take a camera on my birdwatching walks).

As ever, red text contains hyperlinks that take you to other webpages where you can find out more.