The garden is a hive of activity with nest building in progress or completed in numerous locations. A pair of starlings have found an opening under the eaves of our garage roof and are busily darting in and out. This space has been used by bees in the past. Adjacent…
Many people who want to grow their own food start with herbs, and then vegetables and fruit. Some are ambitious and keep animals for meat and milk. But an enormous part of our diet is made up of cereals – grains such as wheat and oats – virtually all of…
Not everyone eats meat but only vegans don’t wear wool. That leaves the vegan a choice of cotton, linen, and fossil fuel based textiles for their fashion choices. Even silk is out. If one was to source their textiles from within thirty miles of the Stour Valley in order to…
The remaining pools of flood water on the water meadows are slowly disappearing but are still attracting large flocks of seagulls, Canada and Greylag geese amongst others, to the area. It is a joy to observe the abundance of wildlife in the valley. Of particular note was the sighting for…
A Place, and Time for Everything CAMP Radio (Quarterly) In 2020 Stuart Bowditch was invited to contribute a regular show to CAMP Radio, an internet radio station run by CAMP FR from their base in the French Pyrenees mountains. His previous shows/DJ residencies were music based so he thought it…
There is a common myth that carrots are good for your eyesight and in particular for night vision. Indeed the RAF pilots were persuaded to eat copious amounts of carrots every day during the early years of the Second World War as were all service personnel. The myth was created,…
The river continues to run at a high level with a few days of flooding following a spell of rain. Even relatively small amounts of rainfall propel the river level upwards. Pools of floodwater linger, reluctant to drain away, on the water meadows. The bomb crater, within the water meadow,…
There are indications that the autumnal signs in nature of a harsh winter to come might be born out with the current cold spell we are experiencing. I am writing on the 8th January so perhaps by the time you read this it will be milder again! The frost…
We are pleased to announce a joint River Stour Festival and Quay Theatre event. This will be a live-streaming event of The Oak Papers by Dr James Canton of Essex University on Wednesday 9th September at the Quay Theatre, Sudbury at 7pm. This will be a conversation about the book with questions…
This blog post comes from SB with her observations of the flora and fauna in her garden on the banks of the River Stour. Lockdown brought an added peace to the river and its wildlife; with restrictions now easing the river again is attracting human visitors. With the slight easing…