Plant Heritage Meetings

The following may be of interest to some of you.

PLANT HERITAGE (NCCPG) NORTH EAST GROUP

Meetings 2pm for 2.30pm start at the Durant Hall, Unitarian Church, Ellison Place, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8XG - unless specified

Saturday May 8 -  MOORBANKS` PLANT COLLECTIONS

• Dr Ann Borland, Director Moorbank Botanic Garden

SUNDAY June 13  - GREAT NORTH PLANT SALE

• Kirkley Hall

SUNDAY  Sept 5 -  BLAGDON PLANT FAIR

• Blagdon Hall

Saturday Oct 16  - THE WORLD GARDEN

• Tom Hart Dyke — from Columbian kidnapping to the calm of Kent!

Saturday Nov 13 -  Very Special GARDEN PLANTS

• Kenneth COX of Glendoick Gardens

Visitors most welcome at meetings for which there is a £2 charge for non-members. Details of membership & other Group activities at meeting or tel: 01661 853247

Great White Eejit

Well worth traipsing to Druridge Bay through the hail and rain to get some cracking views of the Great White Eejit (as Tom continues to call this magnificent bird). Seen close up to grey heron the bird was fishing well in the flooded grasslands. Obviously the excess of rain has added to the amount of standing water but the new sluices also appear to have helped by raising the water table. The downside of this is the poor state of the paths, especially around the entrances but those of us keen to see the bird were well prepared.

To make the visit even better, we were rewarded when a peregrine took a teal and sat in full view consuming the meal - thanks to all the birders present for lending their scopes for even closer views. Plenty of shoveller, teal and wigeon around and a growing black-headed gull flock adding some much needed noise - we'd noticed that the bay was pretty quiet but had been blaming the weather.

Prior to this a trip to Cresswell had given us two magnificent drake goldeneye, together with a range of wildfowl - noticeably more gadwall than in previous visits. Water levels were high but obviously dropping as there was a lot of flotsam surrounding the hide left behind as the water dropped (outfall was clear).

A good day all round despite the dreadful weather and another bird added to the new lexicon of species descriptions!