Usksider's Photo Blog

As the British summer descends into yet more wind and rain, I thought you may appreciate a little bit of paradise...

Balmy nights, warm waters, golden sands...
Wish I was there...
What about you?

And then you die....

(click image to enlarge)

Some while ago I blogged a piece about this dessicated dogfish found on a South Wales beach...

This morning for lack of something better to do I decided to re-work the image...

...and here it is.

Amazing how much time you can while away with Photoshop when you're bored...

(click images to enlarge)

I blogged a piece some while ago about a favourite picnic site and place to walk called Bluebell Wood. Every visit brings back so many happy memories for me.

This morning I want to share another favourite spot of mine... no name that I'm aware of, though for obvious reasons perhaps it should be known as Foxglove Grove.

This area is on the edge of Monmouthshire's ancient woodland, Wentwood Forest, which is a haven for ramblers, dog walkers, horse riders, mountain bikers and sadly, fly-tippers...

I'm not sure what it is about foxgloves, but they always appeal to me and have a special place in my heart. Perhaps it's because they strive to reach the skies?

The Common Foxglove, Purple Foxglove or Lady's Glove, is a flowering plant in the family Plantaginaceae native to most of Europe.

The flowering stem only develops in the second year of growth and grows to between one and two metres tall.

Foxglove flowers are arranged in a terminal, elongated cluster of bells and may be purple, pink, yellow, or white, depending upon species.

The leaves, flowers and seeds of this plant are all poisonous to humans and some animals and can be fatal if eaten. However a compound can be extracted from the leaves, whose clinical name is digitalis and may be used as a medication for heart failure.

I'm not sure how the foxglove arrived at its name, although as kids we used to pick the bells and slide over our fingers to make puppets. Maybe there's some old fokelore thing based around such practices?

Here's a question..... how many gloves can one fox wear? No... the answer isn't four.

I appreciate foxgloves may not be to everyone's taste, but I have often fantasised how wonderful it would be to wake up to this view every morning.

(click images to enlarge)