Ragwort

A blight on the pastures or an important food source? Ragwort is a common wild flower and the one which causes more disagreements than any other. I was under the impression that farmers were obliged by law to uproot any they found in their fields because it is poisonous to livestock. (It now seems it is only horses who succumb to the toxicity of the plant and cattle are immune.) On the other hand, ragwort is the only source of food for several moth caterpillars, including rare species such as the cinnabar moth, the ruby tiger moth, the goldenrod pug moth and the Sussex emerald moth. It just goes to show that even Mother Nature can't please all the people all the time.

Truleigh Manor

Not from the bedroom window this time but looking at one.

From the bedroom window 2

Hot air balloons come quite close to the house sometimes.

From the bedroom window 1

Blue tit and female house sparrow in our neighbour's plum tree. The blue tit refused to face me.

It's only the beginning of September - in fact, this picture was taken in August! - but it looks as though those fields beneath castle Hill have been ploughed already.

Fiveways

Fiveways, as the name implies, is a junction of five roads. This is where I find the three 'B's: baker, bank and barber. I had occasion to drop into the bank yesterday so took a few quick snaps. The main picture of toys outside one of the shops strikes me as a display of optimism. The weather yesterday was better, sunny and warm, but we are nonetheless at the fag-end of summer and schools are back next week. And anyway, the beach at Brighton is stony so buckets and spades are not required. The bakery window might not look as fancy as some of those french patisseries but the bread looks good enough to eat. I couldn't resist the Chelsea buns and bought a couple for our lunch.

More deckchairs

Not Stanmer or the Downs but Brighton beach and the remains of the West Pier. A picture I took last month on a rare trip into town. Perhaps I'll post more from that trip later on.