Archive for September 2013
the colour of September #5 – red rose hips from pink roses
I have the funniest rose bush in my front yard.
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It bore double yellow roses for the first few years of its life. Then, in recent years it has become a pink rose, with the frailest pink petals.
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I know how this happened – not ‘alchemy’ at all, but an example of survival of the fittest. The original yellow rose must have been grafted to the root stock of a common rose. When the yellow rose stem died for some reason, the pink rose stock flourished. I love my frail pink roses , especially at this time of year when they produce bright red, elliptical rose hips.
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September 22, 2013 ‘red rose hips from pink roses’ Jane Tims
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
along a stream 7-26
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map showing distance travelled (map from Google Earth)
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One of the difficulties of a virtual trip using Street View is not getting a full view of some of the streams I cross. Until you reach the ‘bridge’, the angle is not right to see the water. When you are on the ‘bridge’, the view is obscured by the blurred curved area in the lower part of the view, a characteristic of the Street View camera.
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Today, however, I caught several glimpses of a stream that followed the road from Manassick Wood to Portholland …
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stream along the road near Manassick Wood (image from Street View)
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I even had a glimpse of a small waterfall created by a tributary to the stream …
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course of a waterfall … almost dry in this image, but during and after a rain, it must be lovely (image from Street View)
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The best look I had at the stream was after it emerged from the woods to a field of white flowers. The flowers look a little like Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota), with white, umbrella-shaped flower clusters. However, these plants look more robust than the rather delicate-looking Queen Anne’s Lace, so I will just call them a species of wild parsnip.
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stream banked by white flowers (image from Street View)
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Best View: ‘biking’ from the woods into the bright sunshine and seeing the stream meandering toward the sea, banks overflowing with white flowers …
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August 25, 2013 ‘valley to the sea (Portholland)’ Jane Tims
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This is the view that inspired the painting …
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valley with stream and white flowers, looking towards Portholland (image from Street View)
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
naming the woods 7-25
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Today’s bike trip took me past the ‘woods’. Almost any time I ‘bike’ through a wooded area in Cornwall, I find the wood has a name on the map. I think naming the various acreages of woodland makes them more precious. Giving a name to the woodland identifies it and acknowledges its right to exist.
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The names of the woodlands in the Caerhays area of Cornwall include: the Forty Acre Wood (reminds me of Winnie the Pooh!); Castle Wood; Kennel Close Wood; and Battery Walk Wood, among others. Each woodland has its own characteristics and I long to get off my virtual bike and explore some of the woodland plants.
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on the right is the Forty Acre Wood (image from Street View)
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I know from my history studies that forests and woodlands are strongly connected to the history of England. The nobility of post-Conquest England had a special love for the forest and the hunt, and protected park-like settings for the pursuit of wild game.
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In the 12th century, the king protected the woodlands with the Assizes. These were formal rules governing both the public and officials. The purpose of the “Assize of the Forest” was to protect the forest and the game living there. The Assize described rules for conduct in the forest and for use of the land, wood and game. It also described the roles and responsibilities of those assigned to protect the forest, enforce the laws, and monitor and report on the state of the forest. The Assize further specified punishments for breaking the rules and for the forest administrators if they failed to meet their responsibilities.
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road through Kennel Close Wood (image from Street View)
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The rules of the Assize were designed to ensure the continued use of the forest.
For the King, one value of the forest was as a source of revenue from rents and fines. Rental income came from pannage (keeping of swine) and agist (pasturing). Fines were generated from illegal hunting and other uses, purprestures (encroachment such as building within the forest), and assarts (use of the forest clearings). Wood had value as fuel, or as timber for building boats, bridges, defenses and castles. Other values included the King’s own pleasure in hunting, and the favor he gained from gifts of venison or other wild game, or from granting others the privilege of hunting.
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the secluded and cloistered Battery Walk Wood (image from Street View)
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Medieval hunters had various words to describe the different parts of the woodlands. The ‘chase’, for example, referred to the open woods for hunting of deer, and the ‘warren’ described the unenclosed tracts where other wild game such as pheasant and partridge were hunted.
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three deer among tamarack in New Brunswick
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Best View: shadows on the road … hill on one side and the Forty Acre Wood on the other …
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Sept 6, 2013 ‘shadows on the road (near Gorran)’ Jane Tims
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
the color of September #4 – a toasted tomato sandwich
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Of all the produce of September, I think I enjoy tomatoes the most. I like fried green tomatoes, tomatoes in chili con carne and toasted tomato sandwiches. If you have never eaten a toasted tomato sandwich, you should try one. Toast two pieces of whole wheat bread, slice the tomatoes very thin and add mayo, salt and pepper.
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Now that I have finished my watercolor of tomatoes, and they are no longer needed for the still life, I think I’ll have another sandwich …
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September 14, 2013 ‘tomato red’ Jane Tims
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
white sand and phthalo water 7-24
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map showing distance travelled (map from Google Earth)
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I love the salt water, so it is no surprise that my favorite views on my virtual bike trip are those along the coast. Near Penare, I discovered a spot where a stone house overlooks a sandy beach. The water was the color of the phthalo blue in my paint box …
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Near the beach, where a stream runs across the road, is an interesting ford. It looks like there was once a bridge at the crossing, but the encroachment of sand and vegetation made it easier to ford the stream. I would love to know the history of this stream crossing …
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Best View: a house by the sea near Penare, the road lined with crowds of purple flowers (my painting looks quite different from the inspiration, above) …
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Aug 24, 2013 ‘purple mallow near Penare’ Jane Tims
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
pasture grazers and sea-creatures 7-23
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map showing distance travelled (map from Google Earth)
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On this virtual bike trip, I saw lots of animals – not surprising in an agricultural countryside.
There were sheep grazing beside the road …
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cattle in a pasture at the top of the cliff …
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and a man walking his dog along this part of the South West Coast Path …
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Although I didn’t stop to see any, there must also have been tiny sea creatures to catch in the shallows along the beach. The beach-side shop in Gorran Haven sells small nets to catch them – I hope there was a note to say ‘please return these creatures to the sea’ …
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Best View: the Cornwall coast near Penare …
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Aug 14 ‘headland near Penare’ Jane Tims
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
views of the coast 7-22
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map showing distance travelled (map from Google Earth)
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My bike trip for today took me near the Cornwall coast and showed me how much the English people enjoy their seascapes.
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Mevagissey is a large port town with lots of sailing ships and boats at dock …
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Mevagissey harbour (image from Street View)
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Often, you see either the woods or the coast but not both. Here, I ‘saw’ a view of both wood and ocean …
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looking towards Mevagissey (image from Street View)
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I liked the Portmellon beach area. There were walkers and swimmers, kayakers and sailors, all enjoying their bit of the Cornwall coast …
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swimmer at Portmellon beach (image from Street View)
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Best View: the Portmellon coastline – I like the way this turned out … stormy sky, uniform ocean and perspective are all the way I wanted them to be … it’s fun doing the shadows on the road …
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
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the color of September #3 – a purple crocus from a brown bulb
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This morning, thinking of the long winter, I planted a dozen crocus bulbs. The package promises large, dark purple blooms in early spring.
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I planted them in small groups, in front of my concrete bench. When they bloom in spring, I will be able to see them from my library window. After a long winter, a glimpse of those brave petals poking above the dry leaves will be so joyful.
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The crocuses we have now are bright purple and yellow. I planted them years ago, when my son was young. They have endured all these years and have even spread to other, distant parts of our property. I think the squirrels must dig them up, rebury them and forget where they have stashed their treasure.
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So, deep within the sienna brown of the bulbs is the makings of those purple petals. Wow!
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
glimpses of the South West Coast Path 7-21
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map showing distance travelled (map from Google Earth)
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As I bike along the road, following the Street View path of images, I know that between me and the ocean is a path. Known as the South West Coast Path, this long-distance footpath is a National Trail in the UK. It runs 630 miles or 1014 km from Somerset, along the coast Devon and Cornwall and into Dorset. It originated as a path to watch for smugglers and is now a major tourist attraction.
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Sometimes, where the road I am following approaches the coast, the path becomes synonymous with the road. Most of the time, however, it runs along the high land overlooking the sea …
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stretch of coastal path near Pentewan, marked in red … part of the path runs along the road and part along the top of the cliff overlooking the ocean ( map from Google Earth)
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Where the path and the road run together, there is often a rail fence to mark the way …
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Sometimes I see a set of stairs or a parking lot to allow public access the trail …
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stairs to access coastal path near Looe (image from Street View)
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It occurs to me that a variant on what I am doing for exercise would be to walk the path virtually. In reality, the path takes about 8 weeks to walk, although one runner has run the path in a little more than 16 days. The path is quite visible in aerial view in Google Earth.
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Best View: stone walls as I neared Mevagissey …
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Aug 2, 2013 ‘road near Megavissey’ Jane Tims
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
the color of September #2 – bunches of radishes
The reward of a recent visit to a local farmer’s vegetable stand – bunches of radishes.
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Painting with red is very rewarding. First, a little color goes a long way – I am still working with the small tube of paint I bought back in early June. Second, red wakes me up the way no other color can.
I did two paintings, one of the bunch of radishes, fresh from the vegetable stand, and one of an individual radish, fresh from the ground, dirt washed away. Hope you like them!
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August 31, 2013 ‘a bunch of radish red’ Jane Tims
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September 1, 2013 ‘radish red’ Jane Tims
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
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