Life in Newburgh on Ythan

By Talpa

Weeping for gorse

A glorious day today, although it being a Saturday the beach was rather busy, with 12 people and about 2000 hauled out seals. 

At the moment the links are covered in acres of glowing golden gorse. In 1736 the great Swedish botanist and taxonomist Carl Linnaeus came to London for a brief meeting with patrons and gardeners at the Chelsea Physic Garden. It is said that when he landed in England he fell on his knees and wept for joy at the sight of our gorse bushes. Oscar Wilde later enjoyed the story and made much of Linnaeus giving thanks for gorse to God. Although doubt has been cast on this story Linnaeus was responsible for giving gorse its scientific name of Ulex europaeus L.

I am sure that everyone guessed that my blip yesterday wasn't really a bronze Roman helmet. The truth is much more mundane, it was the breast (keel) bone of a large bird, probably a heron.

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