Winter aconites...

The winter aconite Eranthis hyemalis is often the first flower of the New Year to appear - usually a week or two before the snowdrops, though often the two species are found in bloom together. The round buds, still cradled by the leaves, push upwards through the ground before the clear-yellow flowers open. The flowers are sensitive to warmth. They will remain tightly shut on cold days and only open if the temperature reaches roughly 10C. Then they can be sure that early bees and pollinators are foraging and these plants need to be pollinated because they spread by seed.

These particular flowers form part of a golden glowing carpet at Orton Woods, sometimes mingling with snowdrops, which form their own glistening swathes elsewhere in the wood. Orton Woods is now managed as a nature reserve by the Woodland Trust, but once formed part of the grounds of Orton Hall. This was originally the residence of the Marchioness of Huntly, a noted Victorian botanist, but then served as a prisoner of war camp during the Second World War and is now a hotel.

The woods retain many features of Victorian planting, most notably fine avenues of towering Wellingtonias (also known as Giant Redwoods) Sequoiadendron giganteum. One leaning individual had recently been felled, and the inner wood was a beautiful rosy-red, presumably the source of its common name. Other less desirable denizens include Giant Hogweed Heracleum mantegazzianum, which has very toxic sap that causes painful blistering if it comes into contact with bare skin, though control by the City Council means that it is now rare on the site..