Reflections in the floodwater

For once, it was a perfect winter's day, with a frosty start and long periods of sunshine with very little wind. I wasn't sure whether I'd make it out for a walk, so nipped out into the garden early on and photographed the snowdrops in our orchard with the low light of the morning sun filtering through the hedge behind them (see extra).

I finished my most urgent tasks by mid-afternoon, so drove out to Sutton to take a look a nature recovery project on a site in the village, and to check up on some of its other special plants. I was pleased to see that the meadow saxifrage was still thriving in the churchyard, and the sweeps of winter aconites and snowdrops in the small cemetery were at their best

The village lies close to the River Nene and I negotiated my way carefully round a muddy gateway to have a wander on the flood meadows, where the low evening light was reflected in the floodwater which is now subsiding. This particular meadow is quite different in character to others in the neighbourhood. The edge has remnants of Medieval ridge-and-furrow, clearly highlighted by the flooding (see extra) and it has far more trees than most, including several large open-grown oak, which are very photogenic.