Like a birds foot over trefoiled water

You might think I'm writing this report due to my exquisite knowledge of plants and my recent dissertation on the benefits of kidney vetch in urban eras but alas, I took an enthusiastic photo of a leopard slug and here we are..

8 Goodgymers met this evening (some via foot and others via the com-mish-mobile) to help out Matt and the small blue butterflies of Bristol who are a priority species that are under threat from a housing development. The Bristol Munching Caterpillars project is working hard to create a new suitable habitat nearby, by planting a variety of bulbs to attract small blue caterpillars.

After a briefing from Matt, we set to work using trowels and dibbers to create space to plant kidney vetch and birds foot trefoil. As we were busy planting, Claire and Danica joined us and were tasked with de-heading some buddleias before becoming fully fledged members of the kidney vetch-erans. Despite forgetting her running shoes and having to wear her loafers, Alex kicked off a plant and trowel photoshoot and put us to shame looking more glamorous than the cover of Vogue.

We quickly moved to 3 different areas planting as we went and before we knew it we'd successfully planted 180 bulbs! Just as it began to drizzle, we set off home, with the runners stopping to say hello to some grazing ponies before attempting to keep up with Richard speedy gonzales Breakspear. A job well done!

.. Did you know common Birds foot trefoil (or as it's known to fellow experts, lotus corniculatus) is a member of the pea family. Its flowers look like little slippers and appear in small clusters. They are followed by seed pods and look distinctly like bird's feet and claws. Some parts of the plant are thought to be medicinal and edible for humans however others are poisonous so probably not worth the risk.

Big thank you to Alex for her impressive pun-skills!