Bluebell Woodlands

Venue: Wiltshire

Date: Wed 11 April

Duration: 10am - 4pm

Places: 6

Cost: £99.99

 

Bluebells are quintessentially British and I believe spring would not be quite the same without them. Although common in much of Britain and Ireland, our Bluebell species, Hyacinthoides non-scripta is actually quite rare in Europe and totally absent from the rest of the world. It is estimated that the populations in the UK represent about 30% of the global population. Sadly the species has greatly declined over the past 50 years or so and is now regarded as globally threatened.

We mistakenly think of the bluebell as a shade loving plant to be found only in deciduous woodlands and under hedgerows. However, that’s not true. The bluebell is really just shade tolerant and actually will not thrive in dense shade. It reveals its true nature when a woodland is coppiced because then, with the sudden increase of light, it flourishes carpeting the ground. When this happens it totally dominates any other ground flora. The island of Skomer off of the Pembrokeshire coast becomes an incredible spectacle when bluebells turn virtually the whole island blue and yet there is hardly a tree in sight!

On this lovely relaxed workshop I take you to one of my real favourite locations far from the maddening crowd. It is ancient beech woodland of around 800 acres that many botanists claim has the finest display of bluebells in the UK. I can promise that you will be blown away as you stand taking image after image surrounded in a misty sea of bluebells. If you don’t come away with exhibition quality pictures from this workshop then perhaps you should consider taking up scrabble.

One to One Workshops

If you would prefer to have a 6 hour 1-1 workshop on this subject the cost is £150 per day plus travel expenses of £30.