A couple of weeks ago I had a walk in the woods, starting at the Denstroude entrance. It was a sunny day and the leaves on the trees were all the bright green of new leaves. The wood anemones were beginning to fade but the bluebells were starting to appear and there were still plenty of primroses and a few lady’s smocks. The latter have lots of local names – I grew up calling them mayflowers and they are also known as cuckooflowers, milkmaids, fairy flower and Our Lady’s smock. Richard Mabey in ‘Flora Britannica’ says that their official name is cuckooflower but the use of lady’s smock is more widespread.
Below are some wood anemones, celandines and lady's smocks
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