Settle Wildflowers - Day 107 - Sycamore tree bud break is always 16 April

 Sycamore trees make up the bulk of the trees around Settle.

Horse Chestnut trees and Elder trees come into leaf earlier, but Horse Chestnut trees are not common and Elder trees are small. 

Ash and Oak are always very late to come into leaf, regardless of whether we have a "splash" or a "soak".

The past three weeks I have been watching the buds on the sycamore trees as usual. We had hot weather three weeks ago.. and I did wonder if the tree leaves might come out too early as a branch on a sycamore tree by the road that always produces leaves early did produce a few leaves..

But then I was happy to see the frost and snow last week.. that would hold the buds from breaking until the 16th.

Excursion to Ripon

Even visiting Ripon on 15th April, (which at 34-39 m above sea level is usually ahead of Langcliffe 223m and Malham Tarn 377m) the buds have not quite broken. The sunny weather over the past two days has not made up for the frost at night. Frost is again forecast tonight (-1 Langcliffe, -2 Ripon).

Perhaps I will find that this year that the buds  DON'T open on the 16th.

On 15th in Ripon, on the banks of the River Skell, at the Rustic Bridge/ Fairy Steps, the Wood Anemones are fully out and just showing signs of wear.  The Bluebells are not out - well just the odd one or two.

Wild Garlic which was just in bud two days ago now has a few flowers out

The violets seem to be mostly Viola reichenbechiana - at least the have blue spurs to the flower, not white and notched  as in riviniana.

I will post this now, and add pictures later.

Rivers.

I have just been watching a zoom presentation by the YNU on Lindholme and Hatfield Moor - These lie 10 miles south of the Ouse.  

The river Skell (which starts 2 miles west of the River Nidd near Pateley Bridge) flows is joined by the river Laver at the west of Ripon and flows into the River Ure which when joined by the river Swale then becomes the Ouse (near York).

I bought some lamb burgers from Ripon Market today that came form Skell Gill Farm, near the source of the Skell. I had one for supper. It was delicious.

I will add pictures of the trees another day.