tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80332173242906939572024-03-12T19:08:26.051-07:00The Old Bog Road= Sketchbook Ramblings and Country WalksThe Old Bog Road goes onto part of the bogland in the centre of Ireland. It is down this road that I walk my dog every day. I hope to show the changing seasons through the plant and animal life which we see on our rambles.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-32211907472661071972014-02-27T08:48:00.001-08:002014-02-27T08:48:13.986-08:00I am beginning to catch up with my RBGE course at last as I have managed to finish my fruit and veg assignment now.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPQ14_yWI1zVj_XiCq5DKMyBVWZKHWXUXz4N9Zt6OCcdw2CrG91p-TWLLO57hezPRTGsd6yoAOyG6cEAA0LHCkf3dRkgO-gBDidReH6ZHd_Gzs8JLLWhrAnhuW9K4JZMg3SInmJ8H9uN0/s1600/Botanical+Illustration.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPQ14_yWI1zVj_XiCq5DKMyBVWZKHWXUXz4N9Zt6OCcdw2CrG91p-TWLLO57hezPRTGsd6yoAOyG6cEAA0LHCkf3dRkgO-gBDidReH6ZHd_Gzs8JLLWhrAnhuW9K4JZMg3SInmJ8H9uN0/s1600/Botanical+Illustration.jpeg" height="282" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrLgrsE86XBRnOJxJWFPzG_JKpwe85nvXXJap94Qgn5QS2IvglDBnCYuk0JQ82OqlEobXprQJmrOrmq5DzeiWrzrWxenveggssRSFT2w6MJMYSgyWOzXsLncIAzgs76i9RsCkR5abGRGU/s1600/Botanical+Illustration+1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrLgrsE86XBRnOJxJWFPzG_JKpwe85nvXXJap94Qgn5QS2IvglDBnCYuk0JQ82OqlEobXprQJmrOrmq5DzeiWrzrWxenveggssRSFT2w6MJMYSgyWOzXsLncIAzgs76i9RsCkR5abGRGU/s1600/Botanical+Illustration+1.jpeg" height="400" width="285" /></a>I am quite pleased with these though the raspberry isn't quite finished as it died and I had eaten all the rest of them. the continual practice is beginning to pay off as I feel there is a definite improvement now though I need much more practice with leaves.</div>
The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-4785255729866095952014-02-16T09:53:00.002-08:002014-02-16T09:53:23.088-08:00It has taken me a long time to complete the leaves for my RBGE course as I have had difficulty with light both natural and artificial but I hope that problem is now solved with the reorganisation of my work space and extra light. The weather since the beginning of the year has really been no help at all as it has just been gale after gale with wet dull days as well. It has been so bad even Ben has refused to go for walks I think he is fed up with being constantly wet and muddy.there are signs of spring though with the snowdrops well out and crocuses and winter aconite coming well, there are also catkins on the hazels trees down the road. If we had a bit of nice weather the first daffodils would soon be in bloom too.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-68964585449821667582014-02-09T10:22:00.001-08:002014-02-09T10:22:12.348-08:00I have now managed to finish the first pages of my sketchbook. I t was fun to do but due to the poor light took a long time to complete. Im sorry the image is sideways but I don't know how to turn them round when I'm uploading from a scan. I shall now have to concentrate on my RBGE Course again while I think about what is going to go in Shevaun's sketchbook.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAXKWpVXZkVYcfi2rmI8vq099ilU_VJEUrnXAOI4RhzxEi82F-Nn_-hj5kZtimfSDSAZr8UdA1WXb1Ez1Y34XjVhmeORao3qIx53SZQ1KZWFCiSkGqIG0HLx8ebRFWQaz45A19S8y0mFQ/s1600/Nature+Trails+Scetchbook.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAXKWpVXZkVYcfi2rmI8vq099ilU_VJEUrnXAOI4RhzxEi82F-Nn_-hj5kZtimfSDSAZr8UdA1WXb1Ez1Y34XjVhmeORao3qIx53SZQ1KZWFCiSkGqIG0HLx8ebRFWQaz45A19S8y0mFQ/s1600/Nature+Trails+Scetchbook.jpeg" height="400" width="288" /></a></div>
The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-885306848918396592014-01-24T12:21:00.002-08:002014-01-24T12:21:45.203-08:00Thank you to someone for adding me to the sketchbook blog site. I have at last managed to get my first piece done in the sketch book. The title page and inside cover are now completed, for which I am truly grateful as I was beginning to wonder if they ever would be done. I now must start on the next pages as I need to get it in the post soon to Doreen. The title page is meant to look like a stained glass window, so I deliberately kept to only three colours but used two shades of each. It is a hybrid between celtic design and art nouveau, the pattern being based on highly stylised plants. The centre represents a daffodil with its buds , then the red flowers in the next circle are tulips with the celtic knot corners representing shamrocks. the pattern is coloured in polychromus coloured pencil as the piece of paper I chose to do it on was too thin for paint. I did it on a separate sheet because I didn't want to put compass holes in the sketch book page.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-34822637492398718282014-01-18T09:27:00.001-08:002014-01-18T09:27:24.143-08:00I have a lot of pictures to put up in the next while . They will fall into two main categories, photos of plants, birds, insects etc. and art work. The photos will be divided into walks with Ben dog and garden plants. The art work will also be divided into RBGE Course pieces, Sketchbook Exchange pieces and other artwork.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-53125234423041804142014-01-16T15:14:00.000-08:002014-01-16T15:14:04.616-08:00Well its been a long time since I managed to put anything on this blog, as can be seen I have added to the title. This is to allow me to add sketchbook and other art work making it a more comprehensive and inclusive blog than just walking Ben Dog which is how it started. I shall be adding work from the Botanical Illustration Course I am doing through distance learning with Edinburgh Botanic Gardens and also from the Sketchbook Exchange of which I am a member. I shall also continue with comments and pictures of nature and garden as the seasons change.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-88328441541840353282012-07-15T07:55:00.001-07:002012-07-15T08:05:07.757-07:00As this has been such a wet, windy ,cold "summer" I have not posted anything for a long time. It has however been a marvelous year for the plants which grow in the hedgerows and along the roadsides so I have been busy with the camera recording them as they came into flower. I have also managed to get a few insects as well. There have not been very many butterflies about. I am going to put a selection of the plants which have flowered this summer up so that the huge variety can be appreciated,and enjoyed.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-63607548908395562522012-04-23T09:22:00.000-07:002012-04-23T09:22:22.108-07:00DucksThe other day Ben and I were out for our walk when two ducks flew up out of the ditch beside the road, they went so fast I barely had time to see them. The sparrow hawk has been round the bird feeders again lately and a magpie has discovered it can get on the bird table which is a bit of a nuisance. The cold weather has halted the fast growth and we still have some daffodils and the cowslips are only coming into their best. The poor horse chestnut trees got a real bashing in the gales lately with leaves and flowers blown off them, the lane looked as if it was covered in confetti with all the bits of leaf and blackthorn flowers. This last two or three days we have had heavy showers of hail which made it look as if it had snowed, with bright sunshine in between but no warmth as the wind has been so cold.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-80496065832159334522012-04-15T08:32:00.000-07:002012-04-15T08:32:40.506-07:00April 2012I have not managed to keep my blogs up in the last couple of months as all the pictures I took were stuck on a camera and there they stayed what ever I did. This means that I have missed a few of the early flowers and the opening of the horse chestnut buds. I have now managed to get a few pictures of primroses and cowslips and the first few flowers on the chestnut. The blackthorn has been lovely but is now going over.as the leaves begin to show on the hawthorn and privet. the weather was so mild early that we had a real spurt of growth but it turned much colder and things have slowed down again to more normal growth for the time of year.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-42335229371711077882012-01-15T04:41:00.000-08:002012-01-15T04:41:18.684-08:00CorrectionI have a correction to make as I mistakenly called the sparrow hawk in the last post a male, it is a female and the one which visited last winter was a young male. The small birds are very busy at the feeders as it has been quite a lot colder the last few days. the bright clear days are lovely after all the dull dark ones we have had.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-55259847280408040682012-01-08T07:53:00.000-08:002012-01-08T07:53:14.261-08:00Sparrow HawkThis morning when I got back after walking Ben he dashed up the path at the back of the house and bounced what I thought at first was a blackbird but realised it was bigger. It only fluttered just out of his way and i told him to leave it, which he did, when I got near I saw it was a hawk sitting on the path beside the up turned wheel barrow. I thought it might be hurt as it didn't move as I passed it. I got my camera and took a few photos through the open kitchen window. then got out the bird book and checked it out, it appears to be a male sparrow hawk. After about fifteen minutes it looked around again and flew away. It must have hit the window while chasing one of the little birds at the feeders, Dad said he heard a bang while Ben and I were out.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-7856320313749845932012-01-02T05:47:00.000-08:002012-01-02T05:47:37.419-08:00January 2012It was such a sunny morning I took my camera with Ben when we went for our walk and have added a few new pictures to celebrate the start of a new year on the old bog road.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-81362767318153142382011-12-30T16:02:00.000-08:002011-12-30T16:02:21.695-08:00End of the yearThis morning as Ben and I were having our walk it became clear that the small birds were very agitated, on looking round I realised that I could hear wings, on looking up I saw a hawk hovering just level with the tops of the trees at the side of the lane. It flew off as we approached, I think it was probably a sparrow hawk as they are the most common. It also occurred to me that the only green at present in the hedges are most appropriately holly and ivy both of which offer food and shelter to many birds at this time of year, as well as featuring in the carol of that name. I have identified another fern growing in the ditch it is the male fern. The chestnut tree buds are beginning to look quite sticky and growing well now. The mild winter means that in the garden the first snowdrops will soon be out and some of the daffodils are several inches high. The cyclamen I planted in a trough in the late summer still have flowers on them as do the pansies in with them. I also noticed a couple of geraniums have not died but have green leaves on them still. So much easier than this time last year when every thing was covered in snow and frozen solid. I am so grateful for this mild weather even though it is cloudy, dull and inclined to rain.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-14613968485108827432011-12-19T15:03:00.000-08:002011-12-19T15:03:20.350-08:00DecemberNow that the leaves have gone even off the hedges it is possible to see what is growing in the ditches. At present the main plants are the ferns of which there are several different types, the most common being the Harts Tongue fern. I shall have to identify the others as soon as I can. There are some berries left on the hawthorn, holly and spindle but most have gone. The birds are really tucking into the peanuts, birdseed and fat balls now as it has been frosty the last week or so. All our resident birds are feeding regularly now, the black birds were the last to return. The robin is getting cheeky, he came into our back place the other day and started eating the dog food. It is milder tonight and is supposed to stay that way over Christmas, I hope it does I had enough cold last year to last a very long time. I saw the squirrel leaping along the trees at the side of the garden today, I hope it found some food for it's trouble, we may see it again if it stays mild for a while.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-15225456692368672792011-11-23T07:53:00.000-08:002011-11-23T08:34:35.392-08:00More NovemberThe last couple of days have been dry, yesterday was lovely, clear blue sky and almost no wind, today is cloudy with a cool breeze. It is really looking like winter now as Ben and I go for our walks, there are very few leaves left on the hedges and the berries have almost all been eaten. There were a lot of holly berries a couple of weeks ago but I noticed there are very few left today. I put the first fat balls out in the garden today, it didn't take the birds long to start on them, under an hour in fact. The Gold finches have been in near the house on the dock seed heads, they only come to the bird food when I put out sun flower seeds and bird seed. I like to leave seed heads on things as long as possible so that there is a bit of variety for them to choose from. We seem to be a bit down on blackbird numbers at present but they may be out round the fields still. I hope to see them later in the year, we had five or six last winter. I have added two photos to the blog which I took last winter one of a rook which spent ages trying to get the fat balls off the hook. The second one is a young Sparrow Hawk which visited three days in a row and just sat on the stone trough under where the bird feeders were, it never came again after the third day.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-43195073666733426582011-11-10T07:01:00.000-08:002011-11-10T07:01:31.847-08:00NovemberDuring the winter I am going to include things of interest in both our garden and the immediate locality as there is less to see on the old bog road now.<br />
It seems that the coming of November is a signal to all the birds that it is time to get into their winter flocks. There are large numbers of the finch family congregating now in the hedges as Ben and I go for our walks. The pigeons are also to be seen in the fields in quite large groups. The river Barrow in Athy has its usual flotilla of swans which always gather at this time of year, it has evidently been a good year for cygnets as there are quite a number of young ones among the flock. I haven't seen the buzzards lately but they are probably somewhere in the locality as they have been mewing round all this year. We have a good range of species of birds visiting the feeders again. they seem to feed at slightly different times of day, for instance great tits, coal tits and blue tits come mid morning, then around mid day we get sparrows, chaffinches and green finches in larger numbers. The robins like the bird table best as do the black birds. The pheasants are rather nervous at present as the shooting season has just begun but quite a number roost in the garden. the red squirrel paid a fleeting visit to the garden again last week which was lovely.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-14219744423417064032011-10-22T03:57:00.000-07:002011-10-22T03:57:54.600-07:00WeatherThis last while the weather has been so changeable it is hard to know what season we are in, firstly it was so warm we might have been on the mediterranean, then it turned positively arctic with strong gales and heavy rain. We had a couple of bright sunny days but the wind was cold, now we are back to warmer days but wild and wet again. The gales have all but striped the trees now and they are showing their wonderful skeletal structures. I think that perhaps I like them almost best now as their true strength and beauty can be seen. The time trees are at their very best is spring when the leaves are just unfurling and you can still see their structure. The ground is still very dry as I walk with Ben round the fields and down the old bog road, I can still go in my shoes and Ben comes in clean which is a huge bonus at this time of year.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-49846365340154361332011-10-08T16:42:00.000-07:002011-10-08T16:42:37.061-07:00BlackberriesWhen I have been walking for the last couple of weeks I have been looking at the fruit ripening on the brambles but every time it rained they got spoiled and also I kept forgetting to take a container with me. Well today I got it right and picked just over a pound of berries off only one hedge. I made them into stewed apple and blackberries when I got in. While I was picking Ben had a wonderful time going in and out through the hedge. He put up a couple of pheasants and ran himself ragged after them. He lay down and slept once he had stopped panting while I did the stewed fruit. It smelled wonderful cooking and tastes just as good.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-19265506570188050202011-10-06T06:23:00.000-07:002011-10-06T06:23:07.047-07:00PheasantsIt is very windy today with bright sunshine and heavy showers. Ben and I took a chance of a walk between showers. Down the road Ben cocked his ears and then dived through the nearby gate, almost immediately a bunch of about a dozen young pheasants shot in the air flying in all directions as they went. Ben went chasing round after them. As he came back out of the gate he paddled through a pool of liquid mud. I had to wash his legs before he could go indoors when we got back, but he did enjoy himself.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-17581297767955833132011-10-03T15:40:00.000-07:002011-10-05T15:40:16.398-07:00RED SQUIRREL SIGHTINGAs I was away for a few days I didn't go on any walks with my dog Ben. However over the last week we have been out every day, the weather has been very variable from pleasant sunshine to torrential rain when we both got soaked. I have seen evidence of what I felt sure was lots of activity by the red squirrel, in the form of dropped and broken hazel nuts, but until this evening had not caught sight of it. Today just before six o'clock I saw some thing moving out of the corner of my eye , on turning my head I saw the red squirrel leaping down the big scots pine in our front garden. It went onto another conifer and then to a large Euonymus and back from there through the fir tree to the pine trees again. I lost the squirrel then as Ben appeared nosing around the front and I whistled him inside so that he wouldn't chase it. I hope it comes again. We have seen them in the garden at intervals ever since we moved here, but hadn't seen one for several years. We still have some swallows but they are getting ready to fly south now and we will probably loose them as soon as there is a northerly wind to help them on their way. I shall be sorry to see the swallows go as I love to see them skimming round the trees as Ben and I go for our walks. The conkers have all come down now and the chestnut trees are almost bare after the gales. The heavy rain and humid atmosphere brought out the damp Autumn smell this morning when we were out walking.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-55214564882963710832011-09-13T12:15:00.000-07:002011-09-13T12:25:06.508-07:00more red squirrel<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This evening when out with Ben and Peggy we picked up some hazel nut shells which had been broken open. I hope this means the red squirrel is still about here. There is plenty for it to eat at present.They are cutting logs in the forestry at the moment and I think the squirrel was frightened out of the wood.</span>The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-55044602431879366272011-09-13T05:38:00.000-07:002011-09-13T05:41:57.397-07:00After the galeThe recent gales have brought a lot of the chestnuts ( conkers) down and there are bits of twig and leaves everywhere. Hawthorn berries and rose hips along with spindle are also liberally sprinkled around the road.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-36047977293819160962011-09-05T13:51:00.000-07:002012-07-15T15:34:16.111-07:00Red SquirrelToday, as I was on my way into town with my friends, just up the road from where i live, on the old bog road, coming down the road towards us was what we at first took to be a stoat but turned out to be a young red squirrel when we were close enough to see it clearly. It is now several years since I saw one as near to our house as this one was. There used to be a couple which came regularly to the garden. I hope to see it again.The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8033217324290693957.post-4909516492747112672011-09-04T17:08:00.000-07:002011-09-05T10:31:36.853-07:00The road<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The old bog road wanders through mixed farmland until it ends up on the bog. I walk my dog down at least some of it every day. The first part is a metaled road but further on it is not tarred but is a typical old country lane, potholes and all. There are hedges and ditches each side of the road with a large variety of plants growing along its length, from those so small as to be easily missed to the majestic horse chestnuts.The wild life is equally diverse form insects and butterflies to small birds and larger ones such as pigeons and crows. There are also animals such as foxes and hares, along with cattle and horses on the farmland. I hope this gives a taste of some of what may appear on this blog in the coming year, where i hope to record the seasonal changes as they happen with both flora and fauna.</span>The old bog roadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12466332974967228283noreply@blogger.com2