Here are some things to look out for by season at Croft Close Set-aside. These are all commonly seen. Information about other, less commonly seen or less easily identified, plants and animals can be found on our Wildlife pages.

If you are a keen photographer we would like to see your pictures of Croft Close Set-aside. You can post them to the Abbey Fields Facebook page or email them to hello@abbeyfields.online.

Spring (March/April/May)

Depending on whether we have a cold or a wet spring things can look quite different from year to year. Parts of the site can be quite waterlogged and some of the short, rabbit grazed turf is easily damaged at this time.

If you come early in the day for your walk try listening out for the dawn chorus as all the local resident birds and newly arriving migrants vie for the best nesting sites and for mates. From mid-April on you might just be lucky and hear a turtle dove’s distinctive call. “Our turtle dove” is a migrant who (we fervently hope) will return to the same site each spring – find out more including an example of the turtle dove’s song here.

Early spring is the time to check out the ‘flowers’ of those trees that rely on the wind to distribute their seed: like the willow catkins and pussy willow.

We have a sequence of white flowering shrubs: first up is the cherry plum, then the blackthorn and lastly in late spring if you look all around the scrubby patches you will see hawthorn aka ‘may’ blossom.

Is there any truth in the old weather saying about when the oak and ash come into leaf in relation to a coming dry or wet summer? ‘Oak before ash we are in for a splash, ash before oak we are in for a soak’.

The first butterfly seen around the site in spring is the brimstone – a large pale lemon coloured butterfly.

Summer (June/July/August)

You might catch sight of one of our rabbits although they tend to keep well hidden from people and dogs under the brambles. At night they are out doing important work for us, their intensive grazing creates a special turf and suitable home for some quite unusual plants.

Need some shade. Try willow walk or visit the ancient oak. Keep quiet and you may hear families of blue tits and long-tailed tits moving through the trees. Everywhere you are likely to hear the chiffchaff’s endless repeating “chiff chaff, chiff chaff”. At this time of year, with the trees in full leaf, it can be difficult to see the birds but the songs and calls tell you that they are there.

Look out for butterflies. In the shadier glades and woodland margins look for the speckled wood. Out over the longer grasses expect to see meadow brown and skippers fluttering around. The larger, more striking, red admiral, small tortoiseshell and peacock are often seen on brambles anywhere in the scrubby areas.

The brambles which were in flower in June are now full of blackberries, some flower in July and so you can likely still find blackberries in late August.

You may be lucky and see a kestrel hovering over the longer grassy patches looking for small mammals, or see swallows swooping low over the grass in search of insects. A buzzard circling high overhead being chased off by rooks and jackdaws is also regularly to be seen.

Autumn (September/October/November)

Autumn is famously the time for fungi. See if you can spot anything on the trees or beneath the trees – we have lots of different kinds around the site. Remember not to touch any of the fungi – many are poisonous and it is best to treat them all with respect.

Not to mention leaf colour. Watch the colours turn through late October.

You can look out for conkers beneath the horse chestnut near the northern Gun’s Lane entrance. Can you find some really big ones?

The hawthorn scrub will be full of red berries (haws) and as there are wild roses around too you can also see the even brighter red rose hips. All these berries are a banquet waiting for the arrival in autumn months of our winter migrant thrushes.

If you come on a misty morning you will likely see spiders webs made more visible by the water droplets. If you have your camera you can get some atmospheric shots at this time of the year.

Winter (December/January/February)

If you hear bird song during the day at this time of year it is likely to be a robin. Robins are unusual in signing all year round, although they do have a winter and a spring/summer song.

Look out for ivy flowers in December. As they flower late in the year they are a magnet for insects looking for extra energy to get them through the winter.