Warm weather effects

The warm weather over the last few days has had a dramatic effect on the trees, which are flowering or displaying fresh green leaves and making everyone feel more cheerful ( apart perhaps from those who suffer from tree pollen hayfever!).

 This lovely, but lone horse chestnut, looks splendid in full leaf in the centre of a field.

The old weather forecast saying "oak before ash there'll be a splash and ash before oak there'll be a soak" always has me checking out which has come into leaf first to see what sort of summer we might have. Trouble is by the summer I've forgotten which came first that year.
This week both have been in flower. Here is the ash, with its purple flowers but showing no obvious sign of leaves yet.

Here is the oak, and on closer inspection, its leaves are starting to uncurl, so fingers crossed it will be a dry summer! Let's wait and see.

Another sign of summer approaching, even if according to Aristotle, "one swallow does not a summer make" means we all still delight in seeing our first ones of the year returning safely after their long migratory journey from Africa.
This morning I saw two so was doubly happy!

Butterflies continue to appear, and whilst I have seen a number of male Orange tips on the wing in the last couple of weeks, they are all in such a great hurry to track down a female that they hardly ever land to feed. Fortunately this one stopped very briefly this morning for a quick meal of nectar before dashing off again.

 Once they do mate, the female, which doesn't sport the orange tips to her wings, will lay eggs on plants such as this Garlic mustard, also known as Hedge mustard and Jack by the hedge, which has begun to come into flower along the verges this week.