First bird of my day: a pair of Goldfinches perched in the hedgerow and a trio of scuffling blackbirds on the ground on a bright and chilly morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a wood pigeon perched on the wires overlooking the veg plot on a bright but chilly morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Robin singing in the trees on a calm and sunny morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Long Tailed Tit tapping on the window on a calm, sunny morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

Hawthorn - The first few flowers coming out on a hedge laid two years ago in Shropshire. #Wildflowerhour

Cowslips and dandelions caught by a frost last Monday morning. #Wildflowerhour

Bulbous buttercup - a double flowered form growing very close to the ground on very thin stoney soil. #Wildflowerhour

Cuckoo flower and Garlic mustard for the #CabbageFamily challenge, I’ve spotted the first few orange tip butterflies drifting around so hopefully they will be laying their eggs on either of these important larval food plants. #Wildflowerhour

First bird of my day: a Dunnock searching the base of the hedgerow for food on a calm, sunny morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a male Chaffinch perched in the hedgerow and a pair of Red Kites tussling in the air on a calm, mild morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

Ashy mining bee - Andrena cineraria sunning itself on a hazel leaf. #Bees

First bird of my day: a Wren singing from the trees on a blustery, mild morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Robin singing from a ivy covered rowan tree on a bright, sunny morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Red Kite foraging for worms on the hillside next door. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Pied Wagtail living up to its name, searching for a nesting spot on an overcast morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Red Kite perched in a beech tree on a bright, calm and frosty morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

Bluebells and Greater Stitchwort seem to be dominating the young woodland here at the moment with a smattering of garlic mustard here and there. #Woodlandplants #Wildflowerhour

Goat willow - Salix caprea a wind sculpted specimen growing on common land locally, and the male flowers with pollen glowing in the afternoon sun. #Wildflowerhour

Two wagtails, with their long yellow and black tails, perch on rounded stones at the edge of a river

What to Look for in Spring, 1961
Grey wagtails
Artist: CF Tunnicliffe

A Wren singing from a tall hawthorn tree in the hedgerow on a sunny, cool and blustery morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Song Thrush crossing the lane and disappearing into a hedgerow on a cool, bright morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

An unlikely clustering of animals and flora on open grazing so that the picture could be used as an identification guide on the opposite page.

"Life in the Meadow"
Shell Guide to Wildlife (1959)
Artist: John Leigh-Pemberton

First bird of my day: a Robin singing in the yew trees on a calm, sunny morning, happy anniversary Hannah! #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Red Kite picking up some breakfast close to the road on a calm, cool morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

Finally detailed mixed-media illustration of a mature Crab-apple growing in a natural environment in full bloom under a blue sky

‘Crab Apple’
Trees (1963)
Artist: S R Badmin

First bird of my day: a Wood Pigeon shuffling around on the ground in search of spilled grain on a calm, peaceful morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Greenfinch perched in the hedgerow on a blustery but bright morning. #Firstbirdofmyday

First bird of my day: a Blue Tit at the feeder and three Red Kites quartering the fields in the valley below. #Firstbirdofmyday

The first of the Bluebells close to home just starting to flower, others a few hundred feet below are much more advanced #Wildflowerhour

A group of lambs play on a tree stump near a small blackthorn bush

“By the first week of April, the lambs that were born in February are large enough to enjoy springtime games. The blackthorn is now in full blossom.”

Writer: EL GrantWatson
Artist: CF Tunnicliffe