Country diary: One flower here is thriving, defying the drought | Derek Niemann

Frome, Somerset: While other plants are withering or skeletal, tansy is growing in great profusion, and it rewards close observationAt first light, the scent of ’76 hangs in the air, a reminder of that endless summer burning itself into autumn, just like this one. I first caught a sniff of it walking home one sweltering evening in the June heatwave and said: “Too soon, too soon.” Now the toasted aroma of spent grass is everywhere – on crispy playing fields, straw village greens, and these scorched tawny meadows of the combe. Scattered groups of cattle have their heads down here. For them I think eating the grass must be like consuming a Pot Noodle before the water is poured in.And then I find the outflow of one of the hillside’s springs. Though it registers nothing more than a seep, it is nevertheless a pocket oasis of comparative lushness, a blessing to a heifer’s eyes. Continue reading...