The church in Budock Water dates from the 13th Century with a rebuild during the 15th Century. The churchyard itself is thought to date back to the times of the Celtic saint Budock in AD 470, also associated with St Budeaux in Plymouth.
Ivy has two types of roots. The "normal" roots extend into the soil and collect nutrients. At intervals along the climbing stems there are also aerial roots which attach the plant to a surface. As they come into contact with a surface, the roots change shape to anchor the plant. They then produce hairs that wedge into any crevices. The roots also exude a chemical compound which acts as a glue.
In pre-industrial times, cattle were allowed to roam over quite large areas and could therefore find a suitable tree to relieve an itch. In the Victorian period, farming became more intensive and cattle were moved into enclosed fields. It was quickly discovered that an itchy cow could wreak havoc with walls and fences so dedicated rubbing stones were positioned in the centre of some fields to minimise cow damage. In some cases, new stones were quarried specifically for the purpose and others, existing prehistoric standing stones or even Celtic crosses were unceremoniously re-used.
The footpath is the remains of a mediaeval cart road, beside which there was once a cross. At one time Nangitha Lane, as it was known, was described as "a good road with pavement along one side".
If you have secateurs, use them to snip off as many brambles and blackthorn saplings as you can along this section and the next one. As the woody growth is snipped away, the greener growth can be more easily squished by passing walking boots. If you don't have secateurs, you can still make a positive difference by bashing any nettles with a stick.
Barbed wire was first used in Victorian times with several different people independently inventing and patenting different designs. Modern barbed wire is made from steel which is then galvanised to prevent it rusting (at least until the zinc coating dissolves away). The barbed wire used for fencing is often made of high-tensile (springy) steel which is suited to being laid in long, continuous lengths. As it is forbidden by the Highways Act of 1980 for barbed wire to block a Public Right of Way, one practical solution used by farmers is to put a plastic sheath over the barbed wire where it passes over a stile. In the rare circumstance that you encounter exposed barbed wire on a stile, the most likely cause for this is mischievous cattle pulling off the plastic sheaths; let the Countryside Team know and they can alert the landowner.
The Ramblers Association and National Farmers Union suggest some "dos and don'ts" for walkers which we've collated with some info from the local Countryside Access Team.
Do
Don't
A mediaeval leper hospital (known as a "lazar house") was located in the field. There are no visible remains but it may be the reason that two footpaths meet here. The name of one of the fields also suggests there may have been a chapel associated with it.
One of the reasons that thistles go to all the effort to defend themselves is that they are rich in nutrients. The non-spiky areas of thistle plants such as the stem and leaf ribs have even been used as a food by humans. The ribs from the middle of the leaves are still harvested and sold in markets in some parts of the world. Preparation needs extreme care as the spines are very harmful if ingested so thistles are definitely not recommended for foraging!
A survey of over 5 million clover leaves found that the frequency of four-leaf clovers is about one in 5,000 (twice as common as originally thought).
The world record for collecting four leaf clovers in one hour was set at 166 (in 1998). One very determined collector managed to amass 170,000 four-leafed clovers in a lifetime.
The first record of Tregonhay is from 1350. Other than Tre (meaning farmstead) the origin of the name is not known. Because it's based on the Cornish language, it is thought that the settlement was probably in existence during the Dark Ages prior to the Norman Conquest.
To make blackberry wine, combine 2kg blackberries + 4 litres of boiling water in a plastic container with a lid. Once the water has cooled to lukewarm, mash blackberries and add red wine yeast and pectic enzyme (blackberries contain pectin so this is needed to stop the wine being cloudy). Cover for 4-5 days then strain through muslin.
Transfer the liquid to a demijohn and add 1kg of sugar. Top up with a little more water to make it up to a gallon. After fermentation, the wine should clear by itself; in the unlikely event that it doesn't, use some finings. Rack off from the sediment and bottle; it's worth allowing the wine a year or two to mature as it massively improves with age. As a variation, you can add 500g of elderberries and increase the sugar content for a more port-like wine which will need a couple of years longer for the elderberry tannins to mellow out.
Bramble roots are perennial but its shoots last just two years. In the first year, the shoots grow vigorously (up to 8cm in one day!). In the second year, the shoots mature and send out side-shoots with flowers.
The magpie is a member of the crow family and like other crows is omnivorous, feeding on pretty much anything it can find although it prefers high energy foods. Magpies spend most of their life in a 6 mile radius of where they were born and live in loose social groups. They will form gangs and use complex social strategies for hunting and tackling predators. Names for a group of magpies include a "tiding", "charm" and "chatter" (the latter reflecting their social communication).
As well as producing seeds both sexually and asexually, brambles can also clone themselves to create daughter plants either via underground stems (rhizomes) or by the over-ground stems rooting where they meet the ground.
The reservoirs are dammed from a small river which has its source at Longdowns and runs along a fairly deep valley, reaching the sea at Glasney Creek in Penryn.
College Reservoir is the earlier and smaller of the two reservoirs in the valley. It was completed in 1906 and has a capacity of just under a quarter of a million litres. The walkway along one side of College Reservoir was repaired and reopened in 2012 after it been closed for over 12 years.
In 1939, South West Water work began to dam the river to create a reservoir for public water supply. The concrete dam on Argal Lake was completed in 1941 and at full capacity, the lake holds 1.3 billion litres of water. South West Water still own Argal and College lakes but lease them to the Southwest Lakes Trust.
Mabe parish church dates from the 14th Century but the church was largely re-built in 1869, after being struck by lightning. The churchyard is on the site of an earlier Celtic religious enclosure. The churchyard contains a mediaeval cross and a standing stone inscribed in the mediaeval period but thought to have been erected originally during prehistoric times.
Most primroses tend to be pale yellow but in residential areas, extensive hybridisation occurs with pink and purple garden primulas to create all kinds of weird and wonderful mutants, with some even shaped like cowslips. However, there is a pale pink variety of primrose (known as rhubarb and custard) that is thought to be a naturally-occurring variant of the pale yellow (rhubarb-free) version as it has been found miles away from any domestic plants.
The original tarmac was made from coal tar and ironworks slag. In the 1920s, coal tar was replaced by the tar from petroleum oil - bitumen. This oil-based tarmac is known as asphalt in the UK. However in the USA, "asphalt" means bitumen (i.e. just the tar with no "mac"). If that wasn't confusing enough, tarmac is known as "bitumen" in Australia!
Beneath the water of Argal Lake lies Argal Mill. The mill was shown existing on an OS Map of 1938, the year before the river was dammed, although it had not been in use since 1878.
Swans usually mate for life, although "divorce" can sometimes occur if there is a nesting failure. The birds can live for over 20 years but in the 20th Century many swans were found to be suffering from lead poisoning. This was tracked down to the tiny "lead shot" weights used for fishing that swans would hoover up with weed and roots from the bottom of rivers and lakes. Since the introduction of non-toxic metals for making fishing weights, incidents of poisoning have disappeared and the swan population is now even growing very slightly.
In the 1990s, a process was put in place to transfer the leisure activities managed by South West Water to a new charity. The South West Lakes Trust was formed in 2000 and looks after the following lakes in Cornwall: Argal, College, Crowdy, Porth, Siblyback, Stithians and Tamar. The trust now also includes the Wheal Martin china clay museum.
The settlement of Argal takes its name from the Cornish word argel meaning "secluded place". Usually, place names that derive from the Cornish language date from a period when this was spoken by the land-owning classes, i.e. in early mediaeval times before the French-speaking Normans took control. However, in this case there are no records of the name from mediaeval times but this could be simply because Argal was so secluded!
Moles are solitary except when breeding so a network of tunnels is occupied by a single mole. Moles typically live for around 3 years and when a mole dies, its tunnel network is often inherited by one of its offspring. Thus the expanding estate can be passed down through several generations. In wetland areas where there is no gradient available to retreat uphill from rising water, moles construct a large mound protruding around half a metre above the ground to act as an emergency flood shelter.
The UK is one of the windiest places in Europe and considered as one of the best places in the world for wind power. Around a quarter of the UK's energy already comes from wind power (higher during windy months) and it is now one of the cheapest sources of electricity. Wind turbines last for about 20-25 years until the moving parts wear out and they need to be replaced.
Studies have shown that crows are capable of self-discipline. If offered one piece of food now or two later, the crows will resist temptation and wait. However if the initial piece of food is a high value item such as sausage, they won't take the risk.
You now have an opportunity to admire your secateurs handiwork and snip off any naughty brambles that escaped before.
The fields here are sometimes used for arable crops such as cereals.
Whist warm porridge has a long history, cold breakfast cereals were invented in the USA during Victorian times. The first products were granola-like and one needed soaking overnight before it could be eaten. Following on from these, John Kellogg and his brother William experimented with cereals, initially intended as a dietary supplement for vegetarians at their sanitarium. After accidentally letting some cooked wheat go stale, the Kellogg brothers attempted to salvage this by rolling it and to their surprise it created flakes which they toasted and served to their patients. They experimented with other cereals and their flake cereals including maize (cornflakes) were patented. John Kellogg refused to add sugar to his cornflakes as he believed this would "increase passions", however William had fewer fears for the morality of the American public from the aphrodisiac properties of cornflakes and created a mass-market version with added sugar which was a huge success.
Earliest records of the parish of Budock are from 1207. The "water" was appended to indicate the village was near a stream (as with Chacewater and Canworthy Water).
Ferns evolved a long time before flowering plants and dominated the planet during the Carboniferous period. The bark from tree ferns during this period is thought to have been the main source of the planet's coal reserves.
During late winter or early spring, if you encounter a patch of plants with white bell-shaped flowers, smelling strongly of onions, and with long, narrow leaves then they are likely to be three-cornered leeks. Once you're familiar with their narrow, ridged leaves, you'll be able to spot these emerging from late October onwards.
The plants get their name due to their triangular flower stems. As the name also suggests, they are members of the onion family and have a small bulb. In fact, in New Zealand they are known as "onion weed". They are also known as "snowbell" due to their white bluebell-like flowers.
Hazelnuts can be found beneath the trees in September and October and are a favourite with squirrels so you'll need to forage those that haven't already been nibbled. Once harvested, the nuts need to be dried before shelling and eating. Wash and dry the nuts first to reduce the chance of them going mouldy. Then lay them out on something where the air can circulate and dry them for 2-4 weeks. An airing cupboard is a good place. You can tell that they are ready when the nuts rattle in their shells. Once shelled, the nuts can be stored in a fridge or even frozen for a couple of years.
During the mesolithic (middle stone age) period, hazelnuts are thought to have been carried as portable food and this is thought to have led to the rapid spread of hazel to new areas seen in archaeological pollen analysis.
According to folklore, it's unlucky to bring bluebells into a house and also unlucky to walk through bluebells as it was thought that the little bells would ring and summon fairies and goblins.
You'll notice that there is lichen growing on many of the headstones in the churchyard. Of the 2,000 British species, over a third have been found in churchyards and more than 600 have been found growing on churchyard stone in lowland England. Almost half the species are rare and some seldom, if ever, occur in other habitats. Many churchyards are found to have well over 100 species.
The layer of fog which forms above the land or water during the night is known as "Radiation Fog" as it is caused by the surface cooling (by radiating away energy as infra-red) during the night. This in turn cools the air close to the surface which reduces its ability to hold moisture and this condenses out as a fog of tiny droplets. Once the sun rises and the ground begins to warm up, the fog usually dissipates relatively quickly.
Biologically, there is no clear distinction between ducks, geese and swans (geese and swans are one lanky subfamily of ducks). Dark-coloured ducks get the equivalent of "grey hairs" with age - their feathers gradually turn white.
The species of duck that you're most likely to encounter is the mallard. Mature males have striking iridescent green heads and dark bodies whilst females look totally different - a brown and white pattern which offers much better camouflage. However, both have a common feature that is unique to mallards - an iridescent blue patch on their wings.
In situations where ducks need to watch out for predators, they can sleep one half of their brain at a time, keeping one eye open for danger. In safer circumstances, ducks will sleep fully.
Male ducks (drakes) have a penis which falls off every autumn and regrows the following spring. The length each year depends on the amount of competition for females and varies up to a maximum of the duck's whole body length.
Ducks can change gender. This happens for about 1 duck in 10,000 and more commonly from female to male than the other way around. It seems to occur in a flock of ducks where there is a significant gender imbalance where it gives the duck that changes a competitive advantage. It's likely that the female to male direction is a bigger evolutionary win because one male can fertilise multiple females.
Feeding bread to ducks is quite bad for them although not feeding ducks anything at all is potentially worse as many have now become reliant on being fed. White bread lacks many of the nutrients that ducks need but ducks will gorge on it to the point of ignoring other foods, effectively becoming junk food addicts. The problem is that by filling up on just this, they can become malnourished, deformed and even die. Some healthier things to feed ducks are leftover peas, sweetcorn, seeds, rice and salad.
Coots are black with a white beak and head shield. This white patch is the origin of the phrase "bald as a coot". Moorhens look similar but have a red beak.
Coots are extremely aggressive, especially in the breeding season. If their chicks annoy them, the parents will bite them. Consequently quite a few coot chicks starve to death due to mean parents.
The early purple orchid gets its common name from its spring flowering time - it appears at a similar time to bluebells although it lasts a bit longer. It has a Latin name meaning "virile" which is in keeping with the word "orchid" coming from the Greek word for testicle (on account of the shape of the tuber).
Early purple orchid is the con-man of the plant kingdom, with brilliant purple flowers resembling those of other nectar-rich orchids. When the insects arrive and push through the pollen to investigate the promising flowers, they discover that the flowers contain no nectar.
There are some massive carp in the lake. The largest one caught weighed nearly 43lb.
The common carp originated in the inland delta of the Danube River about 2000 years ago, and was torpedo-shaped and golden in colour. The Romans then farmed it in large ponds in southern Europe, and domesticated version became gradually fatter through selective breeding. During the 13th-16th centuries, domestic carp was spread around Europe by monks who kept it in abbey ponds as a source of food.
Carp are omnivorous and although the prefer worms and crustaceans, they can survive on a diet of water plants. In British lakes, carp can reach over 70lb (30kg) in weight which makes them popular with anglers.
Minnows are a species of small carp that live in oxygen-rich streams, typically in the upper reaches of rivers where they provide an important food source for trout. Unlike trout, minnows don't need gravel for spawning and their young hatch quickly which allows them to multiply wherever sufficient food is available.
When minnows are injured, special skin cells release a chemical which warns others of the presence of a predator. The evolutionary advantage of this to an individual minnow is not understood as it's already too late for the minnow being eaten and the cells require extra energy to maintain them so are, if anything, a disadvantage to the particular minnow who is carrying them. One possible explanation would be if other minnows in the shoal were relatives and therefore carrying similar genes then the sacrifice would be "worth it" (genetically), but studies have found that other minnows in the shoal are often unrelated. So it appears that minnows are simply nice.
Water mint is a wild species of mint which grows in damp places or even in water. It can be recognised by leaves and the strong mint smell when these are crushed. It produces a ball of lilac flowers in late summer.
Water mint will hybridise with spearmint and this creates peppermint (which itself is sterile).
Water mint and peppermint have high levels of menthol whereas the sweeter flavour of spearmint comes from a different chemical called corvone. Menthol creates a cold feeling on the skin by activating the sensory receptors in a similar way that chilli creates a heat sensation.
Water pepper, as the name implies, grows on wet ground such as on the margins of lakes (it's also known as marsh pepper). It's relatively late to appear, not really getting going until June.
Another of water pepper's common names is "smartarse". As Emma Gunn points out in her foraging book "Never Mind the Burdocks", this is nothing to do with being clever: in the past, the dried leaves were added to bedding to drive away fleas etc. and the name comes from rolling over on a leaf in the wrong way.
Water pepper leaves can be used as a herb and has a lemony flavour similar to sorrel followed by heat which is a little like chilli. Its used in Japanese cuisine, particularly with fish. The young shoots are used to garnish sushi or sashimi.
The plant is unpalatable to livestock but is eaten by some insects which has given rise to a Japanese saying which transliterates to "Some insects eat water pepper and like it" but is used more like "There's no accounting for taste".
Damselflies are predators similar to dragonflies but are easily distinguishable by the way their wings fold back parallel to the body when at rest whereas the dragonflies' wings are fixed at a right angle to the body. The Damselfly has a much smaller body than a dragonfly which means it has less stamina for flight. Nevertheless, it can hover, in a stationary position, long enough to pluck spiders from their webs.
Male damselflies have two sets of genitalia. At the start of mating a packet of sperm (spermatophore) is transferred outside of the male's body between the two and then passed on to the female who uses it to fertilise her eggs as she lays them. Female damselflies lay their eggs inside vegetation. For some species this is in water plants and the female can swim underwater for half an hour before returning to the surface to breathe. Males often guard the egg laying female to prevent a rival male from sneaking in and replacing the spermatophore with his own.
Damselfly eggs hatch not into damselflies but water-living nymphs which look a bit like a dull-coloured damselfly with a 3-forked tail instead of wings. The tail is actually a set of gills used to breath underwater. When the larva is fully developed, it climbs out of the water on a stem or rock. Its skin then splits open and a damselfly emerges with wings which need to be inflated and dry before it can fly.
Dragonflies were some of the first winged insects to evolve, around 300 million years ago in the "age of amphibians" before the dinosaurs. Fossils of early dragonflies have been found with wingspans of up to two feet across.
Dragonflies are named after the way they hunt, as both the larvae and adults are carnivorous predators. Mosquitoes form a large part of their diet both for adults and particularly for the larvae (nymphs). One dragonfly can eat tens of mosquitoes in a day and an average of over 100 per day has been recorded for the nymphs of some species. It is thought that this is an important factor in keeping the mosquito population under control. Dragonfly nymphs have a massive lower jaw to engulf their prey (a bit like an Angler Fish) and are also able to propel themselves by shooting a jet of water out of their anus.
Their two sets of wings beat out of phase, and the frequency, amplitude and the angles of each set of wings can be controlled. This allows dragonflies to hover in a completely stationary position for over a minute, perform extravagant aerobatic manoeuvres and even fly backwards.
The grey heron is an unmistakably massive bird with a 6ft wingspan and yet weighs in at only 1-2kg. The call of the heron is equally unsubtle - a loud croaking "fraaank" noise that is more like grating metal than the sound of birdsong. Herons are most commonly seen in or near freshwater where they hunt for fish. The number of breeding herons has been steadily growing in the UK due to mild winters as they struggle to feed during cold weather when ice forms a barrier on the surface of water.
Although herons primarily eat fish, they will eat frogs, rodents, moles, ducklings and even baby rabbits! They are quite brave birds and will venture into gardens and parks to eat the ornamental fish. They have also been known to visit zoos to steal fish during penguin and seal feeding.
Herons nest in tree-top colonies known as "heronries" where they make a large nest from twigs. It is not unusual for a single tree to contain as many as 10 nests and the overall colony can reach over a hundred nests. The herons re-use their nest for as many years as possible until it gets blown away by a storm. It is unwise to stand beneath a heronry as the birds defend their nests by regurgitating half-digested fish on those below!
In mediaeval Britain, roast heron was a prized dish reserved for aristocratic banquets. In Tudor and Elizabethan times, hunting herons with peregrine falcons was considered a royal sport which resulted in the population being protected from peasants who might otherwise have caught and roasted them.
The English surnames Earnshaw and Hernshaw originally meant "heron wood" and the surname Herne is also a corruption of Heron.
Bracken is a type of fern. Perhaps the easiest way to spot mature bracken plants is by their sturdy stem which acts a bit like the trunk of a tree with leaves going out horizontally from this. Other ferns leaves tend to grow directly out of the ground. Earlier in the year, bracken is recognisable by the fronds emerging from the ground singly rather than grouped in tufts.
Although the fronds of bracken die back each year, the black underground roots are perennial and spread extensively, sending up fronds at intervals. The root system of one bracken plant can stretch up to a quarter of a mile across making bracken one of the largest plants in the world.
Fossil records indicate that bracken dates back at least 55 million years. By 24 million years ago it had a worldwide distribution and it is now thought to be the most common plant in the world.
Bracken is both poisonous and carcinogenic to many grazing animals which will avoid it if at all possible. Eating bracken is not recommended as it is thought that the carcinogenic properties may also apply to humans based on the circumstantial evidence that Japan, where young bracken fronds are a delicacy, has the highest levels of stomach cancer in the world.
Bracken releases toxins into the soil which inhibit the growth of other plants, and the shade created by its large leaves and its thick leaf litter also makes it hard for other plants to compete. This and avoidance by grazing animals makes it quite difficult to control, particularly in steep areas where mechanised cutting or ploughing is difficult. Treading by livestock can reduce bracken's competitive advantage, particularly during winter when frost can attack the roots.
In woodland, the Victorians used a horse-drawn roller to control bracken. The hollow roller was made from a frame of iron bars which crush bracken stems but allow springy tree saplings to ping back. This horse-drawn method still survives in Cornwall and is sometimes hired by the National Trust for their woodlands.
Bracken has been used as a fuel for centuries but is of interest as a modern biofuel due to its very high calorific value. Normal firewood produces around 15-19 gigajoules of heat per tonne of material (depending on moisture content - drier is more efficient hence kiln-dried logs). Elephant grass can produce around 18 GJ/t and bracken can deliver 21 GJ/t. At least one company has piloted creating compressed fuel briquettes from bracken in a similar way to elephant grass.
Gunnera looks like giant rhubarb but the leaves stems are spiky. It tends to favour damp places as quite a lot of water is needed to supply its huge leaves.
The plant has a symbiotic relationship with cyanobacteria which live between its cells. The cyanobacteria, also known as "blue-green algae", are photosynthetic and also supply the host plant with nitrogen which allows it to colonise poor soils.
You may wonder how fish (other than eels which can crawl over land) are able to colonise a lake that has no obvious river system connecting it to the sea. The answer may well be duck poo! Scientists have found that a small percentage of fish eggs are able to pass through a duck's digestive tract and remain viable. Whilst the survival rate is less than 1%, one large fish can produce over a million eggs and many water birds will completely fill their stomach with fish eggs in spawning season. Somewhat dedicated scientists found the eggs generally took just an hour to pass through a duck. They then calculated this was long enough for it to fly around 30 miles. They also found that the occasional egg would also get stuck in a duck longer and pop out 4-6 hours later by which time a duck could have flown up to 200 miles.
Pike are predatory freshwater fish with a long body shape which allows them to accelerate rapidly and ambush their prey. The name comes from the long pole with a spike on the end, used as a weapon.
Pike feed predominantly on fish which can include smaller pike. Larger pike will also eat rodents and birds including ducklings. With enough food, a pike can reach more than a metre in length.
The athletic nature of pike makes them a highly-prized quarry of sport anglers.
Some pike in the lake have reached over 30lb in weight.
Roach are silver freshwater fish with red fins that are members of the Carp family. They are typically found in shoals in fairly static water such as lakes and canals. Cornwall's fast-flowing streams are the domain of more powerful swimmers such as trout.
Roach are tough little fish that can live for up to 15 years. They are able to cope with more pollution than most other fish, salty water, cold temperatures and can even adapt their body shape to deal with a scarcity of food. They are able to survive on just about anything from insects and fish eggs to water plants.
They can be confused with their cousins rudd which are similar in shape and also have red fins. The easiest way to tell them apart is that rudd have distinctly upturned mouths for hoovering in floating water plants.
The flooded quarry pits, farm ponds and pools in small streams in Cornwall provide ideal habitats for Freshwater Eels. Freshwater Eels have such an eccentric life cycle that it was a mystery for many years. The adult eels migrate from the lakes in which they grew up, across land, down rivers and 4,000 miles across the ocean to the Caribbean where they spawn and die. The larvae then drift for 300 days in the ocean currents from the Sargasso Sea to Europe. The tiny "glass eels" then migrate up rivers and across fields to find suitable homes.
Eels have been a popular food for centuries as their rich, oily flesh is very tasty. Due to overfishing, pollution and also changes in ocean currents, the Freshwater Eel is now a critically endangered species. Since the 1970s, the numbers of eels reaching Europe is thought to have declined by around 90% (possibly even as much as 98%). A research project has been started to breed eels in captivity. This is not straightforward as the eel is generally only able to reproduce after having swum 4,000 miles. The researchers have therefore developed an Eel Gym to help the eels find their mojo.
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