I took Monty down the road from our house into NIAB's fields (National Institute for Agricultural Biology) for a good old hooping session. These fields are living on borrowed time because they are about to be ploughed up for thousands of new houses. They have only survived this long because of the housing recession but there has been a lot of activity from lorries delivering gravelly stuff this week so maybe work is imminent. Although the poppies are lovely, the tree line in the distance is the A14 and the fields are not especially beautiful. Also the houses are much needed as Cambridge has expanded enormously (and let's face it I'm an invader from the North) BUT the character of the area is bound to change for the worse. This isn't the only development planned (there will be three new primary schools within our current school catchment area - that's a lot of extra houses and cars) and although I can walk into fields in various directions from home soon the nearest will be a drive away. On top of that, the noise of the A14 was being drowned out by the noise of birds today and their habitat will be destroyed. Ho hum - I feel it's churlish to complain - our house was built in 1936, before that there were orchards and fields. The development behind us grew up in the sixties - we're praying the council does a better job with the new one and that they actually build family houses with gardens instead of the really high density housing they seem to favour.
PS Happy June - and thanks for all your recent commenting - I'm always delighted to hear your feedback.
PPS I think it needs viewing large. :0)
viwed large and enjoyed. empathise re changing towns and times. thearmy is giving up 7 has sold lots of land around us in Aldershot. 2,500 new homeslus schools etc. In addition as the home of the british Army and the ghurka barracks we have had a very sudden influx of retired ghurkas and their families. Excelolent people and if we were happy to let them fight and die for us , we welcome them to live with us but the nature of the town and schools has changed dramatically since their successful campaign
It is a big worry when redeveloping is on the horizon & none of us want it in our back yard ! Seems such a pity when fields & wild life are sacrificed for bricks & mortar but I suppose if there are houses needed what must be must be ! I hope they build sympathetically & that you don't lose all your good walks ! Lovely poppies !!
Lovey shot Judith, I hear you and I hope they are aware of the mistakes of the past and replant the trees ( at least some) for the birds and as you say at least let the people have gardens that may encourage wildlife.
Judith great work and an equally great narrative too. If you study the pic you cannot see anything to date it. It could be from any decade of colour photography :)
great shot Judith - hate all this carving up of the coutryside - it's rubbish! As I was driving up the M11 yesterday I saw a fantastic sight - a nice green landscape with a BIG RED field in the middle full of poppies - i'm going to see if I can detour and take a shot on my way home, or next week. cambridgeshire is so beautiful it seems such a shame we will lose yet more greenland. Nice job here
Great shot, it is the constant dilemma nature vs development. There was masses of waste ground here when I moved in less than 10 years ago, and now every last scrap has been covered in high density flats so that it feels claustrophobic they should be forced to plant trees and have a bit of breathing space around these developments and try and keep some of the nature they are destroying. These flats are not for poor people but those in financial services in Canary Wharf who are loaded. It is nothing more than a massive money making venture that has little to do with real social need for housing
June 10th, 2011
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How are the chickens doing?