Essex as a county abounds in ancient woods, more by area than in the whole of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire put together. I have known East Grove on the southern bank of the Stour Estuary for forty years, and always felt that it is one of the very best, despite its small size.

Squeezed into its couple of hectares is an active Sweet Chestnut coppice, with Oak and Field Maple trees, and THE most diverse ground flora for its size I have seen. Bluebells of course abound, but after their first flush, the monochrome blue vista is punctured with white Greater Stitchwort and Wood Anemone. And this weekend, Red Campion has burst, alongside the Yellow of Archangel and acid-green Wood Spurge, all to complete the colour-wheel.

The delightfully named, but actually rather scrappy Goldilocks Buttercup, its flowers usually missing one or more petals and those that it has being pretty manky…

And to cap it all, Ramsons is now blooming, scenting the air with its wonderful garlic fragrance: there are few places locally where this can be found in abundance.

To walk in this wood is an assault on the senses – a complete colour palette, the scent of the garlic, the prickling of Butchers’-broom and especially in mid-May at high tide, the gentle burbling of Brents on the water. Gentle, but occasionally rising to a crescendo as they take flight – this estuary is a renowned staging post before they head off to northern Siberia, in the hope that winter has relinquished its grip. This wood is almost unique in Essex in having a tidal, estuarine frontage.

On the first really warm, humid afternoon of our year, the insects and other invertebrates were out. A good selection is shown below…

… as Swallows sang from the wires, probably four pairs in the neighbouring  stables. and a magnificent Dryad’s Saddle exploded from an old tree stool …

… but pride of place must go to the Greater Thorn-tipped Longhorn-beetle Jude spotted. A lovely beast, and not at all common. The National Biodiversity Network map shows only half a dozen previous Essex localities, including one from Stour Wood, the RSPB/Woodland Trust just 500m downstream. All in the course of a Sunday afternoon stroll!