11th July 2011. Back home in Brum, and deep in Tolkein territory. This is the edge of the ‘Moseley Bog’ – a depression near the River Cole. Tolkien lived very near here in his youth. It has been suggested that the Moseley Bog was the prototype of the Fangorn Forest in his mighty trilogy ‘Lord of the Rings’. If so, it bore on this bright day, a very cheerful aspect. The ‘boardwalk’ is an excellent facility so that less mobile people can still enjoy this tranquil area, even if they are unfortunately confined to a wheelchair. Much use is made of the Reserve by local schools, nature study groups and other commendable leisure & educational establishments, and at all seasons of the year.

Just along the nearby little River Cole (Cole is another pre-English river name of uncertain meaning!) we find abundance of the Himalayan Balsam, Impatiens glandulifera. It is very pretty, is not it? (I can never help using archaic phrases, sorry! ‘Is not it?’ seems to have become ‘Is it not?’, and is now very old-fashioned; but the older form eventually changed to ‘Isn’t it?’ & is still very much alive and well.) Yet it (the Himalayan Balsam, I mean) has become a horrible pest since it has proliferated recently. It can grow to 6 or 8 feet high, and drives out our normal native plants of damp waterside places.

This bank of the River Cole looks all very well, but it is simply a mass of glandulifera, and nothing else stands a chance. It propagates by exploding seed-heads, and these seeds are naturally conducted down the watercourse & so it spreads at an enormous rate. Aiee!

12th July 2011. Next day we’re back at the same spot for more Tolkein material. This is Sarehole Mill, which is known to be ‘Ted Sandiman’s Mill’, which caused such distress to the young Tolkein when a steam engine was installed to drive it, hence the chimney stack. There is still a very extensive mill-pond (admittedly, smaller than it used to be); but it is perfectly able to drive the water-wheel which powers the grind-stones. It does so on most days, though not grinding flour. (See also the ‘Rea-Cole’ page; but the Sarehole Mill should really have a detailed page of its own. After the pool was dredged, they began to mill flour again, and you can buy Ted Sandiman’s flour to make your own bread – I have done so!)