Henk-Jan van der Veen

Huge thanks to our volunteers for their great work improving habitat for the Red-Listed Silver-studded Blue (Plebejus argus) and other heathland species despite the chilly weather! 🦋
#butterfly #conservation

A wonderful morning soundtrack: trumpet vibes from a flock of Cranes flying over my house. 🎺

Spring here takes patience, but progress is showing. Helleborus, crocuses and the first Chrysosplenium buds are appearing, alongside the familiar
#Thewinter10 plants I’ve been seeing these past weeks #WildflowerHour

My Dover Chalk Down Dwarf Thistle made it through the winter inside and is thriving! Tiny spikes are already showing on the second pair of leaves 🌱
#WildflowerHour

Out in the field today with the BinnensteBuiten TV crew, filming amazing stream valleys where groundwater brings incredible biodiversity to life! 🎬🌿💚

Three new arrivals in my #WildflowerHour week & #TheWinter10: Stinking Hellebore, Common Whitlowgrass, and Chinese Witch Hazel.
Meanwhile, Red dead-nettle continues to bloom, brave and persistent, despite the cold and freezing rain.

Exploring the possibilities of habitat improvement for the Red-Listed Silver-studded Blue (Plebejus argus) this week. 🦋
Starting this project in a few weeks!
#butterfly #conservation

Congratulations to you all! Looking forward to exploring Kent together on the orchid tour at the end of May!

Freezing rain. Even the dog was struggling to keep its footing..

6:30am. Loud amber warning on my phone ⚠️. Freezing rain.
Not an exaggeration, as it turned out in the daylight.

The usual stuff for this week's #Thewinter10: tough little troopers that couldn’t care less about frost and snow — and yes, even some uplifting signs that spring is on its way.
#WildflowerHour

An afternoon stroll along a stream with the very first leaves of Lesser Water-parsnip
(Berula erecta), seepage bubbling up here and there, and Water Horsetail (Equisetum fluviatile) popping up — see them in action! 🌱🎬
#WildflowerHour

Mooi! De Engelse naam Chalk Hill Blue vind ik een veel mooiere. Rond Dover vliegt deze soort volop in kalkgraslanden.

Weird winter so far. Stuck for weeks between frost and thaw under persistent high pressure.
Sunny yesterday, snow today, then briefly milder for a couple of days next week (6–10°C).
Winter won’t commit, but spring isn’t showing up either ❄️🌤️

This week, I did a heathland and grassland survey and found Mat-grass. In winter, the plant really stands out from a distance due to its bristle-like growth
#WildflowerHour

Awesome Jeremy!

With few species in bloom, I turned my #WildflowerHour challenge into finding #Thewinter10 rosettes

1. Dianthus armeria, Geranium pyrenaicum, Erodium cicutarium, Plantago coronopus, Hypochaerus radicata

2. Centaurea cyanus, Daucus carota, Agrostemma githago, Cardamine hirsuta, Aphanes australis

A few more snaps from last night’s intense aurora show. The colours were insanely bright – a “dancing” green band even stretched right down towards the south. Really impressive ✨
#aurora #auroraborealis #northernlights

An absolutely amazing northern lights show tonight — even right above my head and in the southern sky. Moving south like a wave. Even more spectacular than last year.

Wow, my favorite blue. Great capture!

Thank you Rebecca!

Hard to find plants for #Thewinter10. Red nettle survived the winter & snow, just like a few others.
Some are already dreaming of spring… just before winter makes a comeback this week 🌱
#WildflowerHour

Donation made, happy to contribute 😀

Wow, so many flowering species! 😀 There’s still so much for you to look forward to. Can’t wait to see what’s left once the snow melts—though I guess we’re back to square one!

Last day of this snowy winter ❄️ Time for one final snap of these beautiful windswept snow dunes 📸

Even in this winter wonderland ❄️ I spotted daffodils in bud 🌼 and fresh green honeysuckle leaves 🌿 Plenty of promise left for #Thewinter10 2.0 🌱 in the weeks to come

Daisy, dandelion and buttercup — all buried under 25 cm of snow ❄️ Mostly ice flowers this #Wildflowerhour week for #Thewinter10… and yet, two species still in bloom!

Altocumulus undulatus formed by wind shear as colder continental air advects from the northeast; overnight lows near −15 °C.

Steenwijk vanmorgen @woutervanbernebeek.bsky.social

A Siberian-style walk amid another 10 cm of fresh snow, strong winds, and at times intense drifting snow.
#snow #winter