Amorous Orchids Raise Eyebrows at St Mark’s! 2014

Raising ‘eyebrows’?

The Bee Orchid has made a comeback at St Mark’s since the careful setting aside of some of the churchyard as meadow. It’s a small meadow but a welcome home for many wild flowers and interesting insects. And can any flower ‘bee’ wilder than the Ophrys (also known as the “Bee Orchid”, although the word ‘ophrys’ literally means ‘eyebrow’ in Greek!)?

Bee orchids have flowers that dress up as female insects in a way that attracts male insects in a process called “pseudocopulation” that then encourages pollination. Spotted today by Isobel, a member of St Mark’s “Green and Wild”, we seem to have half a dozen Bee Orchids dotted around the churchyard. See if you can find them next time you’re around but save their blushes and try not to stare at the ever so amorous bees!

 

Our award-winning Mini-meadow!

Piping Up for Great Music at St Mark’s: 2014

This blog entry was originally posted by Fr Keith Hebden when he was our Associate Priest

We’re fortunate at St Mark’s to have an acoustically celebrated worship space and an incredible organ. This booklet tells you more.

Download and share with friends, neighbours, and colleagues! 

Short link for sharing: http://wp.me/a4w02D-4O

Flash Flood Hits Tichfield Park: 2014

This blog entry was originally posted by Fr Keith Hebden when he was our Associate Priest

This week we were amazed by the effect of a flash flood that caused a bit of drama on Nottingham Road. One minute we’re enjoying the sunshine in the Wild and Green Community Garden at St Mark’s in our shorts; half an hour later we’re in our wellies wading across to Tichfield Park. Flash floods are becoming an increasingly common site in some parts of the country and they’ve been in our prayers.

With this reminder of the increasing climate chaos we trust that it is within the will of God that ‘creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God’ (Romans 8:21), we commit ourselves to the transforming work of God in nature and spirit to the glory of God.

Check our dramatic short video below (Also on The Chad – thanks for sharing, The Chad!)