The Stage is Set

This  morning we headed into town to the rugby  club to help with preparations for the Winchester Ukulele Festival which is taking place this Saturday. Heras fencing, small marquees, and  signage all needed  to be put up by  volunteers , with the main marquee being erected by professionals, which was an impressive operation to behold. The finished construction is my first extra. 
In the afternoon, Martin and I went on a guided tour of the  nature  reserve adjoining the  rugby club grounds. It was a rare opportunity to visit  the Upper Winnall Moors reserve, managed by Hampshire Wildlife  Trust and an angling  club, and  not normally open to the public,(unlike the lower reserve which does have  public access) to protect the wildlife. It is surprisingly  wild there, considering it is but a stone's throw  from the busy city of Winchester and the M3 motorway. There are old water meadows and  hay meadows, which are being grazed by cattle  and ponies. See second  extra. The main photo shows a Southern  Marsh Orchid growing in the meadow. There were also Ragged Robin and  Yellow Iris  in abundance as well as lots of birds especially Cetti's warblers and Chiff chaff, and also a couple of  roe deer.