April Nature Journal Pages

Browse through my April nature journal pages with me as Spring comes to my village in East Yorkshire in a delight of birds and flowers...

I'm trying to do some nature journaling most days in an 'imperfect' way to help with relaxation and well-being as a way of feeling more connected with nature...

I'm enjoying drawing and exploring the natural world with no expectation for my pictures or pages to be perfect - it's very freeing!

Press 'PLAY' above for a flip-through of my nature journal for April - you can also take a closer look below...

April Nature Journal Pages

Curlew and running hares

What a lovely way to start the month - spotting a curlew in a flooded field and then two running hares on the edge of a field as we were driving into our village. If you aren't sure if you could tell a hare from a rabbit, the hare, when running, looks nothing like a rabbit and more like a dog or small deer - it's big and has a definite 'run' (as opposed to a bunny hop). The two hares we saw were lovely and close and had amazing mottled fur (great camouflage!). Hares also have black on their tails and the back of their ears.

Greenfinch nature journal page

Another amazing spot and the first greenfinch we've ever seen in our garden - and it was feeding at our bird feeder which is positioned just outside our kitchen window! Apparently they love sunflower seeds and that's what our feeder is currently filled with!

Goldfinch

Our bird feeder has really been calling all the birds to the yard as the very next day, we spotted two beautiful goldfinches in the garden, first in the tree then flying over to the bird feeder. They're such pretty birds and the first time we've seen them on the feeder now it's closer to the window so it's amazing to get such a great view of them! 

Camellia flower

This is our camellia which I planted in the garden last summer - it's been in a pot for over 10 years and for a lot of those years it's not been very happy about that. I planted it in ericaceous compost in a bed along with other ericaceous plants last year and it's rewarded us with a fine crop of these beautiful pink flowers (my drawing doesn't do it justice!). I'm very pleased we've managed to revive it and to see it flowering so well...

Fresh acer leaves with tiny flowers

I don't know if this is the first year that they've appeared or if it's just the first year that I've noticed them, but our Acer tree has these tiny pretty red flowers hanging down from the new leaves. The effect of the yellow-green leaves and red flowers is very striking - maybe this is the first year it's coincided with sunshine..?

I researched and it seems that these MAY become little winged fruits in the autumn! I will have to remember to look out for them!

Crown Imperial flowers

This very impressive flower is the Crown Imperial (Fritillaria imperialis) a Spring bulb which grows from bright green leaves into a tall purple stalk topped with orange lily-like flowers and a mop of green leaves on top. These are some flowers I found in a hedgerow while looking for some artistic inspiration (I have also drawn them repeatedly for a new design which I hope to share with you soon) so I had to also include them in my nature journal as they're so unusual to look at!

Blackthorn blossom

In the fields near us, the hedges are currently filled with these clouds of white, fluffy blackthorn blossoms. They grow on the leafless twigs of the blackthorn (which gives us sloes in autumn) and are a welcome sight as they herald the start of Spring. It feels to me like they're a lot later this year as I'm sure sometimes they're flowering in February while it's still cold (or is it just normally colder in March and April? - we do seem to be in an unusually sunny period at the moment).

Fighting pheasants

We spotted two pheasants sizing each other up before coming (briefly) to blows in the field as we walked the dog. One of them is a pheasant with a short tail which we recognise. We call him 'Chicken Pheasant' as the first time we saw him we thought he was a chicken! He's our regular pheasant so hopefully he 'won' the battle! I think so as we have seen him again!

Giant fungi on a tree

Very big fungi spotted on a tree - I couldn't get close to see more clearly, or even identify the tree - perhaps some kind of bracket fungus..?

Different varieties of daffodil spotted

The daffodils are still out in Yorkshire - so I decided to do a nature journal page with some of the different daffodil varieties that I saw growing together. I love all the cheerful yellow when the daffodils come out in Spring!

Lackey moth caterpillars in a web

This was a real find that I had to research as I had no idea what it was - a thick cobweb covering hawthorn twigs and leaves with little striped hairy caterpillars all over it. Apparently it's the caterpillars of the Lackey Moth (I believe) who live in these webs for protection while they feed on the hawthorn plant.

A visit to my local arboretum

It was my week off and we had a lovely visit to my local arboretum. Unfortunately, we weren't lucky enough to see any red squirrels in the enclosure there, but did see some beautiful trees, some gorgeous pear blossom, and a nice walk and very tasty lunch!

My favourite trees from my arboretum visit

I included my favourite trees and highlights from my visit (from photos) and also the arboretum map (which unfolds and opens out) where I marked some of the locations, and just to help me remember my visit.

Nature journaling my arboretum visit

Windy day woodpigeon

This is a poor windswept woodpigeon who spent the afternoon on our wall on a very windy day - I feel like he was looking in and wanting to come inside out of the bad weather!

Pink azalea

This pretty pink azalea is one I bought for my mum to take for Easter - so I thought I would draw it!

Goldfinch nest

I can safely say that this is my highlight for April - I noticed a goldfinch with nesting material coming to the rose over our front door. When I went upstairs to the bedroom to see if I could get a better look, I was thrilled to see that the rose had sprouted upwards and the little goldfinch nest was easy to see out of the bedroom window!

We have seen the female goldfinch come with nesting materials and add it to the nest - she gets in a wriggles around to round it out and firm it down. The nest is gradually getting thicker and she seems to have been searching out soft fur to line the nest! I hope that she will nest in it and we might get to see the baby goldfinches!

Flowering purple sprouting broccoli

Here's something I found in my fridge and I'd never seen before - a flowering purple sprouting broccoli that had pretty little yellow flowers on. On looking closely, it seems that each of the little bumps is a tidy bud that would, if left growing, eventually flower into one of these little yellow flowers. It explains why these are called broccoli 'florets'!

Magnolias

One of the magnolia trees in the village is in full bloom and looking gorgeous. The magnolia is an ancient type of tree and is thought to have evolved to attract beetles as it predates the existence of bees!

Our goldfinch lays her eggs!

A very exciting goldfinch update - she's now sitting on her nest and has laid some eggs, at least two, as I saw them while she was away from the nest for a while. She's had a few absences and I have now seen 'Daddy' goldfinch bring her some food. I keep checking on her regularly through each day and try not to disturb her near the window. It's extra warm this week so I hope the new little goldfinch family will be okay!

Bluebells

From barely any flowers a few weeks ago, we now have lots - including a few very pretty bluebells spotted in gardens and grassy verges. This is the Spanish bluebell (or one of its hybrids). Although I have planted some native English bluebells in my garden they're not flowering so I'm enjoying the pretty hybrids which are what we mainly now have in gardens and escaped into the wild. Hybrid Spanish bluebells are now regarded as invasive in England. They still look pretty though!

Red rhododendron

My final nature journal page for April is a red Rhododendron in a pot in my garden which is just coming out (Dwarf Rhododendron 'Winsome'). It's been so dry this Spring and it's so hot this week that I'm trying to remember to water my pots so that my plants don't die.

I finished my April nature journal here as this is the very last page in my nature journal (drawing on the inside cover) so I thought it was best to wait and start the next one at the start of the next month...

I hope you've enjoyed exploring my April nature journal pages with me. I've really enjoyed the return of the flowers (and the sunshine) this month and I've often felt completely spoilt for choice for deciding what to nature journal about as there's been lots of things which I could've nature journaled about but haven't this month.

My favourite has, of course, been my little goldfinch in her nest just outside the window. Such a special treat to see a glimpse into a little bird's life and I hope all goes well and I will continue to be able to follow her new family's journey, which of course, I will share with you here too.

I keep the blinds half closed to protect her from movement inside, as she seems to notice without the blind down. Unfortunately, this means no good photos - although I keep trying!

Hopefully, May will bring more nature joys to explore too...

I also hope that looking through my nature journal has perhaps inspired you to start your own nature journal in the knowledge that your nature journal doesn't need to look like a masterpiece. It can be messy, it can be quick (or not) - it can be however you want!

What's important is how your nature journal makes you feel - and if it's making you feel happier and helping you feel more connected to nature, then that's the main thing!

If you're new to nature journaling, start here with some ideas about what nature journaling actually is!

I also have a free guide to nature journaling to help you get started - look here!

Plus a short course of 20 exercises or nature journaling prompts to help you find your own nature journaling style - all in a no-pressure 'imperfect' way! If you think that might interest you, take a look here!

Online Nature Journaling Course

If you'd like to explore nature journaling more, please consider joining me for my 'Imperfect Nature Journaling' online course - I've called it this to remind us to nature journal for the process of connecting with nature to feel good and not to put pressure on ourselves to create pretty pages which can quickly ruin the fun and the benefits...

It's a series of 20 lessons which are great exercises that you can do in your own nature journal to help you try out different ideas and techniques.

This will help you get the most out of your nature journaling sessions and understand what style of nature journaling is the best for you personally.

If this sounds like something you might like, you can find out more about the course here...