6 minute read
A Different View Of The Vale
A Different View
of the Vale
With autumn approaching and fungi abundant across the landscape, we asked coddiwompler Aliya Whiteley to take a trip to Kingley Vale and inspire us all to make the journey to this National Nature Reserve
Afew miles from Chichester there’s a back road that winds through the villages of Walderton and Stoughton, leading into the South Downs, to a place I walk often, and never quite know.
Kingley Vale was designated a National Nature Reserve in 1952 – one of the first in the country – and it includes many important sites of archaeological interest, from Neolithic times to World War Two. Some of these sites are locally famous, such as the Devil’s Humps; these are the Bronze Age burial mounds with a view over the Vale that is eerie in its beauty at sunrise and sunset. There’s a legend that a clan of Viking warriors was defeated at this spot. The story goes that they were buried under the ancient yew trees, and the fallen dead come back at night to haunt those same dark, spreading trunks.
I’ve stood atop Kingley Vale and soaked up that mysterious, almost unearthly atmosphere in all seasons. I’m one of those walkers who take a lot of photographs, trying to capture something of what I see, but none of the pictures do it justice, and besides, it looks different every time to me. Perhaps that’s because I have a terrible memory for places. Or perhaps it’s because my attention is never really fixed on the archaeological sites, or the spectacular view of the Downs. Instead, I’m always busy looking at the world under my feet, where there are fungi to be found.
I was lucky enough to grow up wandering through woodlands without really looking at where I was going; my father pointed me in the right direction whenever I needed it. He took photographs too: of deer, of There’s a legend that a clan of Viking warriors was defeated at this spot
flowers, of the amazing things he found on our walks. Rare and delicate blooms, and even a nest of baby owls, once. When I was given a camera I took blurry photos of wet things, squelchy things, things in the dirt. I still do.
Fungi are made up of threadlike organisms under the surface of the earth. Their networks run all over the Vale, as they do through the world. They can survive in nearly all conditions, can be found in deserts and frozen tundra, but here in Sussex certain fungi thrive wonderfully amongst the trees and plants. And when conditions are right – on a damp autumn day, say – mushrooms emerge.
We all have an idea of what a mushroom should look like, but they can be bizarre in shape and texture: frilled or smooth, with gills or sticky heads. Some can be shiny or slimy, while others are dry. From the size of a pinhead to a dinner plate, in muted or strident colours, I’ve found them all over Kingley Vale. A lone one might nestle shyly in leaf litter. Others might colonise fallen trees in great eruptions.
The knack of spotting them is hard
I’m always busy looking at the world under my feet to explain. If you take in the whole scene, you won’t get a hint of them. But shift your vision just a little, let your eyes slide downwards, into the dark spots, and there they are. I have no memory for names or places, and I’m no expert when it comes to mycological terms. Sometimes I try to identify them later, from my wobbly photographs. Was that a Many-zoned polypore climbing up
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Note: Many mushrooms and fungi are not edible and some are extremely poisonous so do not consume unless completely sure they are an edible variety. a trunk with its light-edged frills on display, as playful as a courting ritual? Maybe the great circular dish in the grass, light brown and unmarked, was a Horse mushroom that could have made a great meal? The ones that really intrigue me are beyond my powers of recognition. Older fungi, already breaking down, can look utterly alien, as can those that have been nibbled, or partially destroyed. What were they, before the damage? I won’t ever know.
Take a walk on the Downs this autumn and see what you find under the trees. I can’t promise the ghost of Viking warriors, but odd things can be found if you look hard enough. Fungi are just like the changing, unknowable landscape of Kingley Vale: ever surprising, and more than a little eerie. This is a land you can’t ever quite know. l
Aliya Whiteley's The Secret Life of Fungi: Discoveries from a Hidden World is out now in paperback £9.99, published by Elliott & Thompson
www.sharnfoldfarm.co.uk
IT’S TIME FOR SOME FUN… DOWN ON THE FARM spooktacular half term Halloween on the far 22nd - 31st October & pumpkin car spooktacular half term Halloween fun on the farm & pumpkin carving*
prizes for best dressed prizes for best dressed Halloween costume Halloween costume *pumpkin carving 24th- 28th October only
This October half term grab your boots, *pumpkin carving 24th- 28th October only
throw on your coat (or Ghoulish costume) and head on down to Sharnfold Farm Visit us for our Spooktacular Halloween family friendly event, including all our usual fun on the farm PLUS our Spooky themed trail and activities
So if you’re wondering about what to do with your little monsters this half term then we have the answer for you ... a fun filled day down on Sharnfold Farm!
Stone Cross, Nr. Eastbourne, East Sussex BN24 5BU T: 01323 768490 E: shop.sharnfoldfarm@gmail.com
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