Welcome to Nature’s Tea Cup. A comforting series of Our Country Life that explores the tiny, often overlooked details in nature, the kind of moments that feel like sitting down with a cup of tea: gentle, reflective, and nourishing for the soul.

This series is all about celebrating those tiny pockets of beauty, a glint of dew on a leaf, the flick of a wren’s tail, the soft rustle of grass in the breeze. I’ll be sharing the little things that have filled my teacup with calm and wonder, and along the way, I’ll offer creative prompts to spark your own reflection.

Whether it’s a photograph, a painting, a journal entry or simply a moment you carry in your mind, I’d absolutely love to see how your teacup fills, too. Feel free to share what you notice, make, or write as the series unfolds.

Here’s to finding joy in the quiet, the small, and the often overlooked. Let’s begin.

Opening the curtains, a familiar sight caught my eye, one that both sparks anger and excitement at this time of year. Condensation! Stay with me, it gets better. The sight of condensation forming on the windows means more than it being the season I strap on my rubber gloves and grab my Karcher window vac, it also means it’s mushroom season. Yes that’s right, the fungi are back and they are filling my tea cup until it’s overflowing.

Pulling on my wellies, I march into the woods to see what’s occurring. Lo and behold, they’re here already, lots of magical mushrooms just waiting to be admired.

My last post about fungi sparked great conversations with fellow fungi enthusiasts. I was delighted to discover that I’m not the only one fascinated by these strange yet wonderful organisms. Their forms, colours, and textures can feel otherworldly, but they are often surprisingly difficult to spot unless you slow down and really pay attention.

You can catch up on last year’s Fungi-fanatic post below.

For me, there’s nothing better than wandering through the garden or venturing into the woods on a fungi-spotting walk. It’s a pastime that demands patience and a sharp eye, but in return it offers complete absorption in the present moment. I find myself scanning the ground, fallen logs, and tree stumps for the slightest hint of shape or shade that might give away a hidden treasure.

The key lies in noticing the finer details of the woodland floor. Fungi are masters of camouflage: a toadstool might be perfectly tucked amongst autumn leaves, a bracket fungus may blend seamlessly into the bark of an old oak, or a cluster of tiny inkcaps could be hidden in the mossy dampness at the base of a tree. Sometimes all it takes is the faintest curve, a sudden flash of white gills, or a subtle change in texture to reveal their presence.

I’ve learnt to look not just at what’s directly underfoot but also around decaying wood, shaded hollows, and even the undersides of logs or stones. Paying attention to these small details makes every outing an adventure; I never quite know what I’ll find. A delicate fairy bonnet one day, a striking fly agaric the next, or perhaps something I’ve never seen before.

Fungi spotting has become both a mindful practice and a way of connecting more deeply with the natural world. It sharpens observation, slows the pace of a walk, and encourages me to notice things that might otherwise be overlooked. The woodland, with its layers of life and decay, becomes a place of endless surprises.

Have you spotted any fungi yet? Look closely at the leaf litter, the moss, the bark, and the fallen branches. The fungi are out there - quiet, curious, and waiting to be found.

Here’s a list of creative prompts for you:

For Writing

• Imagine a hidden society of fungi beneath the forest floor - what might their conversations sound like?

• Capture the atmosphere of an ancient woodland at dawn, focusing only on fungi as the main characters.

For Art & Photography

• Sketch a “fairy ring” as if it’s a tiny village, complete with fungal architecture.

• Macro-photograph textures of gills and caps, then reinterpret them as abstract landscapes.

For Nature Journaling

• Go for a walk and list every shape you find - domes, frills, umbrellas - without naming species.

• Press or photograph fungi at different stages and describe their changing forms.

Thank you for joining me for this sip from Nature’s Teacup. I hope it’s offered a moment of calm or sparked a little curiosity in your day. If something in this post resonated with you - a memory, a thought, a quiet detail you noticed this week - I’d love to hear about it.

Feel free to share your reflections, photos, scribbles, or simply a line or two in the comments. If you choose to respond to the creative prompts, I’d love to see what you come up with. There’s no right or wrong — just your way of noticing the world.

Catch up on last month’s post…

What I’m Reading…