Townend of Threepwood, Beith
The ruins of an old farm near Sunnyside of Threepwood on Threepwood Road, North Ayrshire, Scotland. The local history of the site is narrated including it's possible use as a tavern.
Nature Insights - The Wolf's Milk Slime Mold at Spier's Old School Grounds
These pink blobs represent huge single celled Wolf's Milk or Wolf's Blood slime molds with thousands of nuclei that reach this size following long periods of feeding on bacteria, yeast, etc. The feeding stage is called a syncytium and the aethial stage is the reproductive stage where the mold goes a brown colour and changes into thousands of spores that are dispersed by wind, rain, etc.
Greenhills Hamlet, North Ayrshire
Greenhills is a small village or hamlet in North Ayrshire, Parish of Beith, Scotland. It lies between the settlements of Barrmill and Burnhouse on a crossroads of the B706 and the lanes to Nettlehirst and Tandlehill via Thirdpart. It is named after the 'Green Hill' an artificial mound, a Moot, Law or Justice hill that once stood here. The settlement lay within the old Barony of Giffen; the castle no longer exists. The village lies within Barrmill and District Community Association's area and is also covered by Beith Community Council.
The school opened in the 1890s at the time that nearby Hessilhead school closed. It was built on the site of the cart wheel workshop and was mid-way between Burnhouse and Barrmill. Greenhills closed in 1959, sold in 1964 and demolished in the mid-1980s; having been used for some years as a glue factory by Strathbond Ltd. Mr McGregor was the last headteacher and the sports field had been the field lying across the Barrmill to Burnhouse Road. The Greenhills WRI originally met here, however after the school was demolished they moved to the Barrmill Community Centre
The Court Hill at Hill of Beith, Ayrshire
The Abbots of Kilwinning Abbey held their law courts on this hill in medieval times. The hill lies close to the old Hill of Beith Castle and the Hangman's Wood.
This mound is the 'Hill of Beith' after which the farm and town are named, it being the 'Caput of the Barony of Beith', the site where the legal entity of the barony was physically located. The dissolution of the monasteries ended the abbots involvement in the mid 16th century. Such court hills were sometimes built from soil deliberately brought to the site from all the different parts of the lands of the barony.
After the abbots the Boyds or Cunninghames may have held courts here.
The Dog Sick Slime mold (Mucilago crustacea var crustacea)
A white slime mold found on moss and buttercup at Spier's Old School Grounds near Beith in Ayrshire. Several individuals are visible in the video and each is a single cell.
Giffordland Glen and the Feudal Moot Hill, Dalry
The Giffords of the old Giffordland Barony near Dalry were feudal barons or lairds with the power of 'pit and gallows' through their Barony Court held on their Moot, Court, Justice or Gallow's Hill. A possible Moot and Gallow's Hill survives in the Giffordland Glen and the nearby burn may have been the site of the drowning pit for condemned women.
Garnock Rugby Club - The Family Rugby Club
Garnock Rugby Club came into existence in 1972 when Old Spierians and Dalry High School F.Ps amalgamated. The reason for the merger was the closure of Spiers and Dalry High and the opening of the new Garnock Academy in Kilbirnie. The history of Old Spierians goes back a great deal further. The rugby club for former pupils of Spiers School, Beith, was founded by the legendary G.G.H. Johnstone, the maths teacher at the school. The exact date of the club’s first match is uncertain but is thought to have been between 1905-10.
The club joined the S.R.U. in 1911 and G.G.H. Johnstone retained his connections with the club until his passing in 1973 at the age of 93. The club ground was the School pitch at Marshalland which became notorious for its muddy conditions. From their founding, Old Spierians fielded two XV’s. S.C. (Simmy) Jamieson remembers his first game for the club in 1921 against Kilmarnock, 70 years later he was still a Garnock president. He played for the club till 1930 when he went south and played full back for London Scottish in the company of many Scottish Internationals. In the pre war days Old Spierians played the top West of Scotland Clubs such as Glasgow Accies and Glasgow High. After a break for the war years rugby was resumed in 1946. In the 50’s, Ian Scott and Linwood Paterson (who played representative rugby in Canada) were two stars. Robert Kerr and Billy Donaldson were long serving Secretaries.
If you are interested in joining the club please visit -
Ashgrove Loch, its Crannogs and Hidden Treasure!
Ashgrove, Stevenston or Lochwood Loch is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in North Ayrshire. It an interesting history of habitation with up to five possible crannogs and another that may be a castle or dun site. Hidden abbey treasure may be hidden here and the old Ashgrove or Ashinyards Estate overlooked the loch. The old King's Road fro Edinburgh to Portencross ran across the northern end.
Accident North Ayrshire
Ayrshire Travel
Tapioca Slime Mold (Brefeldia maxima)
The Tapioca Slime Mold starts out as a pure white flowing and pulsing, enormous considering that it's a single cell with many nuclei inside the cytoplasm. It turns brown or black and turns into a mass of spores that blow way in the wind.
Oyster Mushrooms and Spore Prints - Nature Insights
The Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) is a common bracket fungus that grows mainly on broad-leaved trees. It is edible and is grown commercially. A description of how to make and preserve spore prints is given.