Flat Mountain Dispatches

Note: Words used in journal posts are marked with a ⁜

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alliaceous
adjective
relating to plants in the Allium genus, particularly their taste or smell

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Snow & ice.
unbinding (1791) [thawing]
fire-flowing (1820) [melted]
snow-bones [patches of snow left after a thaw] ⁜
wind-slab [thick drift of snow] ⁜
flight (1685) [snow storm]
pelt (1889) [snow storm]
reek (1894) [snow driven by wind]
spindrift (1961) [snow driven by wind]
scud (1969) [snow driven by wind]

Mist & fog.
roke (1440) [mist]
brume (1694) [mist]
mistglom (OE) [mist]
flocculence (1878) [mist]
bank (1840) [layer of]
streamer (1871) [layer of]
weft (1883) [layer of]
shred (1912) [layer of]
rack (1499) [driving]
misthelm (OE) [covering]
hood (1841) [covering]
night-cap (1613) [on a mountain-top]
haze-fire (1842) [luminous]
frost-mist (1814) [freezing atmospheric vapour]
soup/soupy (1901) [thick/fog]
fog-bank (1635) [bank/ring of]
fog-ring (1852) [bank/ring of]
fog-drift (1853) [drifting mass] ⁜
smog (1905) [mixed with smoke]
harr (1662) [sea-fog]
haar (1662) [sea-fog]
frost-rime (1820) [in high latitudes]
gauze (1842) [haze]
blight (1848) [haze]
slur (1880) [haze]

Sky & clouds.
greyling-sky (1895) [grey sky, resembling the silvery-grey body of the freshwater salmonid fish] ⁜
soup/soupy (1941) [thick cloud] ⁜
cloud-field (1849) [mass of]
cloud-ceiling (1945) [height of lowest layer]
pack-clouds (1871) [densely packed]
cloudbank (1839) [long flat-topped mass]
night-cloud (1862) [stratus]
pallium (1870) [covering whole sky]
weft (1822) [streak of]
streamer (1895) [streak of]
wind-list (1898) [streak of]
thunder-head (1861) [storm-cloud]
mackerel sky (1667) [sky covered with fleecy clouds, resembling the scales on a mackerel's back]
wool-pack cloud (1648) [fleecy cumulus cloud]

Mud & soil.
slobber (1400) [mud]
slubber (1570) [mud]
lutulence (1727) [mud]
sletch (1743) [mud]
slake (1800) [mud]
mire (1330) [thin/soft] ⁜
slurry (1440) [thin/soft]
slush (1772) [thin/soft]
slop (1796) [thin/soft]
sleck (1840) [thin/soft]
slather (1876) [thin/soft]
slub (1577) [thick]
stodge (1825) [thick]
sleech (1587) [deposited by river/sea]
sloshiness (1894) [quality]
slushiness (1904) [quality]
muxy [mucky, dirty, slushy] ⁜
slup [wet mud, sludge, slurping] ⁜

muck (1832) [organic soil]
humus (1796) [humus]
mull (1923) [humus]
mor (1931) [humus]
black earth (1842) [chernozem]
chernozem (1842) [chernozem]
black belt [1870] [belt of]
black-earth country (1905) [belt of]
terra roxa (1870) [terra roxa]
leaf-soil (1833) [leaf-mould]
leaf-mould (1845) [leaf-mould]
loam (1664) [loam]
silt-land (1927) [silt loam]
malm (1579) [malm]
turbary (1440) [peat/peaty soil]
moor-earth (1607) [peat/peaty soil]
bog-earth (1787) [peat/peaty soil]
turf (1300) [piece of]
cess (1847) [piece of]

Land & flora.
splott (OE) [plot of cultivated land]
acre [OE] [plot of cultivated land]
culture (1474) [plot of cultivated land]
labourage (1474) [plot of cultivated land]
polder (1602) [reclaimed/improved land]
innings (1706) [reclaimed/improved land]
felling (1300) [cleared land]
clearage (1827) [cleared land]
swidden (1868) [cleared land]
breck (1787) [broken land]
tilth (1375) [arable land]
fallow (1300) [arable land]
sheth (1431) [divisions of ploughed land]
stitch (1610) [divisions of ploughed land]
furlong (1660) [divisions of ploughed land]
slit (1778) [divisions of ploughed land]
furrow (1382) [border/boundary]
rede (1420) [border/boundary]
mere (1607) [border/boundary]
gathering (1765) [border/boundary]
crest (1440) [fallow land]
arder (1641) [fallow land]
summertilth (1818) [fallow land]
skinning (1888) [land exhaustion]

sward (1508) [grassland]
greensward (1522) [grassland]
swarf (1599) [grassland]
overswarth (1649) [grassland]
swath (1776) [grassland]
spine (1786) [grassland]
swad (1877) [grassland]
swarding (1610) [growing grass]

windlestraw (OE) [old stalks of grass]
bennet (1669) [old stalks of grass]
wood-grass (1597) [unidentified/unsecified grass]
tassel-grass (1810) [unidentified/unsecified grass]
poa-grass (1759) [meadow grass]
mead grass (1778) [meadow grass]
June-grass (1840) [meadow grass]
weeping polly (1886) [meadow grass]
tuft (1523) [cluster of plants]
dollop (1573) [cluster of plants]
clump (1586) [cluster of plants]
sheaf (1845) [cluster of plants]

Forest & wood.
woodwold (OE) [woodland]
firth and fold (1513) [woodland] ⁜
rough (1600) [woodland]
sylvanry (1812) [woodland]
belting (1876) [woodland]
treescape (1885) [woodland]
wood lay (1225) [clearing] ⁜
wood lind (1290) [clearing]
underwood (1867) [understory/growing beneath trees] ⁜
arbory (1366) [collective of trees]
thornlet (1865) [thorny tree/bush]

Spooks & spectres.
foolish fire (1563) [ignis fatuus]
fool's fire (1631) [ignis fatuus]
night-fire (1633) [ignis fatuus]
will-o-wisp (1679) [ignis fatuus]
fen-fire (1814) [ignis fatuus]
candle-wight (2024) [ignis fatuus] [own compound]

Sun & moon.
sun-dawn (1835) [dawn] ⁜
sun-glow (1841) [gleam/glint of] ⁜
sunrising (1250) [sunrise] ⁜
sunsetting (1440) [sunset] ⁜
sombring (1787/1849?) [making dark/gloomy, to make sombre] ⁜

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Misc.
slough
murk
soal
friction
harrow
furrow
cleave
excavate
abrase
afflict
aggravate
drain
draw
gnaw
grate
gloss
decorticate
burdensome

Sludder: the mix of mud and manure in a heavily-rained-on farmyard. (As in “we're up to our 'ocks in sludder”). Probably a leftover from the East Anglian Danelaw, since the word survives in modern Danish to denote rubbish, in the sense of talking rubbish.

Twitchel: a narrow passage between hedges or buildings. Again an East Anglian word, equivalent to the more widespread 'twitten'.

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