Birdsong, compost and wild flowers April 4th

 Today I was having lunch in the garden. Suddenly from the bush to my right came not a tweet but a sparrow shouting - TWEET TWEET. I wondered what this could mean; I do not remember hearing quite such a sparrow-shout before. Almost immediately the male sparrow flew down and picked a piece of the fat-sprinkle I had scattered for ground-feeding birds. I think it was the only bit left after three hours. Simultaneously a blue-tit, a blackbird and four or five other sparrows appeared. I wonder if the shout meant "Here's some food, folks!" or, perhaps more likely, "Here's some food and it's mine!", in which case it might have been wiser to keep quiet. Observing wild creatures in action, even if one is painfully short of expertise, is part of the fun of wildlife gardening.

A big task just now is mulching with compost. I doubt if anyone who reads this blog can make as much as they would like, so one buys in extra bags. This brings in a rule as inflexible as "No pesticides" and this is "Only ever buy peat-free compost." This is not a benefit for your own garden, but for the places where peat is dug out for sale. Not only is peatland a precious habitat, it is also an invaluable carbon sink. Peat should be left in the ground, just as coal should be. When you go shopping for compost ask for peat-free. If they have not got it, go elsewhere. Consumer power will soon have an effect.

In Edinburgh it is easy. Our Garden Waste Collection ends up with an outfit called Forth Resource Management that has vast bins in an old quarry. I hope that wherever you live something similar applies.

https://www.frmrecycling.co.uk/caledonian-horticulture-products/

Another jolly thing that happens at this time of year is sowing wildflower annual seeds. Our church for many years has given out little packets, but they are not expensive to buy. we get the Cornfield Annual Mix from Scotia Seeds. This comprises Corn marigold, Cornflower, Corn poppy and Mayweed. They work well in pots or window-boxes as well all in beds. They also self-seed from year to year. They make a splendid patch of summer colour and also, more important, provide food for pollinating insects. I hope I can show you some of this year's blooms in due course. To be getting on with, here are some photos from the last couple of years.