World Bee Day

 If you are reading these posts you probably do not need me to tell you how important bees are. The main thing is not the production of honey (I like it; I've just had some for lunch) but the work of pollination. Perhaps just as important is the whole ethical objection to the extinction of species. As John Donne famously said: "Every man's death diminishes me". His wise words can readily be extended to all life on earth.

What can we small gardeners do, managing a plot the size of half a tennis court or less? The answer is "A very great deal", for all our half tennis courts in one city add up to hundreds of acres, and across the world to an incalculably vast estate. 

Two years ago, when we were confined to our homes by lockdown (and Partygate was raging) I made a determined effort to identify the bumblebee that came into our garden. This was the result:

The feeble inadequacy of the research speaks for itself. but at least I was led to appreciate better the range of bumblebees that use our garden. I do take comfort from two things. One is that my "Collins Guide to Insects" says: " the identification of all castes is complicated by marked regional colour variations". The other is that, after I had rejected Bombus hypnoroum on the grounds that it did not come nearly as far north as Edinburgh, my daughter (who used to work for Buglife) said "Oh, their range has extended northwards". So if, like me, you have trouble with identification, just enjoy looking at the bees, and marvelling at their variety, beauty and industry.

One thing you can do for bees is get one of those insect houses. Here is mine.

You can see how some of the holes are plugged with mud. This will probably where Osmia rufa, the mason bee ("there are many similar species" says my book), has laid eggs. This one has got rather overgrown, so I have had a go at making one. It has so far been less successful for bees, though I hope various invertebrates may have found other uses for it. Remember that bumblebees hibernate, so holes of all sorts - in walls, or log-piles or moss - may be useful to them. And there are lots of bees apart from bumble bees.

The most important single thing all small gardeners can do is never use pesticides. We don't need to. Of course, it is irritating when a seedlings is eaten off by snails, or slugs take a bite out of a lettuce leaf. But try encouraging frogs, insect-eating birds, hover flies and so on. A balance will soon be established - and part of the balance is that you put up with a few holes in your crops. 

The other thing, of course, is to have plenty of flowers for bees to feed from. Yesterday in the hot sun (not today) I saw a dozen small bumble bees getting at the raspberry flowers very early, before the flowers were properly out. They were so small I wondered if they were a different species from the big queens that emerged from hibernation towards the end of March. But that useful insect book explains: "Some early spring workers are very small and it is hard to believe that they belong to the same species as the queens." I love it when a book by an expert fits my own observations.

I have already mentioned the annual wild flower seeds we give out (my organisation, as a matter of fact) we give out at our church. This year's sowing are not nearly flowering yet. But one feature of these seeds (Scotia Seeds "Cornfield Annual Mix) is that they readily self-seed. This row in front of our house is in an ideal spot and never sown by human hand. And look, they are in flower already, food for bees long before this year's sowings are available.

Foxes and Fledglings

 One pleasant feature of the way our house is set up is that while working at the kitchen sink you can look out over the garden. Birds bathing is always fun to see. A couple of days ago, while I was washing up, a large fox ( a vixen, I think) was sitting on the patch of flagstones calmly scratching. She didn't seem at all bothered by being in a town garden in broad daylight. Of course urban foxes have now become so common that they are not news, but this was certainly an attractive animal.

A few minutes later, during the same bout of washing up, I noticed something moving under some shrubs. I stopped work and got the binoculars on it (they lie ready in the kitchen). It was clearly a young bird, It seemed to be more fluff than feathers, so I wondered how it could have got in without flying; I'm pretty sure there is no nest on our side of the fence. From its size I guessed blackbird or possibly starling. Thanks to Google and You Tube I was able to establish that it was definitely a blackbird. I was surprised that no parent came to warn it about the fox, feed it, or otherwise indulge in avian parenting. Eventually it jumped up into the shrubs and I lost sight of it.

At the feeders the birds are very picky. I have one of those candelabra jobs, with four hanging squirrel-proof feeders; fat balls, general bird seed, nyjer (there seem to be innumerable spellings of this stuff) seed for goldfinches, and sunflower hearts. Until recently only the sunflower hearts were eaten, mostly by goldfinches. The fat balls were completely ignored, even though some starlings have reappeared with the spring. The nyjer seed is untouched. The basic bird seed mix in its special new feeder seemed a waste of money. Well, the sunflower hearts have run out and so sparrows have turned to the good old seed mix and the goldfinches have given us up. Our local Sainsbury's has been out of sunflower hearts for well over a week. Another casualty of Brexit, I suppose. The expensive nyjer seed sits, waiting for custom.

I do scatter fatty nibbles and mealworms every morning for the ground feeders. Two or three magpies usually get there first, and frighten off all comers. Sparrows twitter as soon as I come out of the garden door, and four wood pigeons often look in. I especially like the dunnock, which hops unobtrusively below the foliage. Most unexpected, and new this year, has been two large black crows. I thought large birds didn't alight in small gardens because they feel confined by the fences. There's always something interesting to see while washing up.

One of the great glories of the countryside in May is the bluebells. No way can I, or you, recreate a bluebell wood in a small town garden, but I couldn't resist installing a few.

It is nowhere near a bluebell wood, but it reminds me of many favourite places. The colours are a rich, vibrant blue. It is worth making sure you buy our native bluebells, rather than the common Spanish bluebell. They hybridise easily, and the result is paler and less attractive plants.

In a recent post I reminded you to search always for peat-free compost. I am delighted to say that when I went into Sainsbury's the other day in search of sunflower hearts, there were stacks of bags of peat-free composts of various grades. Not all the news is bad. 

King cup time

 I explained in the last post that I cannot claim green fingers. However, some of the plants I put in do succeed and become established.

This is one of my favourites, Marsh marigold or King cup. I think it needs to be where its roots can reach the pond. As you can see there are two plants. There were three, but one failed to "take". I observed this year that six weeks ago there was no sign of them at all in the moss, and I feared that they too might have died. But no. Here they are, and I love them.

The packet of Snakeshead fritillary corms seems to have produced only one plant. I am pleased with what I got. 

It is growing in the very small (1m x 2m approx) patch of wildflower meadow that we have room for. Special seed (special grass as well as flowers) was sown on a cleared patch three years ago and this is where we are now. Expect to see summer flowers in due course. It is very popular with baby frogs when they emerge from the pond and are looking for cover. Occasionally we stumble on one of last year's babies (still too small to breed). There is quite a lot of cover in our garden.

Sunflower hearts are what the small birds like most. We now have some goldfinches, I'm pleased to say, visiting them. They ignore completely the special Niger Seed feeder. Our local Saintsbury's has run out of sunflower hearts, so the little birds will have to adapt. We shall see. A blackbird regularly washes in the so-called ditch, and one can often spot a dunnock among the sparrows. I hope we get a surge of fledglings soon. We shall see.

Easter Weekend

 There is now no question that winter is over. The frogspawn has turned into tadpoles and green growth is on every plant. The question of what to weed and what to leave is not one to worry about. My patches of annual cornfield flowers are weeded to keep out other annuals that I don't want. On the other hand some traditional "weeds" are welcome in the garden. Fortunately our neighbour has a wonderful display of dandelions, so I do not need to encourage them. But they are a vibrant yellow, and invaluable food for insects. Here is Wordsworth's view on the subject.

On display in Wordsworth's large garden at Rydal Mount

One thing I cannot claim is green fingers. Last year I planted lots of snakes-head fritillary corms, in the patches of rough grass. Now there has come up only one. Still, it is very welcome. One of my favourite spring flowers is wild primroses; none of the plants I have put in here have lasted. Fortunately they are still abundant in many woods, and I shall keep trying. I often think, while  out in the country - "Now there's an idea for the garden."

Not our garden, but what an inspiration.

I am always pleased to see insects. Various bumblebees have arrived. During the strict lock-down two years ago I determined to identify all bumblebees that arrived; I did not find it easy. Perhaps this will be the subject of my next blog-post.

The comparative shortage of small birds continues. Nor can I show you any birds eggs. I do not think there is a place in the garden where I could put a nest-box that would be safe from cats. If you can, please do. Our various small thickets may or may not be used for nesting one day, but prowling cats and foxes mean it is not altogether a safe place.

Cats are not welcome. Some predators are. (I doubt if there is much ethical logic in this.) A few days ago a sparrow-hawk sat on the fence for several minutes before moving on. Maybe the small birds are right to be cautious about using our feeders.

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.

Things move fast! March 26th

 The return of growth in the garden does have one drawback for the owners of a wilded pond. The new growth sucks water out at an alarming rate. But with a small pond one or two watering cans full soon restores the levels. I have just come in from doing this. I gather that water from the tap can be a problem - quite rightly it has stuff in to kill microscopic bugs - so we have tubs detoxifying in an out-of-the-way corner. A rain-water butt would be even better, but we haven't worked out where to put one.

The new growth is very welcome, though. All winter I have been worried that the lovely marsh marigolds have given up and died. But no. This morning the spikes of their leaves are pushing up through the moss. And the buds on the brambles and the raspberries and the wild rose are turning into the green shoots of little leaves.

I have already mentioned our first bumblebee and our first butterfly. This morning I saw my first wasp - presumably a queen come out of hibernation. My excellent insect book, the Collins Guide by Michael Chinery, tells me I can distinguish different types of wasp by studying their faces. 

However, this involves practical difficulties which I have not yet solved. I shall say "Common" till I'm proved wrong. If it starts building a nest where it could be a real nuisance come late summer - inside the garage, for example - I shall encourage it to move elsewhere. Otherwise wasps are welcome; they do a lot to keep smaller insects under control and in balance.

Also a cloud of some species of small fly (no identification yet; sorry) has been busy over the pond. I ought to make more effort, but I think we are talking of hundreds of possibilities. 

The first lawn-mowing of the year has made it easier for blackbirds to hunt for worms, which I love to watch. Presumably the half a dozen chattering magpies on the neighbouring roofs are one of the reasons we don't see all that many small birds. Though a dunnock or two are welcome daily visitors. 

Equinox week. March 20th

 To get a picture of the season in Scotland right now, consider my day yesterday. Preparing for an early start, it took me at least five minutes to scrape ice off the windscreen. But then, later in the day, I saw my first butterfly of the year, a peacock, in the Angus Glens.

Last week I mentioned George Orwell's "Some thoughts on the Common Toad" as a wonderful evocation of spring. A poem on the same subject that is as good as one could wish is by Gerard Manley Hopkins. "Nothing is so beautiful as spring...". Here it is.

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/51002/spring-56d22e75d65bd

I have often discussed with classes what he might have meant by "weeds in wheels". Maybe it was this (though I doubt it).

Be that as it may, it is a gorgeous poem, worth knowing by heart.

Meanwhile in the garden this week the buds on the pear tree have been swelling and turning green. Daffodils of many varieties are splashing yellow in every corner and bed. There is nothing "wild" about these plants. But in "Wildlife of a Garden" by Jennifer Owen (I recommended this book on December 4th last year) she assures us that her Leicestershire garden "contains the elements of a conventional garden and is in no sense a wilderness". In many ways a managed garden can be just as good, probably more varied, for wildlife as a naturalised one. 

I was very pleased in my small pond to see a number of pond snails - no longer miniature, but about half the size to which they will grow - setting out to graze on the algae. I assume that in the icy months they have been deep down, out of sight. On the same day I saw my first bumblebee of the year - presumably a queen. She will have come out of hibernation and be looking for a suitable nest site. I have provided a few, but there's no telling where she may end up.

The pair of magpies, rather bullies of the garden bird world, are clearly setting up house in a neighbouring conifer. They are the first to the scattered bird-food most mornings. More of a delight for me is the dawn song (5.00 am the other day) of a blackbird. Do read that Hopkins poem. The song I hear is definitely a blackbird, not a thrush. 

I wonder what the next week will bring.