Nature Notes

[ErrolTheDragon]

There's a gardening thread which may overlap with this one but I thought people might like to share nature sightings as the season changes. What we see if we can get out for a walk, plants coming into leaf and bloom, creatures in the garden, birds flying overhead - whatever.

Yesterday along the canal: busy wrens, 3 butterflies (tortoiseshell I think). Lots of Lords and Ladies arrow-shaped leaves. A little bank of primroses, lots of celandines and some wood anemones. Yellow iris leaves starting to shoot up in the edge of the canal.

Montanas?
The one of mine which gets a lot of sun is budding up nicely. The one more in the shade is probably a bit behind, but I can't see it from here.

The third one appears to have died, which isn't something I thought Montanas did.

Did someone say Clematis Montana? I’m a bit of a clematis fanatic. My DH often jokes that he thinks that the only reason I plant new shrubs and trees in the garden is so that I can grow more clematis. He might be right 😳

Anyway, I have two clematis Montana. There’s no sign of buds yet on my white one, but my pink one (Clematis Montana Reubens) started flowering two weeks ago. The difference in flowering time is perhaps down to a combination of the mild Welsh winters and it being a different/ earlier variety?

Yesterday, I heard my first cuckoo of the year. It must have been quite some distance away as it was very faint, but still a cuckoo = a cuckoo!

I think my two montanas (and 3 last year) were the same sort, but they came into bloom at slightly different times depending on their position.

I have 2 clematis Montana and they aren't very healthy this year. I think the wet winter has killed them off.

In nature news I saw a hare today. I don't often see any round these parts so it was a nice spot.

I have 2 clematis Montana and they aren't very healthy this year. I think the wet winter has killed them off.

In nature news I saw a hare today. I don't often see any round these parts so it was a nice spot.

I saw a weasel or stoat (not close enough to tell which) crossing the road this morning.

The tall buttercups are coming out in a meadow nearby, they and they cuckoo flowers look lovely.

Trying to post pictures of my clematis but it won't let me

The swan family was quite a way down the canal this morning. On the way back, there seemed to be one missing but a little grey fluffy head popped up between a parent's wings.

I think MN was quite glitchy yesterday @Thirstquenching. It might work better today, if you want to try uploading your photo again?

I love all the fledglings that are out at this time of the year @ErrolTheDragon. I saw some goslings at the weekend too. The cutest things!

My blueberry bushes are flowering and are covered with bumblebees. I never see it mentioned in books and articles about wildlife friendly gardening, but I’m convinced that growing fruit is a great thing to do for wildlife. Fruit plants & trees attract so many beneficial (and not so beneficial) insects, provide a lot of food for birds and, if you’re lucky, food for you too!

I have three blueberry bushes and every year I lose all the berries from one of the plants to the local blackbird family. They leave the other two plants alone, so I think we have reached a pretty good balance

Pink one is flowering first. This is only a small section it covers almost my entire garden wall

I posted some photos of my Montanas last year - the bigger one when it was partly out on apr 22 and fully out on May 5th. Things were early last year in that spell of unbroken sunshine.

https://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/coronafreee_zone/a3859766-Welcome-to-the-no-corona-zona

Something is definitely going on with the clematisses. My clematis Nelly Mosser is flowering at the same time as my Montana’s. I’m sure that’s never happened before!

After all the rain it’s looking extremely green here at the moment, as demonstrated by my picture. I came across a big patch of Lords and Ladies during one of my walks. It’s one of the few plants I used to be able to identify. I know a lot more now thanks to this thread! ☺️

Sitting in my garden with a glass of wine enjoying watching all the birds. A blackbird just used the birdbath. Sparrows looking for bugs in amongst the clematis. There is worse ways to spend a Saturday evening

Been out for an evening walk with the family, I saw some hawthorn in flower and elder on the brink of flowering. Lots of garlic still present too.

We also spotted a common lizard and a slow worm basking together on a mossy bank next to a hedge.

I've been gardening in the rain today. It dried up later but no sun.
The hawthorn is in flower here now too, lovely scent on our last walk.

After a closer sighting, and listening to the video below, I think I may have misidentified and it's sedge warblers rather than Reed warblers on the canal. Though i suppose there might be a mix.

I must confess that, when you previously mentioned noisy reed warblers Errol, I did wonder if they might be sedge warblers. It never fails to surprise me how much noise such a small bird can make!

I've dodged the rain for a stroll in a bluebell wood today. So many flowers surrounded by the green of ferns unfurling and new leaves on trees.

I saw a tweet from the west country rivers trust that said hawthorn blossom can support over 300 species. That blew my mind. I had no idea it was used so widely.

Finally got a photo of the tits using my bird box in the garden ( its up the tree in the second photo )

Inside

Ooh, that's very cool to be able to see inside the box. Keep us updated, it'll be just like springwatch.

What a lovely thing to have in the garden @Thirstquenching! I’d love to see updates too ☺️

I currently have two blackbird fledglings in my garden. They’re still a bit gormless so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that they manage to avoid the neighbours cats🤞 The whole family are currently doing a great job on slug & snail control. After all the rain last week my garden really needs them!

We went for a walk a bit further away on the limestone area today. So many flowers ... still the earlier spring ones (primroses, wood anemones, violets, wild garlic) but also cowslips, wood sorrel, lords and ladies spikes, red campion, herb Robert, wild strawberry, bird cherry cow parsley, doves-foot geranium, another tiny pink flower which isn't a geranium which I've forgotten the name of and a lovely clump of purple orchids (I'm not sure exactly which type). I'm sure I've missed quite a few!

Lots of trees have good leaf cover now and the horse chestnuts are flowering splendidly too.

Centaury, that's the little pink thing I think.

blackteaplease crazzzycat

Small update one bird has been going in and out with what looks like insects all day. They are do quick it is hard to see. Think its the male bird feeding the female. Fingers crossed anyway