With May finally here, spring is now in full swing. Lots of things are growing on the allotment from seedlings to fruit, even the Rhubarb is almost ready to pick.
During a woodland walk, on the Easter weekend, I observed the first Speckled wood (Pararge aegeria) butterfly of the year. Plus local ornamental Cherry trees (Prunus) began their spectacular show at the same time; later joined by the flowers of the Hawthorn (Crataegus) , Rowan (Sorbus) and Horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum).
Over the last few weeks, more wildflowers have started to bloom, including Buttercups (Ranunculus), Stitchwort (Stellaria), Ground-ivy (Glechoma hederacea) Honesty (Lunaria annua) and Hedge garlic (Alliaria petiolata) along with Cuckoo flower (Cardamine pratensis).
Another butterfly that began to emerge recently is the Orange-tip (Anthocharis cardamines). Hedge garlic and Cuckoo flower are important food sources for Orange-tip caterpillars, so it is lovely to think these butterflies will be laying eggs on the plants I’ve noticed to ensure future generations; the verge not being mown, allowing both plants to develop, enabling this.
The ‘No mow May’ campaign is back this year. Encouraging us to avoid mowing lawns in order to encourage a wide variety of wildflowers to bloom (including rare ones), thus increasing the availability of pollen and nectar for pollinators as they start to emerge (along with helping butterfly populations, as discussed above). After several years of this campaign together with the every flower counts survey, improvements in wildflower growth have been recorded, as people report their sightings taken at this time.
An article from the Plantlife charity discusses their findings in more detail here.
Even leaving the humblest of flowers to flower on lawns, like Dandelions (Taraxacum), Daisies (Bellis perennis) and Buttercups helps.
Bee in the Moment 