What a week; variable weather (rain, sun and strong winds), new life (in the form of frogspawn) was evident and the Primroses (Primula) finally began to bloom.
After three weeks, the frogspawn of the Common frog (Rana temporaria) become tadpoles. Initially they eat algae before feeding on leaves, moss and small insects.
From about fourteen weeks they metamorphose from tadpoles into froglets (young frogs). The rate of metamorphosis depends on environmental factors. Tadpoles can delay their transformation, for several months, if there isn’t enough food, there are lots of predators to escape or the weather is too cold (they are also susceptible to frosts). When they become Froglets they start to eat invertebrates such as snails, slugs and flies just as mature frogs do.
Frogs can live between five and ten years (if they manage to avoid being eaten by snakes, owls, herons, otters, badgers and weasels) reaching sexual maturity at two or three years of age. Frogspawn can become food for fish, beetles, newts, dragonfly larvae, rats, foxes and hedgehogs.
I became aware of another trees lifecycle last week, the non-native Sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua). This is of my favourite ornamental trees along with Gingko biloba, Magnolia stellata, Tibetan cherry (Prunus serrula) and Acers.
Although I noticed this tree last Friday, it really comes into its own during autumn when the leaves produce a brilliant display of crimson, oranges and purples.
I love the first part of it’s name, Liquidambar, named by Carl Linnaeus, who combined the Latin ‘Liquidus’ with the Arabic ‘Ambar’ (for amber); it refers to the gum that the tree exudes when the trunk is wounded.
Elsewhere last week, the Rhubarb on the plot continued to grow and one of my houseplants, the Small-leafed spiderwort (Tradescantia fluminensis) began to bloom.
Bee in the Moment 