Tag: Asters

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Growing Food for Birds

Posted on by BITM

I saw contrasting images last week which made me think of feeding birds with plants from the garden.
I first observed the Rowan (Sorbus) tree outside, now stripped bare of it’s berries, before noticing some Cotoneaster

and Ivy (Hedera) full of berries. Clearly the pollinators had been busy during the Summer and Autumn months.

Along with supplementary food, on the ground and bird feeders, birds can also rely on trees and other plants in the garden for food in winter. Along with the examples already mentioned there are other berries, fruit, seeds and nuts which are enjoyed by birds.

Some other plants providing fruit and berries are;
Hawthorn (Crataegus)
Honeysuckle (Lonicera)
Guelder rose (Viburnum opulus)
Dog rose (Rosa canina)
Berberis
Bird cherry (Prunus padus)
Crab apple (Malus sylvestris)
Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa)
Pyracantha
Sarcococca hookeriana
Mahonia

Plants providing seeds and nuts include;
Oak (Quercus)
Beech (Fagus)
Hazel (Corylus)
Spindle (Euonymus europaeus)
Teasel (Dipsacus)
Sunflower (Helianthus)
Miscanthus
Bergamot (Monarda)
Verbena bonariensis
Lavender (Lavandula)
Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Asters

Leaving seedheads on perennials not only provides food for birds, they also give shelter to beneficial insects. In fact a little bit of leaf litter also has this affect which in turn helps feed birds who eat the insects.

Common birds to see in winter include;
Redwings (Turdus iliacus)
Waxwings (Bombycilla)
Starlings (Sturnidae
Blackbirds (Turdus merula
Robins (Erithacus rubecula
Chaffinches (Fringilla coelebs)
Bramblings (Fringilla)
Goldfinches (Carduelis carduelis)
Bullfinches (Pyrrhula pyrrhula)
Dunnocks (Prunella modularis)
Goldcrests (Regulus regulus)
Blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus)
Long-tailed tits (Aegithalos caudatus)
Coal tits (Periparus ater)
Great tits (Parus major)
Fieldfares (Turdus pilaris)

The RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch, which takes place on the 25-27th Jan 2020, has been going for over 40 years. Surveying birds visiting your Garden or local park for one hour is calming and enjoyable. This citizen science continues to give the charity useful information on the numbers of birds in the UK.

Further information on feeding birds can be found in the book, ‘RSPB Pocket Bird Feeder Guide’ by Robert Burton (published by Dorking Kindersley) or on the Gardeners World website.

Posted in nature

A Chill in the Air with Beautiful Sunrises.

Posted on by BITM

Occasionally I am still surprised by nature. One instance of this occured on my way home last Monday when I saw a Heron (Ardea cinerea) standing on a rooftop. I had to double take to confirm it was real; thankfully it moved it’s head slightly. The house was near a river but I guess it was looking for an easy dinner from someone’s pond. Infact this wasn’t the only time I saw Herons during the week. On Wednesday I also noticed a couple flying above where I worked. One of them was calling but I think it was warning the other off because they eventually went their separate ways.

Jay’s (Garrulus glandarius) also became more visible last week as they harvested acorns before the squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis). I love the Jay’s colouring and the meaning behind their Latin name. Garrulous is a word that refers to their noisy chattering while glandarius translates as ‘of the acorn’, very appropriate.

Garden spiders (Araneus diadematus) seemed to be very busy creating their orb webs amongst perennials and shrubs; especially as I often managed to get my face tangled amongst them by accident (meaning their well deserved rest was cut short).

There was a chilly start to Thursday and I woke to a beautiful sunrise. Even though the temperature has dropped slightly, my Asters and Penstemon continue to flower well. Hopefully pollinators are still visiting them. I noticed some bees and a Red admiral (Vanessa atalanta) flying about in other gardens.

A Honey bee (Apis mellifera) visiting Helenium ‘Lemon Queen’.
A Common Carder Bumblebee (Bombus pascuorum) visiting some Aster flowers.

On Friday however, I saw
2 Box tree moths (Cydalima perspectalis). These pretty moths with a purply-brown pattern set against white wings were not such a welcome sight. This is the first year I have noticed these moths. I first saw their caterpillars in another garden during the summer too. It is the caterpillars that cause the damage as they defoliate Box (Buxus) plants. They are considered a pest and are spreading further across the country (for further information see Butterfly Conservation).

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🎵…I’m Laughing at Clouds, so Dark up Above… 🎶🎵🎶

Posted on by BITM

What a much needed wet week. I don’t mind working in the rain too much but on Monday I struggled to keep upbeat. While waiting at a bus stop (without a shelter) during very heavy rain it started finding a way through my waterproofs. Singing helped keep me positive, although rain seeped into my singing too. Eventually the Morecambe and Wise ‘I’m Singing in the Rain’ sketch came to mind and I started giggling to myself. I didn’t go as far as splashing in puddles and dancing on the bench though.

Thankfully there were moments of respite during the day and a few insects braved the weather, mainly;

– a Common carder (Bombus pascuorum) bee on Caryopteris clandonensis ‘Dark Knight,

– a Heath bumblebee (Bombus jonellus) visiting some Asters,

– and two Cinnamon bugs (Corizus hyoscyami) on some dried Purple toadflax (Linaria purpurea) seedhead.

I’m not sure they would have managed to get much sap from the plant. At least the photo is better than the last one I took of a cinnamon bug (see Blooms, Bees and Bugs).

Last week I also noticed more Grey Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) around. The softened ground has enabled them to cache nuts that are falling from the trees at the moment; hiding acorns keeping them busy.

Lots of Craneflies (Tipula paludosa) were noticeable too. Presumably I kept disturbing them as I worked because they were flying during the day. Their larvae, known as Leatherjackets, eat grass roots at night which causes patches of dead grass (therefore they are regarded pests of pristine lawns). Insect feeding birds gorge themselves on these, often leaving bits of loose grass where they have been. Unlike Leatherjackets, Craneflies don’t feed but try to find mates. It is possible to sex them, if the abdomen is pointed rather than squared it is a female (as the ovipositor can be seen). I still like to call them Daddy long legs as I did in childhood.

On Wednesday, as I worked near a pond, I witnessed a female Southern hawker (Aeshna cyanea) dragonfly laying eggs. She flew and stopped at various points around the pond edge, wherever there were gaps.

Then later in the week I discovered a Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus sulphureus) fungi on a tree trunk,

as well as a Lunar Underwing (Omphaloscelis lunosa) moth. The Larvae of this moth feed on grasses.

The pattern on the forewings reminded me of stain glass windows and was very pretty.

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Quieter Days Ahead

Posted on by BITM

We finally have some rain today, the start of some wetter weather this week. It looks very autumnal and very different from the weather of late. Although last week was still sunny and dry the amount of butterflies have reduced. However I do still see some Small white butterflies (Pieris rapae) flitting about. Wednesday was the best day for seeing these butterflies along with bees.

In a few gardens many late flowering plants are blooming nicely; this is especially important for pollinators that are still around in Autumn. Extending the season at the beginning of the year is just as helpful too. Early flowering bulbs, shrubs, wildflowers (including dandelions) Hellebores and Pulmonaria are great for the bees that forage in early spring. The first bees of spring are various solitary bees and the queens of some bumblebees (see Wildlife Trusts).

On Wednesday I saw;

– a Buff-tailed bumblebee (Nimbus terrestris) and Tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum) on Helianthus ‘Lemon queen’ flowers,

Buff-tailed bumblebee

Tree bumblebee

-Common carder bees (Bombus pascuorum) visiting Aster, Verbena bonariensis and Rudbeckia,

Aster

Verbena bonariensis

Rudbeckia

– and a Small white butterfly on Aster flowers.

On Friday I noticed more Common carder bees as they visited a hardy Fushia. This was the first time I noticed bees visit a Fushia so it was lovely to see it happen. These bees have long tongues and because they are small can collect nectar easily from Fushia flowers. However the two bumblebees I saw this week are larger and have short tongues which explains why I saw them visiting the Helianthus. Interestingly though Buff-tailed bumblebees are able to ‘rob’ nectar from bell shaped flowers by cutting a hole in the side of the flower to access the nectar. White-tailed bumblebees (Bombus lucorum) can also undertake nectar robbing. Even so single flowers, together with a variety of flower shapes are important for bees and other pollinators. Plus night scented flowers are beneficial for moths.

Another sighting from Wednesday was watching a Red Kite (Milvus milvus) soaring in circles above where I worked. I love hearing Red kites repeatedly call as they fly; it is a beautiful sound.

As well as insects and birds, occasionally I get to see wild mammals as I work too. There was an instance of this last Monday. I noticed a Fox (Vulpes vulpes) exiting a hedge and run into the neighbouring garden while I ate my lunch.

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Cozy Evening Reflections

Posted on by BITM

I am feeling cozy, sitting on the sofa, as I reflect on last weeks observations on a dark evening.

Along with the earlier sunsets, fresh mornings have begun to take hold too. I have been noticing a lot of changes occurring with trees throughout the week. Their leaves are turning autumnal and I have been able to pick fresh apples as I work. Lots of conkers are falling around the bus stop too.

One of the apple trees with lovely sweet apples is pictured below. There were other trees with Russet and Cox apples.

The Rowan tree outside my home continues to have Blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) feeding on insects. Plus I have also seen a Robin (Erithacus rubecula) and two Long tailed tits (Aegithalos caudatus) eating insects on it’s branches, along with a Blackbird (Turdus merula) feasting in the berries.

Mr Blackbird wasn’t camera shy.

I still saw Small white (Pieris rapae), Red admiral (Vanessa atalanta) and Painted lady (Vanessa cardui) butterflies as they took advantage of the late flowering perennials.

On Wednesday I noticed a Painted lady butterfly as well as a Common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum) visiting some Ceratostigma willmottianum which is still blooming while the leaves are turning red.

Some plants have been flowering all summer, such as Geraniums and Verbena bonariensis, and now bloom alongside Sedums, Asters and Autumn crocus (Colchicum autumnale) painting gardens in muted colours.

Sedums and Verbena bonariensis looking lovely amongst ornamental grasses.
Geranium still flowering.
A Painted lady butterfly collecting nectar from an Aster flower.
Autumn crocuses blooming in the lawn.

Cutting back faded perennials was one of last weeks jobs which meant I disturbed a lot of Seven-spot ladybirds (Coccinella septempunctata). So I spent quite a bit of time rescuing them from garden waste bins too.

Lastly, as I walked home late on Wednesday, I ended up seeing a beetle walking across the path in the moonlight and enjoyed the view of the Waxing gibbous moon amongst the clouds.