This week has been surreal as lock down brings a change to life. Thankfully nature still continues to progress through Spring. Since the Vernal equinox arrived last weekend the weather warmed up and the sun shone daily. Brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni) and Speckled wood (Pararge aegeria) butterflies are flitting around now, joining Seven-spot ladybirds (Coccinellaseptempunctata) and Buff-tailed bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) that already emerged. I have been viewing nature from my flat as much as possible. Seeing the leaves unfurl on the Rowan (Sorbus) tree outside as well as the Blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), which visit the tree each day, has been lovely. However to get exercise and improve my mental health I have also gone for a few local walks (while observing social distancing measures). It is important for me to be amongst nature and feel the air around me to remain happy. During these lock down walks I have noticed plants both bloom and begin to wake up including;
Berberis darwiniiViburnumPersian speedwell (Veronica persica)Hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta)Greater stitchwort (Stellaria holostea)Cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris)Cowslip (Primula veris)Dogwood (Cornus sanguinea)Wild cherry (Prunus avium)European larch (Larix decidua). The deep pink female flower, also referred to as a Larch rose, can be seen on the branch.Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris)
Weeds are plants growing in the wrong place, or at least where we don’t want them to grow. After all weeds don’t exist without humans. We determine when a plant is a weed because we view them negatively rather than see their beauty or positive attributes. Usually wild flowers are called weeds when they grow in our gardens but it is possible for cultivated plants to become a nuisance and therefore a weed too.
I am often asked “Is this a weed?” I answer with the plants name and supply information on their growing habits together with their positive attributes (and any negative ones). For example, Dandelions (Taraxacumofficinale) unwanted in immaculate lawns are great for early foraging bees (when there aren’t many other flowers about). Euphorbia characias subsp.wulfenii however is bought from garden centres and then freely self seeds where you don’t want it to. Then there are some Marmite plants like Forget-me-nots (Myosotisarvensis) that split opinion and therefore allowed in some gardens but not others.
Historically, some plants regarded as a nuisance now weren’t always disliked. They once had medical, culinary, cosmetic uses or were used as dyes; uses that now are not commonly known. What have the Romans done for us? Add bringing Ground elder (Aegopodiumpodagraria) to Britain to the list. Once used by the Romans as a herb and medicine (see Alys Fowler’s Guardian article).
I love wild flowers and am happy to allow space for them in a wildlife garden. One wildflower I leave is Garlic mustard (Alliariapetiolata) because it is eaten by Orange tip and Green-veined white caterpillars. Whilst nectar rich flowers are needed in gardens for butterflies, their caterpillars have specific plant requirements without which you won’t get more adults.
So when did our obsession for weeding begin? There is an fascinating extract from ‘The Climate Change Garden’ by Sally Morgan and Kim Stoddart.
‘much of what we consider traditional advice nowadays is based on the comparatively recent practices of Victorian country houses… Prior to this very controlled Victorian approach, in which outside spaces were kept meticulously tidy, the gardens of everyday working folk (aka peasants) exhibited a more free-spirited, practically-minded ethos. Their gardens had a much more ‘higgledy piggledy’ planting of crops, flowers and weeds, many of which were important for both their culinary and medicinal uses in the home.’ p116
So it’s something else the Victorians invented.
I find the subject of ‘weeds’ fascinating. Four wonderful books on the subject that I’ve read recently are,
1. ‘Weeds’ by Nina Edwards
2. ‘Weeds’ by Richard Mabey (For historical and cultural information.)
3. ‘Wild about Weeds; Garden Design with Rebel Plants’ by Jack Wallington (Which shows how to incorporate ‘weeds’ into garden design.)
4. ‘The Climate Change Garden’ mentioned above. It has a chapter entitled ‘Working with Wildlife’ (about wildlife gardening) as well as other chapters on how to adapt garden practices to future proof against long-term changes in climate, from flooding or drought to the importance of trees in combating climate change.
Reading these books will give you a different perspective on ‘weeds’.
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
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 (Fringillacoelebs)
Bramblings (Fringilla)
Goldfinches (Carduelis carduelis)
Bullfinches (Pyrrhula pyrrhula)
Dunnocks (Prunella modularis)
Goldcrests (Regulus regulus)
Blue tits (Cyanistescaeruleus)
Long-tailed tits (Aegithaloscaudatus)
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.
Meteorological winter has begun. Rather appropriately Autumn turned wintery yesterday as we had a very cold and frosty start to the morning. Apparently it was the coldest night since February.
National tree week ends today too. Started by the Tree Council in 1975 it’s a time to focus on the importance of tree planting along with celebrate these amazing plants. The week coincides with the best time of year to plant trees. This time round there has been a specific emphasis on promoting the usefulness of trees in combating climate change (by pollution and carbon dioxide absorption).
I have planted many trees in the past, however last week the main job continued to be leaf collection.
A little momento of some beautiful leaves.
While most trees shed leaves consistently over a period of time, in my experience, leaf drop of English/ Pedunculate Oak (Quercus robur) and European Beech (Fagus sylvatica) tends to occur in one go at the end of Autumn. This has certainly been true this year, as we collected huge amounts of leaves from large Oak and Beech trees in many gardens; their beautiful rich autumnal colours like carpets on the ground.
Both these deciduous trees are from the Fagaceae family which explains their similarities. Both grow to great heights, have dense canopies and can exhibit marcescence (where some dead leaves are retained on the trees throughout winter).
Both trees are great for wildlife too. Beech nuts are eaten by Deer, Badgers (Meles meles), Grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis), Mice, Chaffinches (Fringilla coelebs) and Brambling (Fringilla montifringilla). Even the foliage is food for caterpillars of several species of moth like the Barred hook-tip (Drepana cultraria) and Olive crescent (Trisateles emortualis). Beech trees create a vital habitat for butterflies along woodland edges as well; including Orange-tip (Anthochariscardamines) and Gatekeepers (Pyronia tithonus). Plus ectomycorrhizal truffle fungi grow beneath them. Turned into hedges, Beech can also create a habitat for birds.
As with the European Beech, the Pedunculate Oak supports a variety of fungi, animals, birds- particularly Jays (Garrulus glandarius) and insects such as Stag beetles (Lucanus cervus)
and the Purple hairstreak (Neozephyrus quercus) and Purple emperor (Apatura iris) butterflies. In fact of all the native British trees the Pedunculate Oak supports more wildlife than any other tree. Even its leaf litter and dead wood is full of life. I love these wonderful trees, especially ancient oaks. I enjoy thinking of all the hidden life existing alongside me as I work in the gardens. Also they are wonderful trees to hug. 🌳🤗
Leaf collection was the main job last week, especially on Wednesday through to Friday. It gets the heart pumping and is physically tiring so I definitely felt like I’d had a workout. There are still more leaves to fall so the process will be repeated for a few more weeks yet. At least it will be great for composts or as leaf mould, as well as my health.
One of my favourite trees is still holding onto its autumn colour.
The Maidenhair tree (Ginkgobiloba) pictured below in its glorious yellow hue.
The common name, Maidenhair tree, comes from the fan shaped leaves resembling the Maidenhair fern foliage. This national tree of China is also referred to as a living fossil. Fossils dating back to the Jurassic period have been found. It is the only remaining tree classified under the Ginkgophyta division (neither broadleaf nor conifer). This unique and beautiful tree is simply amazing.
Other plants giving interest at this time of year include Clematis cirrhosis car purpurescens ‘Freckles’. The delicate drooping flowers appear between November and February. It is a lovely Clematis to grow over a walkway where the flowers can be appreciated from the side as well as underneath (where the freckle pattern hides).
As it flowers early in the year it is categorised as a pruning group 1 Clematis so doesn’t require regular pruning. However if you need to reduce its size then it can be pruned immediately after flowering finishes but when the risk of frosts have passed.
Viburnum tinus is also blooming now. The fragrant flowers will be around until April and followed by blueish black berries that are great for birds. This large shrub is evergreen too so it brings a welcome flourish of colour during the winter months.
Thankfully I managed to relax at the weekend after an exhausting week. I completed my handmade Christmas presents and cards, so I am ready for the festive season. As I sat crafting on the sofa I had a great view of my neighbouring Rowan (Sorbus) tree. The Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) are getting through the berries quickly; I am not sure there will be any left for the Redwings (Turdus iliacus) when they finally arrive. I do like the iridescent nature of Starling plumage and their ability to mimic sounds so I quite like seeing them. I was excited to see another bird visit the Rowan; my first ever sighting of a Bullfinch (Pyrrhula pyrrhula). Due to the distance my attempt to photograph it isn’t brilliant but you can just about make out its colourful breast in the photo below.
The pinkish breast colouring means it was female (the males have red breasts). She was snacking on the Rowan berries but they also eat seeds, fruit tree buds and find insects for their young.
Other berries eaten by birds are those on the Pyracantha. This week I noticed that lots of Pyracantha plants were overladen with them. Its common name Firethorn is very appropriate and is given because of the heated, itchy reaction when the thorns pierce the skin. I can testify to this every time I have to cut it back.
I am still seeing fungus appearing in gardens too.
*Once again, please do not use this post as a guide to edible mushrooms.*
My latest find was the Pear-shaped or Stump puffball (Lycoperdon pyriforme).
This fungus grows on decaying wood and I found it in a stump.
The clear cold nights and frosty mornings have arrived. I don’t mind crisp starts to the day because eventually the sunshine appears.
As more trees become leafless I find other means of identifying them. I learnt two new trees last week; the first was a Strawberry tree (Arbutusunedo) and the second was an American sweetgum (Liquidambarstyraciflua). In both instances the first things I noticed on each was their fruit.
The unripe fruit of the Strawberry tree can be seen below alongside the delicate flowers. The common name, Strawberry tree, comes from the ripe red fruit which look similar to strawberries. The fruit of this evergreen tree will be eaten by birds. It seemed strange to see the fruit, from the pollination of last year’s flowers, appearing at the same time as this years flowers.
The American sweetgum tree also gives interest to gardens at this time of year. The leaves turn a rich mixture of yellow through to orange and red and even purple in autumn.
The spiky looking fruit dangle from the branches at the same time as the leaves turn and fall.
I have started noticing more Robins (Erithacusrubecula) hanging aroundlately; always eager to gobble up insects and worms that I unwittingly uncover as I work.
Moments after taking this photo another Robin swooped down and a fight over winter territory began.
It is fascinating to observe Robins, who can be relatively social towards humans, eagerly defend their patch of garden against other Robins. It is quite a contrast to the other bird which became more noticeable last week; Ring-necked parakeets (Psittaculakrameri) flock together. I saw groups of this social parrot flying overhead throughout the week. They have been breeding in the area for a long time and I often see them but not usually every day.
I still notice the occasional bee and on Wednesday I saw a Buff-tailed (Bombusterrestris) bumblebee(the buff coloured tail enabled me to Identify it as a queen). I observed her walking amongst leaf litter. She could have been a new queen, going into hibernation before starting a nest next spring, or an old queen who will soon die.
More fungi are appearing as autumn continues to take hold.
*Once again, please do not use this post as a guide to edible mushrooms. I have managed to identify some but have placed question marks next to those I am unsure of.*
Those I saw last week are;
-The Bitter oyster (Panellus stipticus) fungus
-Collared earthstar (Geastrum triplex) fungus.
-Grey Spotted Amanita
(Amanita excelsa var. spissa)?
-The prince (Agaricus augustus)?
This is the largest fungus I have seen this autumn; the diameter was almost as long as my size 5 boot. It also had a slightly sweet aroma.
The autumn colours were glorious last week; particularly the Acers like the Acer dissectum below.
Another tree that I loved seeing was a Tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipfera).
This tree is so called because the flowers look similar to tulips. I have never noticed it flower but I will try to remember to keep an eye out for them next summer.
The recent wet weather has had opposite affects on wildlife. I haven’t seen many pollinators lately but have continued to see lots of fungi. Infact the timing of this wet weather has meant it’s been a bumper year for fungi.
The few pollinators that I have noticed include Common wasps (Vespulavulgaris) on some Ivy (Hedera helix) flowers
and one White tailed bumblebee (Bombus lucorum) on Monday.
I also saw a couple of moths at the end of the week too. The first one was a Winter moth (Operophtera brumata)
and the second one was a Scarce bordered straw (Helicoverpa armigera). The latter moth is a migrant visiting the UK.
I was a little surprised to see some Feverfew (Tanacetumparthenium) still flowering in one garden. I enjoy seeing this daisy like wild flower and like it’s common name Bachelor buttons.
The mushrooms I noticed last week were varied in size and colour.
*Once again, please do not use this post as a guide to edible mushrooms.*
I have managed to identify some but have placed question marks next to those I am unsure of.
The mushrooms I saw last week were;
– the Common puffball (Lycoperdon perlatum).
[The second photo was from a few days later. I noticed that they had matured, ready to release their spores].
-Orange Bonnet (Mycena acicula)
-Purple brittlegill (Russula atropurpurea)
-Turkey tail (Trametes versicolor)
-Lilac bonnet (Mycena pura)?
-Rosy bonnet (Mycena rosea)
-Milking bonnet (Mycenagalopus)?
-Horse mushroom (Agaricusarvensis)?
-and Cortinarius umbrinolens?
The week ended with a brief visit from a Jay (Garrulus glandarius) to the Rowan tree outside my home. I can’t wait to see if I get Redwings (Turdus iliacus) visit soon as well. I usually have a few snacking on the berries each year; hopefully they come before all the berries disappear. The UK conservation status of this thrush is red so it’s always special to see them. Redwings look similar to thrushes but have a splash of red under their wings.
A month ago I had a weeks holiday. Signs of autumn were beginning to mingle with late summer. Now October is here autumn has definitely arrived.
As I had another week off I decided to revisit my local park, observing changes from a month ago.
In September Roesel’s bush crickets (Metrioptera roeselii) were chirping everywhere, butterflies were flitting about and some flowers still bloomed amongst the meadow (see Relaxing into Autumn).
Upon my return last Tuesday the only sounds I heard were birds singing and the meadow area had been cut and baled. Cobwebs were visible in the long dew dampened grass around the edges of the woodland too.
Hawkweed, Ragwort (Jacobaea vulgaris), Red clover (Trifolium pratense) and Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) were only just flowering still while the Ivy (Hedera) was in full bloom.
Ivy is fantastic for pollinators at this of year. I saw a few hoverflies flying to and from several flowers but the Honey bees (Apis mellifera), that were still active from the nearby hives would probably visit them too.
It was lovely to see dried seedheads of Wild carrot (Daucus carota)
and Cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris)
as I wondered around the park. They look beautiful but they are useful for insects to shelter in as well. In fact I noticed a ladybird snuggling amongst one of the Cow parsley seedheads. I also discovered field mushrooms (Agaricuscampestris) growing amongst the grass.
Trees and shrubs were starting to show autumnal colours along with their ripe fruits. I found elderberries, sloe as well as haws on the Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) alongside Rosehips. However there were no longer any blackberries left on the brambles.
I noticed the leaves of one Horse chestnut tree (Aesculus hippocastanum) affected by the Horse chestnut leaf miner (Cameraria ohridella) moth.
Similarly there was evidence of caterpillars (most likely another moth) having been on a Silver maple (Acer saccharinum) tree.
The eggs and excrement are still visible on the nibbled leaves.
I ended my weeks holiday with a visit the Horniman museum in London.
On route to the train station I saw a Brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) running across a path. It attempted to cross the road until either the traffic or pedestrians scared it into fleeing towards a nearby hedge. Once I arrived in London I realised that I never see rats in the underground any more. I used to enjoy seeing them scurrying between the tracks. I have owned pet rats for many years so I find wild rats intriguing. I also like to watch Squirrels as rodents tend to act in similar ways to one another. After lunch I observed two Grey Squirrels (Sciuruscarolinensis) scamper about.
The nearest squirrel had an acorn in its mouth and appeared to bury it in different places. I once saw a television programme on squirrels in which one was observed ‘pretending’ to bury a nut in several places while in the presence of other squirrels to avoid their stash being taken. Presumably this was occurring with the squirrels I was watching on Friday.
There is a butterfly house and aquarium at the Horniman museum. The butterflies were looking a little aged with their wings rather worn, however they were still beautiful. As soon as I entered the butterfly house a Malachite butterfly (Siproetastelenes) landed on me which felt wonderfully welcoming.
The photo below shows a selection of the many butterflies I saw.
Feeding on the fruit are one Blue morpho (Morpho peleides), one Brown clipper (Parthenos Sylvia philippinensis), two Blue clipper (Parthenos Sylvia) and three Owl butterflies (Caligo memnon).
There were lots to see in the aquarium as well but my favourites were the White spotted jellyfish (Phyllorhizapunctata); watching them was so relaxing.
Even at the weekend nature was visible. As I ate breakfast on Saturday morning I heard and watched a group of Coal tits (Periparus ater) on the Rowan tree (Sorbusaucuparia) outside. I have never seen Coal tits on this tree before, I hope to see them again.
Another animal I became aware of last week was a Red fox (Vulpes vulpes). I first noticed it on my way home on Wednesday night and again on Sunday morning. It was making itself known on Saturday night too as it was being very vocal.
-Grey Spotted Amanita
Bee in the Moment 