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Post by aeshna5 on Mar 18, 2016 5:40:09 GMT
One Osprey was also reported over a north London allotment yesterday. I was working in that general area yesterday but only saw a Sparrowhawk soaring!
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Post by Tringa on Mar 18, 2016 7:52:54 GMT
Found this (and a lot more) in a roadside rut made by a tyre near Firemore on the west coast of Loch Ewe yesterday. Another sign of Spring was I had a paddled in the sea - it was hot yesterday. Dave
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Post by NellyDee on Mar 19, 2016 10:29:07 GMT
Just a bye the bye. Looked at photo I had taken 5 years ago same day - trees all in leaf, shrubs, plants and grass all green,it must have been an early spring as the trees don't even look as if they are contemplating coming into leaf, nor the shrubs, though they have got buds. Has anyone got a tree in leaf?
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Post by Tringa on Mar 19, 2016 12:34:05 GMT
No trees here in Gairloch in leaf yet. The nearest I have seen are the buds on a deciduous azalea which are starting to expand.
Leaves on some of the (non bulb) hebaceous plants are doing well, lupins, primulas, foxgloves. Some thrift is getting close to flowering and I have seen one spindly bit of pulmonaria in flower.
I wonder if some of the late 2015 and early 2016 gales have had an effect on new growth. The effect is easy to see in evergreens but perhaps dormant buds are also burnt by the wind. Around here a lot of the evergreen plants have been burnt, the firs in particular and even the Escallonias have been affected. The only one I've seen that have survived unscathed are the almost indestructible Olerarias.
Dave
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Post by NellyDee on Mar 19, 2016 17:49:29 GMT
Good point Dave re the gales burning the buds. A couple of my fir trees are brown down one side and a couple of the beech do not look happy and some of the trees had their barks stripped on one side. What I found interesting (wrong word) I have a number of very old fallen trees, not get at-able, which were deeply covered with moss and lichens and they were stripped of their moss down to bare wood.
Anyway things are looking up, actually now got some crocus in bloom and a couple of primrose and lots of snowdrops and today 3 daisies opened. grass does not seem to want to grow, still got green mossy lawn areas and the wild grasses are still flat and shades of kaki to beige hay .
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Post by aeshna5 on Mar 19, 2016 19:48:19 GMT
A couple of Moorhen chicks at London Wetland Centre today.
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Post by ayjay on Mar 19, 2016 22:49:53 GMT
Just a bye the bye. Looked at photo I had taken 5 years ago same day - trees all in leaf, shrubs, plants and grass all green............................ ......................................... Has anyone got a tree in leaf? I was looking up into an Oak tree yesterday (with bins, for a bird) and I suddenly realised that there was lot of green showing up there - it was also noticeable without bins when you actually looked at the tree.
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Post by NellyDee on Apr 3, 2016 8:46:38 GMT
I was overjoyed Yesterday at seeing my crocus' with fully open flowers and looking beautiful in the morning sunshine. As I was in a rush I decided to take photos when I got back. So I was out the house 10:00 and got back at 1:00 to find not a sign of crocus' flowers - well just one flower head in a hole in the wall. Scream! Cannot decide what did this, would a wood mouse carry off the flower - do they store them to eat? Or maybe a vole? Do wish I had stopped to take photos!
DSCF3054 by Helen Skelton, on Flickr DSCF3055 by Helen Skelton, on Flickr
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Post by Harold Smith on Apr 3, 2016 18:21:36 GMT
Hallo NellyDee,
Had a similar mystery! I have a trough which I planted full of crocuses expecting a nice spring showing. Though the flowering was not as I hoped for there were still quite a few. Then I noticed over a few days the flowers were disappearing. Had no idea why until early one morning (the other day) I saw a female blackbird grabbing them and tossing them over the edge of the trough, and then scrabbled about the soil looking for something to eat. A lot of the soil also disappeared over the edge of the trough.
Many times I've seen Blackbirds digging at the edge of my planters and flowers beds looking for food and making a lot of mess but it is the first time I've ever seen them attack flowers. Maybe they just got in the way.
Harold.
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Post by NellyDee on Apr 4, 2016 11:58:43 GMT
No these were definitely nipped and taken by something that lives in a hole. The one flower head that was part in a hole in the wall was not there later so had been dragged into the hole. However, I have had blackbirds and even blue tits trashing my plants and the jays and hoddies can play havoc with my mossy lawn.
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Post by shirl100 on Apr 4, 2016 13:28:59 GMT
No these were definitely nipped and taken by something that lives in a hole. The one flower head that was part in a hole in the wall was not there later so had been dragged into the hole. However, I have had blackbirds and even blue tits trashing my plants and the jays and hoddies can play havoc with my mossy lawn. Last year our little Bank Voles were caught in the act stealing crocus flowers. Shirl
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Post by NellyDee on Apr 4, 2016 16:33:49 GMT
thanks Shirl - it will be them then, there are loads.
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Post by teasel on Apr 4, 2016 21:36:05 GMT
Last week there were martins flying over my local park. Bluebells were flowering (they look like garden throw-aways) and the garlic was budding
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Post by Tringa on Apr 5, 2016 7:19:15 GMT
I feel sure others will have already heard one but I heard my first Chiffchaff of this year yesterday.
Dave
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Post by rowanberry on Apr 8, 2016 17:30:50 GMT
The Lesser Celandine is coming up everywhere.
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