Day 10: Dunnock

This year has brought a few new regular visitors to our garden, with the well camouflaged dunnock being one of them. A pair of these pretty little birds have formed a habit of entering the garden in one of two ways: flying in at high speed to land in the depths of the winter honeysuckle, hiding here, then depositing themselves onto the ground to feed, or, appearing from nowhere on the fence and heading straight to the ground feeder. Today being cloudy, there were fewer insects around for the pair to forage for, so the ground feeder it was.

As I wrote yesterday, sometimes you have to look at things closely to notice detail. Before today, I don't think I'd ever noticed the brown iris of the dunnock's eye, surrounded by tiny pale feathers. Some features of birds make the comparison between the class of birds and that of reptiles more obvious, and, for me, this particular detail makes that link.

We have no house sparrows in our area, but are enjoying the company of these 'hedge sparrows' making themselves at home in the garden.

Day 9: Aubretia

As always, looking closely at anything can reveal hitherto unseen detail and beauty, such as the delicate darker purple 'veins' running along the silky petals of my largest aubretia, which is gradually taking over my front garden.

Aubretia are low growing, evergreen perennials which form a mat over time. If planted in walls or containers, they can spread and trail over the edges, creating a purple or pink cascade of flowers in spring. They bear the 'RHS Plants for Pollinators' logo (not Perfect for Pollinators, as it once was, read Dave Goulson's The Garden Jungle to find out why), and are one of the only plants I have on which I have previously seen bee-flies feeding. They are also visited by hoverflies, honeybees, bumblebees, flies and some butterflies.

This plant is supposed to like full sun and well drained soil, but I have found them very easy to grow and maintain, even in the North-facing, partially shaded front garden. Definitely a worthwhile plant to have for pollinators, and easy gardening!

References:
Thomas, A. (2017) Gardening for Wildlife, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.
https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/63705/Aubrieta-Argenteovariegata-(v)/Details (accessed 31/03/2020)

Day 8: Snake's-head fritillary

Nature's chequerboard, the slender stemmed and pink-white nodding flowered snake's-head fritillary. This picture shows the first flower on one of my more established patches of bulbs, bought 'in the green' a couple of years ago and planted in the border. This being the more expensive way of buying them, a tried a couple of bags of bulbs in autumn to plant in a small patch of grass I'm attempting to turn into a spring meadow, but I have yet to see any evidence of life there yet...

These beautiful flowers are, sadly, on the decline in our countrysides due to our loss of traditional wildflower meadows and changes in agricultural practices.

As well as being a delicate and pretty addition to the garden, they are also one of the best bulbs for bumblebees. Keep an eye on these plants though, I have often found them under attack from the lily beetle, a non-native insect that eats the leaves and flowers of lilies and fritillaries. I always hesitate to call any species a true pest, but I do resort to hand picking the individuals that do arrive. Reportedly, female beetles find the plants by smell alone, but the beetles that follow are attracted to the smell of already infested plants, so I try to stop them becoming infested in the first place.

References:
Thomas, A. (2017) Gardening for Wildlife, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/wildflowers/snakes-head-fritillary accessed 30/03/2020
https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/fritillary accessed 30/03/2020
https://www.rhs.org.uk/science/help-our-research/lily-beetle accessed 30/03/2020

Day 7: Great tit

On fence, next to crab apple Evereste and Clematis tangoutica

I feel like we have seen every season in one day today, with rain, hail, sleet, snow, wind and sun. I will freely admit that I took these photos of this inquisitive great tit yesterday, not wishing to brave the elements with my camera. He did visit again today, though. 

Surprisingly, the great tit is not a consistent, but an occasional, visitor to our garden, despite their repetitive and easily recognisable 'teacher, teacher, teacher' call often being heard and several individuals often visible in the nearby patch of woodland.

Inspecting the sun-yellow flowers of the marsh marigold

This particular individual, who appeared only yesterday, spent a good deal of time in the garden, seemingly inspecting the underside of every leaf he could find. It seems that many people often get the great tit and blue tit confused, but, when seen side by side, there is no competition for size - the great tit is certainly appreciably larger. In fact, it is the UK's largest species of tit. The jet black head is another giveaway as is the thicker black stripe down the centre of the breast. This band is thicker and more prominent in males, which would be my guess at the sex of this individual. 

On the couple of occasions I have been fortunate enough to assist with bird ringing, the great tit has also been much calmer than the blue tit, perhaps due to its larger size. 

References:

https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/great-tit/ accessed 29/03/2020

Day 6: Goldfinch

A small charm of goldfinches often visit our garden; hearing their bell-like contact calls to each other as they fly, or their inquisitive chirrups as they sit near the seed feeders, is always a treat. I don't think any of our British birds are truly dull, but the goldfinch must be one of the most exotic in appearance; beautiful blush coloured plumage of varying shades over the body, yellow- and white-barred black wings and the crimson-red face all add to their charm.

As our garden becomes more established (nearly four years in), they have begun to favour different perches. This individual is gripping one of the more wayward stems of the rambling 'Wedding Day' rose. They are fond of the sunflower hearts we offer in our seed feeders, but, in the summer, they often prefer to tweeze out the seeds of the field scabious that I selectively dead head.

Day 5: Hellebores

 Hellebores are a plant that I've grown rather fond of over the past couple of years. I have a few different varieties scattered in the newest border... although I think mine perhaps get a little too much sunlight in summer. They are a good plant to grow in shadier areas of the garden with rich soil.

There is one native variety of hellebore, Helleborus foetidus, or the stinking hellebore. It is not one that I have (yet) managed to find to grow, but is on the list of new plants I am searching for. Of the varieties I do have, Helleborus niger, the top photo here, is the one that flowers earliest, sometimes as early as December, which is why an alternative name for it is the Christmas rose. Helleborus orientalis, or Lenten rose, is another that I find reliable, with pale pink flowers, and the bottom picture here is the newest, but of a variety that I can't recall the name of.

All add interest and colour to the garden during winter, and are supposed to offer early nectar for queen bumblebees. I do sometimes see bumble- and other bees near their cup-shaped flowers, but they aren't as attractive to them as other plants in bloom at the same time.

When in garden centres, watching where bees are nectaring is a reliable method of choosing the right plants for them. Last year, I spotted some stunning dark purple hellebores covered in bumblebees when plant shopping, but I didn't buy them at the time and couldn't find them again. Lesson learnt!

References:
https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/popular/hellebore accessed 27/03/20
https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/stinking-hellebore accessed 27/03/20
Thomas, A. (2017) Gardening for Wildlife, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.

Day 4: Primrose

The native, evergreen Primula vulgaris is always a welcome sight in early spring; pale yellow flowers gently brightening the floors of woodlands as they emerge from winter. It is also a valuable plant to encourage in the garden. Make sure you stick to this native species, rather than the hybrid primulas and polyanthus you often find in garden centres, which are completely useless for wildlife. By contrast, the lemon yellow blooms of P. vulgaris are visited by bee-flies in spring (I have yet to see my first this year) and the leaves are eaten by different species of moth caterpillar - remember, there is no place for perfect, untouched leaves in a wildlife garden! The leaves are also the food plant for the caterpillar of the rare Duke of Burgundy butterfly.

Although the wild population remains stable in the UK, according to Plantlife, it has declined here in East Anglia due to a series of hot and dry summers since the 1970s, possibly linked to climate change. Primroses prefer moist areas, so keep them well watered if you do decide to add these beautiful plants to your garden.

References:
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/wildflowers/primrose accessed 26/03/20
https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/primrose accessed 26/03/20
Thomas, A. (2017) Gardening for Wildlife, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.