It has been a long time since I last posted. Too many things happening at home. However, I have still been watching and photographing the happenings in the garden, even though there has not been any opportunity to post them.
Finally some semblance of spring has arrived - weeks late. The bluebells are out and should reach their peak by next week. This is the most wonderful time in the garden but everything is suffering from the unseasonal weather. A short interlude of warm weather in the last week has changed to howling gales, blowing unpollinated blossom from the trees.
The daffodils put on a nice show this year and also the primroses - thousands of them!
The Cherry Laurel is covered in blooms.
I managed to get some nice shots of the ash tree flowers this year. When you look close, they are absolutely fascinating and easy to recognise with their black buds.
The roe deer have been moulting in the last few weeks and look very scruffy. These photos were taken in late March when there was still some snow on the ground. There are two roe bucks that have very impressive antlers this year. Of course, the antlers on a roe never grow particularly big, like the red deer, for example, but they do give an indication of age. The photo below shows the velvet hanging off the antlers.
Another very exciting sighting recently is the stoat! Sadly no photos yet, but we have seen it a couple of times in the front garden.
The hares are also doing well. There were five of them in the field over the garden fence this morning.
Next to look out for are the baby roe deer which should, hopefully, be born around now. We usually see them out with their mother at the end of May.
The birds are frantic with their nesting. A pair of Jackdaws have taken up residence in the Barn Owl box :( I would prefer Barn Owls!
The Blackbirds are doing really well this year.
Another odd sighting - one Saturday afternoon, in broad daylight, a bat was flying around the back garden.
I am hoping that we will get a reasonable summer this year so that the wildlife can get back to some semblance of normality. Fingers crossed again!
