Wednesday 20 July 2016

WILL THE SUMMER HEAT COME BACK AGAIN?

So summer has finally arrived, well at least for 48 hours anyway.

It felt like the heat of mid summer in Cyprus had hit us, but it’s gone again and left us with a tantalising glimpse of what our summers can be like.

The wildlife being seen in the garden is mainly insects, with an increasing amount of butterflies – some of which are making straight for the growing cauliflowers leaves!

The fruit from the greengage tree is ripening and falling everywhere, while flies occupy any bare human flesh causing irritation, which the wildlife must be feeling too.

Young robins and blackbirds are being seen with a little more frequency in the garden, while the numbers of swallows is increasing every day.

The youngsters are definitely learning how to manoeuvre in the skies and they’re hopefully going to start having an impact on the number of small flies that are annoying everyone.

There are no tomatoes yet, but plenty of flowers, while the broad beans probably only need a few more weeks before they can be harvested.

One thing that hasn’t done too well this year is the batch of sunflowers. Only one is taller than six foot and some are even flowering at less than two feet.

Perhaps it’s the new seeds bought in spring, or perhaps it’s the weather. Final conclusions can be drawn in August when they have all flowered.


Until then let’s wait, and hope, the summer heat comes back again soon!

Tuesday 5 July 2016

A VERY GREEN GARDEN IN WET JUNE

Activity in the garden has been mainly limited to the flora, with plenty of growth in many plants including the cauliflower and broad beans.

There has been a favourite sight this week with a visit from a couple of newly fledged robin chicks.

They spent quite a while in the garden, watching from various posts and pouncing on the odd invertebrate.

Apart from the off visit from blue tit chicks and flocks of house sparrows, the main visitors have been swooping swallows.

It’s great to see and hear them, particularly the newly fledged youngsters who are constantly chattering to the adults as they chase their insect food.

Sadly they’ll all be gone in a few months and the slow process of summer turning into autumn will begin.

Until then we can enjoy them and hopefully some summer sunshine, which has been particularly lacking following a thoroughly wet June.