Cyn's Nature Notes: Springtime

Thursday 22 March 2012

Springtime

A wonderful spring day today, the sun is shining the air smells of fresh greenery and flowers and it is a day to be enjoyed.

After lunch we sat in the garden by the pond, watching the fish and relaxing in the special feeling that a day like this brings.

The sound of the birds was magical, so many different songs to try and identify. The trees are leafing up either in their bright spring green, or in other cases covered in blossom, each flower is so perfect and yet so many types, every one very different from the next, for example; forsythia, magnolia and flowering cherry. The flowers at a quick glance are so different, yet each flower is exquisite and of course every blossom serves the same purpose.

When I have time I like to draw and this has made me study flowers in much greater depth than I probably would have done, I have a secret yen to embroider flowers which bloom in the garden, but as always time is my enemy. Many years ago, I determined that I would keep a written and drawn record of all the flowers wild or otherwise in the garden, , I managed quite a number,but life and its business caught up with me and it is a long time since I put pencil to paper. There are so many flowers already in bloom and waiting to be drawn.

I also kept a record of types of birds visiting the garden, this one was easier to keep up as I kept it in my bird book. My binoculars are always to hand on the side in the kitchen or beside me in the lounge and are used many times during each day, and of course for star gazing at night!

I did keep up my nature diary through the years and with my son's invaluable help it was transferred to the computer and has become my online blog, it gives me much pleasure to record nature and to share it with my friends and readers. I have had so many lovely feedback comments, they add to my pleasure. Thank you so much.

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About this Blog

When we moved to our present home in December 1987, I was very ill and bedridden. My garden was a life-saver, although it was very different then. The first thing I did was to put up bird-feeders, and long hours were spent lying indoors in a recliner. This was when I discovered many things. Do you know the underside of every blue tit’s tail is differently marked? Gradually, over the years, the garden changed. We put in shrubs and plants that would not only enhance the garden, but would also be good for wildlife. The first rabbit we saw was so joyful for us. The deer eat the flowers, prune the apple trees, eat the marrow, and are wonderful to watch. Foxes have been a major part of our wildlife. We have fed them each night for more than 20 years. They are such a delight, especially in late summer and early autumn when there are youngsters. They behave like puppies and are great fun to watch.

I love all wildlife: the mason bees that nest in the brickwork of the bungalow, the hornets that last year made their home in the roof above our bedroom, the bees currently nesting in the roof above the bathroom. On a hot evening, if you stand quietly in the bathroom, you can hear this amazing sound: it is very rhythmic and reminds me of the waves at the seaside. It is made by the beating of the bees’ wings as they fan their nest to keep the temperature at the right level -- how many people have heard that sound? I feel so privileged.

Obviously, I feed the birds. When I open the window in the morning I call “Come on Bobby and Blackie”, and one followed swiftly by the other they fly immediately to the bird table. Each morning, on rising, I make my way to the kitchen and find the squirrels already sitting on the window ledge waiting to be fed. Winter brings the moorhens and spring time the mallards. Our pond is a poor effort from a human point of view, but wild creatures see it differently. On summer days, the grass snakes spend long hours in the pond: eating the fish, froglets, toadlings, newts, and any other living creature they can swallow. Although I hate to see the pond emptied this way, I do enjoy the snakes and feel they are an important part of the balance of nature in the garden. Watching a dragonfly nymph climbing out of the pond, up a plant stalk, and then over the next few hours gradually transforming into a beautiful dragonfly -- these are contented hours well spent.

It has been my pleasure to write and publish a nature column each month. I am always delighted to hear how much pleasure this brings to my readers. I have often been asked if I have written a book, so I am making more of my writings and photography available through this web site and blog.