Weeding the Web

Bioblitz garden survey for June

With the growth of citizen science showing no sign of slowing, next weekend, 1-2 June, sees the first national Garden Bioblitz. Trialled last year by a group of wildlife enthusiasts on Twitter, it involves recording the wild plants and animals you find in your garden at one or several points during the twenty-four hour period and reporting back.  You should also take photos of everything you ID, to reassure the researchers that you've named them correctly. If something stumps you, you can tweet the organisers a photo and await a reply.

Last year, the trial Bioblitz resulted in over 2000 records, with nearly 1000 species identified. This year should be much, much bigger. According to amateur naturalist Jane Adams, who helped run it last year and tweets from @wildlifestuff, "We don't think it matters whether people find ten species or two hundred species; the main thing is they have looked, learnt a little more about their garden wildlife, and have had loads of fun."

Bioblitz certainly seems to be the new buzzword. As the Bristol Natural History Consortium tells us, it means "a large scale event that engages people with biodiversity, inviting them to get directly involved in surveying and monitoring their local wildlife and green spaces".  Or, to put it another way, it's trying to encourage public interest in conservationa and scientific research.

If you fancy being a citizen scientist (or - I hazard a new word - bioblitzer), visit their website for a list of wildlife surveys taking place around the country this summer.

How to keep foxes off your veg patch

Foxes are vermin. Contentious? Well, I'm guessing a few of you will disagree. Vermin are, however, "small animals, insects or birds that are troublesome or destructive to crops, game or domestic stock". Yes, we can argue the "small", but that pretty much sums up foxes.

Foxes are rife in my area, their numbers aided, no doubt, by a neighbour who feeds them.  One of these well fed foxes, running through another neighbour's garden, killed and left a chicken en route. The second neighbour was none too pleased. Neither am I, as they seem to unload all their digested food all over my veg beds.

The local population is clear now that I don't fall for that vulpine charm. Until I started chasing them off, though, they were quite happy just to stand and stare at a distance of as little as ten feet. 

Neighbour with said chickens told me that one fox would actually stand its ground and growl unless he was carrying a stick. That's a wild animal with barely any fear of humans. I won't catalogue the numerous stories of fox attacks, but it seems very clear why encouraging foxes to co-habit with us at close quarters is not a good idea.

Of course, their running away when they see me does not prevent them from pretty much making themselves at home when they can't. Hence, defecation among the salad leaves.

Reluctant to take a brush with Toxocariasis, I tried a forest of sticks stuck around the edges. When this availed me naught, I put out a call on Twitter. Claire at Claire's allotment came to my rescue, and advised a liberal sprinkling pepper or curry powder around the crops. Apparently, it makes them sneeze. A touch stingy, too, I wager.

Luckily we have an ethnic grocery near us, which means I can buy a 1 kg bag of chilli powder for considerably less than the equivalent in Mr Sharwood's tiny little pots. By the time I'd finished, the green salads were marooned in a sea of orange. It was actually quite pretty, but has it worked?

Well, yesterday I noticed that a fox had left its deposit, not on the raised bed, but on the grass beside it, so I'm optimistic.

I've certainly plenty of chilli powder left, should I need to try it again.

Winter gardening with English Heritage

One November, we made the mistake of going to Norfolk.

OK, before all you Fen-o-philes take umbrage, the mistake was (mostly) in the timing, rather than the place. Everything, but everything, was shut - Sandringham, National Trust houses, you name it, they'd all closed their doors three days earlier at the end of October. When we ended up in Walsingham to see the abbey, the eeriness of the deserted streets reminded us of nothing so much as The Town of No Return, the Avengers episode where the church reverberates with the singing of a non-existent choir, and the baying of bloodhounds floats across the Fens at night.

Things have moved on and stately homes are now less likely to shut up tight with leaf fall. This year English Heritage have special events aimed at gardeners at four of their properties, beginning next week at Walmer Castle, Kent, and continuing through December till March at Osborne House, on the Isle of Wight, Brodsworth Hall, South Yorks, and Witley Court, Worcs.  English Heritage members have other events to choose from, too.

The events comprise a nice mix of the practical and the recreational, with head gardeners offering talks and tips on everything from hanging baskets and plant propagation, to walks focussing on wildlife management and (the one that tempts me most) historic trees.

 

More squirrel-proofing ideas for your bird-feeder

The restaurant next door hasn’t exactly closed; let’s just say that the menu has been suspended, and I don’t mean literally. The nuts in the feeder have not been replenished since the frenzy on the first day of opening.

Still, there are measures that will discourage squirrels from bankrupting a bird feeder and you’ll find a good selection on the Dobbies blog which, unlike many blogs attached to commercial sites, is good fun and very readable. And I'm not just saying that because they guested here last week!

In Tips for Squirrel Proofing your Bird Feeder, Rob Plastow lists spicy seeds and spinners among methods to muddle the little munchkins. And there’s an excellent video showing the benefits of a greasy pole.

Still, if you’ve got a bird feeder that’s being plundered, rather than buying another, squirrel-proof version, a baffle might be the answer. Presents for Men has a sturdy looking one for £24.99. Hanging it above your current feeder might just “baffle” them into giving up. (If anyone's tried making one with a dustbin lid, let us know.)

Finally, squirrels seem to have more than their fair share of video online. Below is the advert for Carling Black Label from 1989, which still makes me laugh, while you can get more giggles at WebTVHub and Tom Jepson’s Funny Squirrels Page, which includes another laugh-out-loud ad, this time for Budweiser.

A ragged lawn is wildlife heaven

Lawns get a bad press, vilified as a monoculture which sucks up time and energy, while acting to bolster (mainly male) vanity.

Nevertheless, the RSPB wants us to preserve our lawns, however small, as their disappearance under decking and landscaping may be a reason for the decline in our small-bird population. The RSPB site offers guidance on lawn care, from planning and creating one to basic and advanced management. Their advice won’t appeal to you if you have aspirations to grow the next venue for Crown Green Bowling, but for anyone who needs an excuse for a scruffy lawn, this is it.

One of the easiest way to make a lawn more friendly to wildlife (and cut down on the work) is “two-thirds cutting”, a mowing pattern which helps prevent build-up of thatch and nutrients, while leaving an annual area of longer grass in which insects can thrive.

And don’t worry about those bare patches (greenkeepers, look away now). These are sometimes caused by cockchafers and cranefly larvae – yummy for birds, who also like to dust bathe on the patches, alongside insects who visit to bask in the sun while small annuals such as plantain get a root hold on the bare soil.

I’m feeling better about my ragged patch already.

For information on where to find the right lawnmower, see Is Your Lawnmower up to the Job?

Recording moths with National Moth Night

National Moth Night takes place on 18th-19th September. Running since 1999, it’s open to everyone, expert or beginner, to record moths in the garden or elsewhere, and has turned up some unexpected results. Last year the White Prominent moth appeared in Ireland, seventy years after its last sighting in the British Isles.

If you're wondering how you'd get close enough to a moth to effect an introduction, then the National Moth Night website has instructions for bringing them to you, including this rather fascinating idea of wine ropes.

Moth Night was started by Atropos, the journal for butterfly, moth and dragonfly enthusiasts. They also carry instructions (see their Garden Moths page) on moth traps and give a list of flowers to bring them to your garden. The best are blooms which smell strongly at night, such a night-scented stock, lonicera and red campion.

Must plant some; perhaps that will keep the little blighters from coming in the window.

Wider Countryside Butterfly Survey

Developed by Butterfly Conservation and the Centre for Hydrology and Ecology the Wider Countryside Butterfly Survey aims to uncover new information about the decline in butterflies.

Identifying Butterflies

NB This site has now disappeared from the web. It refers to ButterflyGarden.co.uk, which was a super resource. Sad to see it go.

You’d think it would be easy. But…

The difficulty of identifying butterflies became apparent when a friend and I “did” the local (and prolific) Lepidoptera of South Africa on holiday. Not only were our subjects never still, but we found that many looked very alike, especially those named Greater and Lesser. Our fervour for self-education lasted—ooh, half an hour.

But if you find yourself staring at one that isn’t white and sitting on a cabbage (no problem identifying those!) and wondering what it is, the charming Butterfly Garden can help.

Illustrated with beautiful photos taken by Linda Walls in her Gloucestershire garden, it contains information on each of the fifty-eight resident British butterfly species and on forty-five plants to attract butterflies.

She also gives a month-by-month breakdown of which butterflies are on the wing, tips on photography and help with identification.

It’s poignant viewing because Linda died in 2006 after fighting leukaemia. Her husband honoured her wish that the site remain available and it’s an attractive and helpful resource that stands as a lovely memorial to Linda.

Bumblebee Conservation Trust

Bumblebees are easy to characterise: all portly geniality, humming quietly, like Pooh.

But there is a sting in the tail (sorry). Three species of bumblebee are already extinct, and nine more under threat. The Bumblebee Conservation Trust was created to combat the “plight of the bumblebee”, and they want our help.

Their site a hive of information (OK, I’ll stop)—offers advice on bumblebee-friendly gardening (including a list of flowers to grow throughout the year), an explanation of the problems and lots of lovely photos.