Urban wildlife

One of the great joys of working from home is that I get to see the garden during the daytime. If I need a break I just wander into the bedroom or sitting room and gaze out of the window. If I'm lucky the birds will also be taking a snack break at the bird feeder.

But today I got a very special treat...

Can you see it?

How about now?

Isn't it bee-yootiful?

I will confess I have a very mixed opinion of foxes, probably due to their harassment of my pet (semi-feral) rabbit when I was small - and the knowledge that they'll be a menace when we get chickens. But I think they have every right to be here - their presence is certainly more natural than my imprisonment of a wild animal for my own amusement, or the production of food...

What I enjoyed the most was how it also seemed to be enjoying the birds, bees and sunshine. Perhaps we're more similar that us humans are ready to admit!

Some other attempted shots with my Canon Powershot A495 (i.e. cheap and cheerful) camera... (I hope one day to afford a proper SLR, but that ain't happening until I can justify the expense!)

 One of our goldfinches

One of our dunnocks

The most exciting Saturday this year

Today has marked a new level of excitement in the growing year thus far.

Aside from the fact that our garden is now host to mating pairs of robins, dunnocks and goldfinches (as well as our regular great and blue tits, and black birds)...

And that we have a whole host of seedlings growing...

And that we now have 2 bee hives (more on this later)...

Today I discovered that the wild cherry stones from 2010 which I chucked in a pot of soil with the vague hope of them growing in ~September 2011, have sprouted!

Ok, to your ordinary person this may not be too exciting, but I am amazed. Every time I've eaten a cherry and thrown the pip away I've never been convinced it could possibly be alive - they always look so inert.

Unfortunately I now have a pot with approximately 100 seeds all sprouting at once, and I have no idea what to do with them! I've potted some up in soil, with the vague idea of keeping a couple, and planting the rest in the wild - but I think I may just have to chuck them in a bush somewhere for the mice... there's just SO many!

So anyway, that was the highlight of my weekend. I have also now planted up batch #1 of salad plugs, tomatoes and peppers #2, basil, tagetes, mibuna greens #1, landcress #1, and alyssum. Calendula and lobelia are coming on nicely too. Onions are in the cold frame, but looking a bit sad following my nuking them with the central heating during the typation of my transfer report - they will have to go out next weekend and sink or swim!

I love this time of year SO much - there's just no beating the hope and excitement that comes with all the growth of the natural (and planted) world.

Cyclamens

Just a shameless post showing the beautiful cyclamens that grow wild in our garden... gorgeous.

(yes, that is our Christmas tree in the pot!)

Cast ne'er a clout 'til the May be out

My understanding of this is that May is maythorn aka blackthorn, and that when it comes into bloom it's warm enough to shed your winter clothes (certainly your winter coat). It holds well with me as I've reached that uncomfortable too-hot-for-my-winter-coat-but-too-old-to-go-without stage...


Spring is here! Hoorah!
(and about blimmin' time, too!)

About me

My name is Bee, and I am a PhD student in agriculture, studying the diversity of a nifty bacteria called rhizobia which, through a relationship with legumes fixes nitrogen in the soil (you may remember it from GCSE science). This means I meet a lot of interesting people, and learn a lot of interesting stuff. It also means my work is never done!

I love nature, people, growing my own food (and doing a bit of foraging, too), being creative (mainly knitting, crochet and making a mess with paints) learning, and reading stories. On any given day, the chances are that I would rather be at the allotment with my husband, or pottering in the garden with the cat - unless I'm already there, in which case I'm as happy as anyone could be.

When I'm done I want to work alongside farmers and community groups, helping people to grow food and translating academic-ese into language people (including myself!) can understand. I could also be tempted into any number of jobs that feature the words 'organic', 'Fairtrade', 'policy' or 'development'...

I've started this blog to share some of my experiences, pictures and links. I hope you enjoy it!