Albino Hedgehog

Although this is not a recent photo ,I actually took it in 2002  I thought he is special enough to include in My Meadow Blog . The dogs found him wandering in the yard one summer evening and I let him go into the garden . Needless to say I never saw him again.

Hedgehog

This is the Juvenile Hedgehog I found wondering in the snow  just before Christmas I fed him and put him in a cardboard box covered in straw I don't know if he lived or not I'll just have to wait and see.

 Walked down the meadow this morning to see if I could see any signs of the daffodils I planted in November, but no signs yet.
As the daffodil is the National flower of Wales I had to include them within the meadow,I could not find where to purchase the wild form so I picked just a plain daffodil.

I loved the look of the frost on these dead leaves and the grass

A Brief History of My Wild Flower Meadow

 I started my small meadow in 2006 after purchasing a small piece of field in front of our house.
It was previously used for grazing cattle and sheep, except for 2 summers back in the 1970’s when the farmer killed of all the existing flora and sowed barley. then the grass was re-sown with a small amount of white clover.
I started my meadow by killing all of the grass with Round Up and once it had died, I removed it all and raked the soil until there was a fine tilt.
I sowed the centre with wild flower annuals and the sides with wild flower perennials .( The result was the picture at the front of my blog) No grass seed was included in the mixes as I knew they would come on their own.
I try to let the wild flowers grow as they wish except for Ragwort which I pull out by hand  and creeping thistle which I spot weed .These would become a problem as the fields surrounding me are full of it and the farmers do nothing to control it.
 In September the field is cut and stacked by hand and the hay composted for use in my garden.
To date I have recorded over 100 different wildflowers in my small meadow.
The change in wildlife this small oasis has been amazing .but who knows what 2011 has to offer after such a harsh winter.
Winters here on Anglesey are usually quite mild but wet and windy .
The Gulf Stream hits this corner Of the island and we seldom see a hard frost .
In the 37 years I have been living here in this house we have never seen snow and ice like we had in 2010.
I hope if you follow my wild flower meadow blog ,that you will get as much pleasure from it as I know I will recording all my special treasures .