Weeding out the rape

   On Saturday we found a huge patch
    of rape seedlings that must have self

               seeded last Autumn

 

               My lovely grand daughter Nicola 
               spent over  an hour just weeding 
               out the Rape
               She is only 10 and a really good help
               to her Nan

What a difference 2 days of sun makes

Saturday afternoon

Monday afternoon

Monday afternoon

Monday afternoon

Monday afternoon

May Flowers

Annual Nettle Urtica urens 2012M75

Birds Foot Trefoil Lotus corniculatus 2012m69

Bush Vetch Vicia Sepium 2012m74

Common Sorrel Rumex acetosa 2012m65

 Common Vetch  Vicia sativa 

 

Curled Dock Rumex crispus 2012m71

Hop Humulus  lupulus 2012m70

Queen Annes Lace Cow Parsley Anthriscus sylvestris 2012m72

Ragged Robin Silene flos-cuculi 2012m66dd caption

Common Sorrel Rumex acetosa 2012m65

Yellow Rattle Rhinanthus minor 2012m68

Nesting Birds

House Sparrow

Opportunist sparrow stealing a piece of dog hair just combed from my molting Akita.

We have more than birds than usual  nesting around the house and garden  . The Magpies are in the air vent in the old granary , Blue tits in the nest boxes on the telegraph pole ,Hedge Sparrows  nesting in the bay tree. Blackbirds are  in climbers over the potting shed.

Pied Wagtails  between paving slabs stacked behind the house . House sparrows under the eaves of the out buildings . Swallows above the workshop and Great Tits in the slot of an old gate post by the road . there are also a pair of Chaffinches  I know they are near by but haven’t seen where they are nesting.

Meadow still keeping me waiting

View from the bottom of meadow

Flowers waiting to bloom

The weather still continues to be cold and the meadow is still growing slowly a good 2 weeks later than this date last year. We are situated on top of  a hill and quite

 exposed . This makes  the garden and meadow later flowering than more sheltered parts of the island. 

Lots of flowers in bud just waiting for some warm sunny weather. Tonight we have have gale force winds and torrential rain

This miniature Braeburn Apple  is living in a large tub for the summer but will be planted in the meadow in the Autumn

Although these Buttercups are an absolute  nuisance in the garden,  I still can't help loving their beautiful shining cups.
 In the meadow they can grow to their  hearts content  

Sow Thistle is a good plant for bees and insects. 
Supposedly was used in the past for controlling fevers and high blood pressure. In the kitchen  added to stews as a pot herb ,although I've not tried this one myself. 

 Just when I was thinking not much colour in the meadow yet I found this little Viola peeping at me through the grass.

I love Welsh Poppies usually they are a beautiful sharp clean yellow but all mine are orange.I must try and get some seed for the yellow one.

This is the first of the White Campions that I added last Autumn .These are very short but I will add better photos of them later

New Cherry Tree and more plants for May

Newly planted flowering Cherry Tree planted in
memory of my mum who died in march

Broad Leaved  Dock Rumex obtusifolius 2012m50

Goosegrass  Galium aparine 2012m51

Hedge Mustard (Sisymbrium officinale) 2012m49

Meadow Buttercup   Ranunculus acris.2012m48

LadiesSmock cardamine pratensis 2012m27

First May Flush

Hart's tongue fern Asplenium scolopendrium 2012m46

Hawthorn Blossom Crataegus Monogyna 2012m43

Greater Celendine Chelidronium Majus 2012m38

Herb Robert Geranium Robertianum 2012m41

Horseraddish Armmmoracia rusticana 2012m45

Ivy Leaved Toadflax cymbalaria muralis 2012m42

Prickly Sow Thistle Sonchus Asper 2012m39

Quince Cydonia Vulgaris 2012m42

Wormwood Artemisia 2012m47

Solomon Seal Polygonatum 2012m44

May 1st

Apple blossom Malus domestica IRISH PEACH  2012m37

Honesty Lunaria annua 2012M35

Shining Cransbill geranium lucidum 2012m11

 This is the first of the Apple trees to flower this year .The others will be a couple of weeks by the look of them yet. last year they were all in flower by 20th April .which is surprising as last years winter was so mild and the year before so harsh.

So many of these local wild flowers have re introduced themselves back into the meadow .It is a real joy to walk around and find something that hasn’t flowered in previous years .Some were sown several years ago and have only just matured enough to flower others the birds have introduced and others that I have planted as plugs or bulbs or re sown from seed .Then there are bi-annuals that I only see every other year. The meadow is ever changing each week is different.

Wall Fumitory Fumaria muralis 2012m36