Nature Table Archive 2021
January 2021 update
Nature seems to be at its greyest in January. And yet, as the year imperceptibly turns, the heralds of spring come into their own… The robin will sing a complicated song under his breath to you if you are out gardening, while at dawn and dusk the song thrush begins to pour out an ecstatic effusion of song. In fact the word ‘song’ is too merry a description: there is an urgency and passion in those ingeniously inventive phrases, each usually repeated twice or thrice, that suggest a darker imperative. Have you heard one of our Cattistock thrushes? If so you will have heard one of the descendants of the thrush Hardy wrote about:
At once a voice arose among
The bleak twigs overhead
In a full-hearted evensong
Of joy illimited;
An aged thrush, frail, gaunt, and small,
In blast-beruffled plume,
Had chosen thus to fling his soul
Upon the growing gloom.
So little cause for carollings
Of such ecstatic sound
Was written on terrestrial things
Afar or nigh around,
That I could think there trembled through
His happy good-night air
Some blessed Hope, whereof he knew
And I was unaware .
From The Darkling Thrush by Thomas Hardy, December 29th 1900.
December Willows’ Warblings
The most celebrated day in December is the 25th, Christmas Day. Its traditions could, and indeed have, filled books; however before that, the most important day was the solstice on the 22nd. The day when the sun started returning and ancient tribes realised that life was not ending after all, but that gradually, the periods of daylight were getting longer. How they did that is beyond me as it seems perpetually gloomy especially this year as December has seen the least sunshine on record! But rejoice! Everyone did, and a lot of those solstice rituals have been incorporated into Christmas festivities – decorating with evergreens and wreaths being just one of many.
I have been taking advantage of the mild weather by planting more bulbs. One garden centre I visited had 50% off so I loaded my basket with scillas, miniature daffodils and anemone blanda. Then I happened on Dobbies who had all their remaining bulbs at 70% off (plus I get another 10% for being a member) so a hazy mist descended and before I knew it I was loaded down with hundreds more tulips that I am now desperate to plant. Most of the tulips go in pots as my soil is very heavy with clay and can get waterlogged. The bulbs will not mind going in late, although narcissus and daffodils should start rooting in September and will not, perhaps, be quite so good in their first year but will get better thereafter. It is a good idea to soak all these late bulbs in warm water before planting as they have dried out a lot in the hot showrooms. I have some anemone blanda that I have soaked for 3 days and are now plump and ready to root – ten times bigger than the little shrivelled corms in the bag.
I have heard reports of blackcaps being seen on bird tables this week. Increasingly this little bird seems to be staying here for the winter rather than migrating further south. I have yet to see blackcaps in this garden at any time of the year although they are plentiful in the centre of the village gardens. I have not seen the mistle thrushes this year. They used to sit in the holly trees guarding the berries but perhaps food has not been scarce this autumn.
We had a Christmas squirrel on the bird table and a rat on the compost heap. I don’t mind rats so long as they keep themselves to themselves, but they rarely do! This one waited while I threw veggie peelings onto the heap. I expect she was hoping for more exotic Christmas fare, but alas no luck.
I noticed this morning that the hazel bushes had catkins ready to open in the first bit of sun we get and so the cycle will begin all over again. In the forty odd years I have lived here the worst month of winter has been February. The snow has always come that month with really low temperatures, so a lot of bad weather before the spring. How does the old saying go? “The cold strengthens as the daylight lengthens”. Yes indeed it does.
November update and Willows’ Warblings:
Don’t burn that bonfire until you have checked that there is no hedgehog hibernating inside! What they like best is a shelter – possibly a proper hedgehog hibernaculum such as built by Phil Evans for the church hedgehogs; but a big pile of dry leaves in an open garage or shed or log store will suffice. If you find one out and about it may need feeding, and even more a bowl of water; apply to Sheila White in Meadow View for what to do – she is currently the Hedgehog Queen.
There are fieldfares now clacking in the farmlands, winter visitors from the north. Our garden birds need feeding when it is cold and frosty – their usual diet of insects has died or gone to earth, and it is only the bigger birds such as blackbirds, thrushes and pigeons which can manage to pick berries. The robin is singing his winter song, thoughtful and complicated…
And in Sue Willows’ garden: “I think this autumn has been lovely. It has been so mild that I have been gardening every day and have planted many new shrubs and perennials and dozens of bulbs. As the light goes in the evenings I watch masses of little birds, which I think are wrens, packing into the ivy on the side of the house. I know they roost together for warmth and I am glad we can provide a cosy retreat for them.
“The pheasants up the track signal the end of the day with their sharp rat-tat-tat bedtime call. I know then it is time for me to pack up my tools for the day before it gets completely dark. A pheasant walked up the lane last week and poked his head through the gate. I invited him in to share some chicken feed but he declined. I hope he didn’t, fall foul of the guns that seem to be omni-present around us. Sometimes it is like living in the Wild West!
“The two Celtic feast days, All Saints’ and All Souls’ Day were celebrated at the beginning of the month, remembering departed souls. In Mexico it is known as the Day of the Dead. Martimas, St. Martins’ feast day, is one of the quarter days that was celebrated years ago for hiring fairs and settling debts. It now marks Remembrance Day falling on 11th November.
“A few sharp frosts have made the leaves turn glorious colours. The countryside has never looked so good. It is well worth trying to find some plants for autumn colour for the garden, creating late interest. The mahonias are now carrying their lovely yellow flowers and the perfume stops you in your tracks. The winter viburnums in the garden are full of buds, some bright pink and some flushed white. I have a daphne still in full flower. It is one of the ‘eternal’ series and keeps going whatever the weather. The winter cyclamen, C. Coum, are starting to show their very bright cerise flowers. They will go on for months, as will the hellebores, some of which are already in bloom. The Christmas Rose, helleborus niger, is very sporadic, with most of the plants not flowering till well into the New Year, but sometimes you get one plant that is always in front of the others. Unfortunately they do not seem to be good garden plants and die off very quickly. They do for me anyway. I think they want very specific conditions in order to thrive. They are cheap enough to buy however and today I bought some marvellous plants in flower, with plenty of buds to come over the next few weeks, along with my groceries. As they say, every little helps to brighten these darkest days.”