We returned to the Squirrel Dell at Ryde, on an absolutely glorious sunny
day, with the usual list of tasks to tackle. The guys from St Georges did a
sterling job weeding a raised bed at the edge of the site, ready for
planting. Other tasks were the cutting back of laurel and snowberry and
putting up a section of wire fence to make the site even more secure. The
final task was to continue creating scrapes around the site, which it is
hoped will attract lots of wildlife. As you can see from the picture this
scrape quickly filled with water, and was soon visited by a couple of
solitary bees and also a robin, so fingers crossed for lots more fascinating
creatures!
Carrie's Nature Lesson.
This week's find were some Spanish bluebells (Hyacinthoides Hispanica), a
spring-flowering bulbous perennial native to the Iberian Peninsula. It is
distinguished from the common bluebell by its paler, large blue flowers
(they can also be white or pink), more erect flower stem, broader leaves,
blue anthers (the common bluebell has creamy-white ones) and little or no
scent. It was introduced into the UK where it has become an invasive
species, and hybridises freely with our native bluebells - this has caused
our common bluebell to be viewed as a threatened species.
Many thanks to Carrie for the above photographs, editorial and nature lesson.
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