HIGHER MORWELL GARDEN DIARY
7th July 2016
Local wildlife has been an eye-opener for us both.
We’ve seen the devastation caused by first the
squirrels last year, now this year the rabbits and deer.
They aren’t all we see though, the variety of birds that
visit the feeders and fly around the local woodlands
and above us are remarkable. It’s a long list but special
this year is the pair of swallows that took up residence
in the garage and built a new nest in the rafters.
We can’t be sure how many small swallows
there are but they really can make a mess
on the car - when parked the windscreen
is just below the nest so…
The great tits and coal tits regularly comb
the darker recesses of the garage for bugs
but the swallows now chase them out in
full protection mode.
Another established family, but away from
the garage, are pied wagtails. I didn’t
realise how aggressive they are, they look
so innocuous hopping about but woe
betide any of the finches and tits around
the feeding stations if the wagtails want
in!
Work has concentrated on the
polytunnel since it was erected
and now the basic setup is about
complete.
Lesley is working on sieving the
dug soil to remove all the stones
and I have finished the wood
framing and path slabs for the
beds apart from the last piece at
the front, where we need to
rotavate the bed. It is so warm
and humid working in here,
routinely near 40°C when the sun
is out, which currently isn’t that
often.
And it’s biting flies season. They
are slow but vicious and are
armed in numbers. If we don’t
open the polytunnel doors there
are no pollinating insects, so
damned if you do and…
They are on the wane, if last
year was typical they rampage
for three to four weeks. Nearly
there.
Finally a mention of
the potatoes. The
whole Desiree crop
has succumbed to the
blight, although we
did slow its
progression down by
cutting off the
affected foliage. But
underneath are some
spuds! Bit small but
bet they taste good.
And good news - the
Maris Peer earlies are
still unaffected and
will be ready to
harvest very soon.