Early autumn?

 We're just coming to the end of (I think) the 4th heatwave of the summer. The grass is completely dry, and some of the plants and small trees are struggling. However, some of the leaves on the bigger trees are starting to go yellow, the pumpkins on the allotment are getting big and a few have turned orange, and the garden is full of blackberries. Are these indications of early autumn, or just the result of multiple heatwaves and very little rain? Either way, really hoping this is the last heatwave of the year. 

We have had frequent badger visits recently. I think it may be a young badger, it looks quite small and is quite keen on climbing into things to find peanuts. We also had a deer wander through the garden one night, and appear in the field next to our house during the day. It's always nice to see deer wandering around.

Hopefully, now the weather is getting slightly cooler, we might actually get some rain soon. The ground is so dry at the moment, even though I've been watering everything every day, it doesn't seem to make much difference. I hope we do get an early autumn, I think myself and the garden really need some nice, cool, rainy days!

 

Another heatwave

 Currently in the midst of another heatwave. Apparently, it's going to get to about 30 degrees tomorrow. I'm watering the garden and allotment every day, early in the morning (before it gets too hot). The stuff growing on the allotment (pumpkins, squash and some fruit bushes) all seems ok, for now. But some of the small trees in the garden seem to be struggling a bit, the leaves are drying out and getting scorched by the sun. I'm really hoping they survive through the summer.

We need some rain, I think. Not just the odd, little shower now and then, which is what we've been getting for the last month or so, but a proper rainy day (or few days, ideally). Having a bit of water once a day is obviously not enough.

Optimistically, I'm hoping this is the last heatwave this year. Personally, I think anything over 23 degrees is too hot, so 30 degrees is horrendous. Too hot to do anything, too hot to sleep at night. I'm not a big fan of summer, generally. Autumn is much more comfortable.  

Early Autumn?

The blackberries are out, the leaves are starting to change colour, acorns are starting to fall, which all suggests that autumn is beginning! I love autumn. I've seen various things on social media and news articles recently saying that autumn has started early, or that we are seeing a 'false autumn' as a result of the recent heatwaves and generally due to climate change. Obviously, any effects of climate change (or climate breakdown) are very worrying, and I am in no way denying that this is a major issue of our time and is a result of our careless distruction of the planet (I won't go into a rant about this here).

But, isn't it nearly autumn anyway? And if it is starting a little earlier, maybe that's because all the other seasons are starting at different times now too (still as a result of climate change)? Saying it's a 'false autumn' suggests that there may be another, true autumn later in the year. But we are coming towards the end of what is traditionally considered summer, and it has been a very hot summer. So, isn't it just the beginning of autumn, maybe a couple of weeks earlier than ususal? These are just my thoughts on the matter, and may well be completely wrong. Also, autumn is my favourite season, so maybe I'm being overly optimistic.

It's still a bit too hot (for me), and I realise that some people love the summer and enjoy the heat, longer daylight hours etc. And some people find the autumn and winter difficult - changes is amount of daylight, it gets a bit colder etc. But I love that! I hope it is that autumn is starting a little earlier this year, and I hope it gets a bit cooler soon. (I also hope that it's not too late to fix the damage we have done to the world.)

The Rat is Back

 We're finally at the end of the heatwave. It's cooler today, but very humid, and we have warnings for thunderstorms over the next few days. The birds are a bit more active in the garden today, I think they've managed to throw some of their food from the feeder across the lawn (which is all yellow/brown). The rat (who occasionally visits the garden, usually when the grass is longer) has come back today and is eating all the seeds off of the ground.

I know I should be ok with it, and I'm really trying to be. I have a bit of an issue with rats...I'm really not keen on having one in the garden! The poor creature is probably just hungry (as most fruit and vegetables etc. haven't really grown very well because of the heat and lack of rain). If I just ignore it, maybe it will just go away once it has finished eating the seeds that the birds have spilled. As my husband keeps telling me...if we're going to live somewhere rural and insist having a wildlife-friendly garden, I'm probably going to have to accept all wildlife....including the rat.

 

A visit from a badger

We are coming to the end of a heatwave. It's going to get to about 32 degrees today, but should start getting a bit cooler by the middle of this week. Windows are open, fans are on and we are trying to keep the house cool. Plenty of bowls of water have been put around the garden for any wildlife. Basically, it's far too hot and uncomfortable!

We have been putting the wildlife camera outside for the last few nights, and a bager has been visiting the garden! We used to get them in the garden several months ago, but I was a little concerned that they weren't around any more. However, it seems that at least one of them still comes into the garden and has a wander around.

I love seeing the badger so much! Before we lived here, I'd never seen a badger in the wild before. I'd seen one at a wildlife rescue place, but that was it. They are smaller than I'd imagined they were, and quieter. One morning last year, I managed to wake up at around five o'clock, had a look out of the window and saw the badger having a snuffle around the garden....it was lovely to see.

I'm still a little concerned that we haven't seen or heard the fox (who used to visit quite regularly) for quite a while, but hopefully he or she will be back again soon.

Return of the Blue tits

 We are currently in the middle of a heatwave, it's going to reach about 26 degrees again today. Personally, I struggle with this weather....I hate the heat. I'm definitely more of an autumn/winter person. We're putting out bowls of water for all the wildlife in the garden, which the sparrows seem to enjoy, and making sure the bird bath is always full. I'm trying to water all the plants and trees every day, but everything is drying out very quickly. However, in the last couple of days, the thistles and the teasels have started flowering.

A few days ago, I briefly saw a blue tit in the garden. I was so pleased to see it! We haven't seen any in the garden for months, not since the incident with a local cat (see earlier post). Then yesterday morning, there were two little blue tits on the bird feeder. Obviously, it's quite unlikely that these are the same blue tits that were nesting here before, but it's still really lovely to see some visiting the garden again. My neighbours probably think I'm insane....I think they heard me yelling, 'There's TWO blue tits!' while I was in the kitchen, making some tea.

I hope it cools down a bit soon, not sure all my trees will survive....the leaves are starting to look a bit crispy. Actually, I really hope we get a decent amount of rain soon. I think all the wildlife in the garden is struggling a bit.