At last! After what seemed weeks of wet and windy weather things have finally warmed up. Despite the barrage, the garden has held up pretty well and is now awash with poppies, ox-eye daisies and other wild flowers.
Another flower which has turned up under it's own steam is wild clary; a beautiful blue meadow flower. We've a whole trayful of seedlings waiting to be pricked out in the kitchen from last year's seed. Behind the pond we've had a bit of a surprise for some pale flax has appeared. This is quite a scarce plant so we'll be sure to collect seed from this too.
Action from the emerging dragonflies has slowed down to a trickle of late, though we still get a steady stream of broad bodied chasers and damselflies passing through. The other day I watched as a sparrow swooped down and snatched a hatchling from the bankside vegetation. The dragonfly's death means a meal maybe for hungrey chicks of course, it's the ones taken by the neighbourhood cat which leave me feeling sad. The water in the pond has become crystal clear thanks no dought, to the masses of hornwort and millfoil which have spread like mad below the surface. As a result, the pond has revealed new treasures such as this larvae which is probably the young of the southern hawker dragonfly seen laying eggs last year. I've no idea what the strange creature below left is.
Miniature froglets have emerged from the pond, and can occasionally be found hiding in the damp margins, whilst upon the surface water boatmen have really grown in size. Watching their actions you can really see their aggressive nature. A few days ago I also spotted the water measurer again and managed to take the shot below right.
Under a terricotta pot we discovered a mass of ants hurridly protecting their pupae. Gently replacing the pot we left them in peace. Little grasshoppers have begun to appear in the meadow whilst on the great mullein a group of colourful mullein moth catapillars are growing fat. They've made such a meal of the plant I'm unsure of it's chance to flower.
Last but not least, late one evening a hedgehog paid a visit to the garden. Hidden beneath the hedge we couldn't see it alas, but we could certainly hear it! Hedgehogs are often heard before sight; I love hearing their unmistakable array of snorts and snufflings.