Just had my first wild strawberry this morning, a bit later than normal due to the wet spring, the False Acacia flowers are abundant (nice nutty taste), lots of sorrel, hedge garlic, lambs lettuce and watercress, good crop of Elder flowers, hopefully going to make some elderflower cordial on Sunday. It's going to be a good crop of Hazelnuts this year and there was a lot of flowers on the Crab Apple trees.
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Lots more flowers on the fruit trees this year, some of the hazelnuts are already full size, soft fruits such as wild strawberries are already showing a good crop, albeit later than normal. The cold wet spring delayed most things such as the bluebells, but May and early June was very wet, creating rain forest conditions in the woods with growth rates to match, brambles in particular have gone crazy.
Funny you talking about brambles going wild. I was just discussing with a friend a couple of days ago how the brambles around here seem to have been in decline over the last few years. When we were kids Angus and Perthshire were like a WWI front line with ropes of jaggy brambles everywhere like barbwire. Now we're getting hard pushed to find a decent picking spot. Wild raspberries are looking like some good canes this year too.
Sloes have been light on flower in this area too this year, though it looks like a bumper year for the gooseberries - which I LOVE so much.
In the case of sloes, bullace and cherries, I find thousands of sloes, bullace and cherries on the trees to be a good indication
The weather in Europe and the UK has certainly been hard on the wildlife this year, normally the meadow behind would have swallows constantly skimming over the surface, at the moment it's too wet for the flying insects. the birds in our front field are travelling farther to find food, normally there is enough food on the oaks, especially caterpillars, the reptiles are also having a tough time, Iv'e only seen a few grass snakes and a couple of slow worms this year, the front wall of the house should have lizards running around catching crickets and flies.
The cherries are certainly heavy with fruit this year, so hopefully the birds can make up for the poor spring.
I went for a walk around the lake yesterday and saw my first Cep, three months early, there is quite a bit of fungi around at the moment, but little that is edible.
The cherries are certainly heavy with fruit this year, so hopefully the birds can make up for the poor spring.
I went for a walk around the lake yesterday and saw my first Cep, three months early, there is quite a bit of fungi around at the moment, but little that is edible.
I've been watching the first (tame) wild strawberry slowly ripening in my garden for the last week. Turns out the birds were too and they get up earlier than me
Lots of beech mast too developing. Think I'll have a go at pressing some for beech nut oil later in the year. Never done it before but would be fun to have a go.
The marsh Samphire has been very slow to appear in the Loughur estuary this year. I normally expect to be able to start picking some by the end of May, but when I went out on the 9th June the plants were only just breaking the surface. I am hoping that the recent good weather has done the trick and I can get some this weekend.
Well the samphire delivered today, finally. On the way down I checked out my favourite sloe hunting ground and it looks like there will be much gin and sherry making this year.
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