First day of Spring

[DJ360 6,729]

I've tried that Margie but without much success.  It seems that pollen doesn't have to move from flower to flower.. but just within the flower, as flowers have both male and female parts.

[Cliff Ton 10,465]

Half way through January and daffodils along the canal are nearly flowering.

 

[plantfit 7,594]

Snowdrops out in the village church yard

 

Rog

[MRS B 520]

Spring must be on the way, I’ve just seen my first bee of the season buzzing away on my pulmonaria flowers. They love them. Onwards and upwards! 

[philmayfield 6,130]

We’ve just been to Newark. Kelham road is closed so we had go down the Old Gt. North Road. It was just like the seaside. Water for miles on both sides. It’s well over the bank at Fiskerton on the far side but the road is passable.

[IAN FINN 808]

Nice to see a bee Mrs B its a good sign.

[plantfit 7,594]

I found a bumble bee on my garden path when I came home from a bike ride on Monday, poor thing hardly moving so I went in the house and put a drop of honey on a tea spoon, went to where the bee was and carefully picked him/her up, offered the tea spoon with honey to the bee and wow, from the front of its head/mouth came a black tube like thing and from that out came it's tongue and it started to "drink" some honey, anyway after a few minutes it stopped drinking and after a few more minutes it stretched it's wings and started to flap them, a couple more minutes and it took off buzzing away like a good un, I had seen pictures and video's of this sort of thing but to actually witness it and be a part of it was amazing, so if you happen to see bees struggling at this time of year just give them a helping hand with a drop of honey or sugar and water it really does work

 

Rog

[IAN FINN 808]

Your good deed for the day plantfit good job.

[plantfit 7,594]

I tell you Ian I felt so humbled that day

 

Rog

[MRS B 520]

Awww well done Plantfit, I’ll remember that tip, I bet that made your day!

Mrs B..ee 

[Beekay 5,143]

Sounds like youv'e earned your 'Good Deeds' badge for this month Rog. You can open a Bee rescucitation hospital, for wayward migrant bees. You might even get a grant from the council.

[plantfit 7,594]

7 hours ago, Beekay said:

You might even get a grant from the council.

Only if the bees came here on a rubber dinghy mate

 

Rog

[Oztalgian 3,291]

17 hours ago, plantfit said:

I found a bumble bee on my garden path when I came home from a bike ride on Monday, poor thing hardly moving so I went in the house and put a drop of honey on a tea spoon

A single bee only produces about one twelfth of a teaspoon of honey (0.8 grams) in its life-time. We would very quickly get into negative equity if we did this to every bee we found. Worker bees only live for 15-38 days during summer and up to 200 in the winter. I do my best to save them when they try to commit suicide in my pool when after a drink of water. I lift them out and put them on the pool coping to dry out. When dry most of them fly away quite happily.

[Beekay 5,143]

You mean you don't give em a free rub down and massage?

I would have thought you could lay on sunloungers for them to relax on Oz.

[plantfit 7,594]

50 minutes ago, Oztalgian said:

 I lift them out and put them on the pool coping to dry out.

The poor bumble bee I was talking about was on my path in cold weather, it was struggling to move because he had no or very little energy after emerging from it's hole in the ground where it had probably spent most of the winter, I just couldn't leave it there to die and had to do something and that is what I did, I don't think the human race is in any danger of dying out because I potentially wasted 0.8 gram of honey on a potentially dying bumble bee but at least I potentially gave the poor bee 15-38 days of life

 

Rog

[Oztalgian 3,291]

This sums up the bee issue

 

[Jill Sparrow 10,305]

A few days ago, a friend of mine noticed two birds fighting in the gutter near to his house. As he got closer, he realised that one of them was a sparrowhawk, attacking a smaller bird. He watched as the victim managed to evade its attacker and flew up into the air, only for the sparrowhawk to pursue it and drag it down again. My friend approached the two birds and made a loud noise to scare off the sparrowhawk. When it had flown away, he crouched down to look at the 'prey'. At first glance, he thought it was a blackbird. It was lying with its wings outstretched, clearly terrified, a few feathers pulled out or ruffled but alive and kicking. He scooped it up and examined it closely. It wasn't a blackbird. Once he saw the beak, it was clear that the bird was a young corvid, possibly a jackdaw as there is a well-established colony nearby. The bird was placed in an area near to the colony, where it would be camouflaged and able to recover from its ordeal. What puzzles us is the presence of a young corvid in February. Jackdaws breed during March/April and only raise one brood per year. Climate change, perhaps?

[philmayfield 6,130]

I noticed that yesterday, driving towards Nottingham. Hawthorns into leaf, lots of blossom. It seemed to have happened almost overnight. Our grass is about 10" tall, thick and lush but still too wet to cut

[trogg 2,016]

Can anyone help me , my fruit trees have started budding but the problem is that pigeons have been feasting on these. I have never noticed this before, is it normal as they seem to be at it all day or is it me not paying attention for years.                                                                         

[Beekay 5,143]

Yes Trogg, we watch them down yer ! A nice bit of fresh salad for the little buggers.

[MRS B 520]

Trogg, an air rifle or a catapult might solve the problem. Pigeons unfortunately will feast on anything young and sweet. So annoying.

[Oztalgian 3,291]

4 hours ago, MRS B said:

Trogg, an air rifle or a catapult might solve the problem.

I'd love either one of those to get rid of the pesky Indian Mynah's, an introduced species, that bullies all the smaller native birds. I was a dab hand at potting the odd pigeon with my gatta back in the day with rejected ball bearings supplied by my dad when he worked at Ransome and Marles in Newark after the war.

[Brew 5,416]

10 hours ago, MRS B said:

Trogg, an air rifle or a catapult might solve the problem. Pigeons unfortunately will feast on anything young and sweet. So annoying.

Shooting or harming wild birds is illegal, even pigeons and seagulls, unless you can meet certain conditions...

[Cliff Ton 10,465]

It must be the first day of spring because the council/contractors are out cutting the grass in public areas.

[MRS B 520]

I wasn’t actually being serious when I suggested an air rifle or a catapult folks!