Winter to Spring
Winter then Spring?
It was indeed another strange winter stroke spring. November seemed not to come until January, then mid-winter came in March. This winter I experimented with the Madeiran Echium. This is now six years old and has a twisted, broad, fibrous and branching stem. Each winter so far i have given it protection from cold rain and snow. Each winter this protection has become less comprehensive - for 2006-2007 it consisted really only of a 'roof'. This last winter I gave it none at all. It has become too big to build the bamboo pole tent stuctures I've done in the past. So be it - see what happens. Of course, everything was fine until the codl snap in March - but even then only the tips of the leaves were 'greyed-off' and some of the emerging flower buds a little stunted. It has continued to bud new leaves and the flower buds will probably become branched and shorter, but still beautiful. It may not be such a grand show as last year.
The frogs didn't bother about the weather and were spawning tumultuously for the open day (if you pushed through the rain to see them). They gave a good show for the schools that came before and after the worst of the weather, though. There were good numbers again. I thought the population might go down again after the peak last year (the highest since 2000 when the pond was rebuilt; in 2004 & 2005 there were very few - I rescued the spawn from the jaws of the newts those years or there may have been no young frogs in 2005 - 2006).
Pictures coming next time.
The frogs didn't bother about the weather and were spawning tumultuously for the open day (if you pushed through the rain to see them). They gave a good show for the schools that came before and after the worst of the weather, though. There were good numbers again. I thought the population might go down again after the peak last year (the highest since 2000 when the pond was rebuilt; in 2004 & 2005 there were very few - I rescued the spawn from the jaws of the newts those years or there may have been no young frogs in 2005 - 2006).
Pictures coming next time.