When the ducks are let out in the morning
they are mostly content to use the ablution facilities provided
But two young Muscoveys, in spite of being subjected to a number of wing clippings, fly off to find grander waters
They take their time
and try to conceal themselves in the reeds
before leaving the waters
and walking back up through the meadow
asking for the gate to be opened
so they can rejoin the flock
where they are interrogated on their absence
Ulmus Wingham = a complex hybrid elm cultivar featuring two Asiatic and two European species, bestowing it with an exceptionally high resistance to Dutch elm disease. Raised by the Istituto per la Protezione delle Piante in Florence, Introduced to the UK in 2011 by Dr David Herling, Resistant Elms, who trialled it successfully at Wingham in Kent. Later trialled by Hampshire & Isle of Wight Branch, Butterfly Conservation, as part of an assessment of DED-resistant cultivars as potential hosts of the endangered White-letter Hairstreak. Released for sale in the UK in 2019.
Robin = a complex human being combining the gene pools of Cole and Smith bestowing him with exceptionally high curiosity. Raised in the fair town of Oxford and introduced into the wild at Gribin Isaf as part of a two-year-olds plant trees assessment.
Waxing Crescent – Wolf Moon due January 10th
Between the solstice and the turn of the calendar
time is in flux
the weather is balanced
not sure which way to tip
Mists swirl and flow
the future is obscured
The rain ceased (temporarily), the sun shone, and the world glowed:
We did not plan 2019 to be The Year of The Rabbit
these things just happen.
They are ending the year leaving their “summer” quarters
where they are quite happy
but which can be less pleasant for us in the cold and wet
and
after much labour
are moving indoors
Taking up residence today are the bucks Rory
and Stewart
neither of whom seem all that sure about the change.
The does are not being subjected to that stress just yet
as one of them, Easter, is currently under vets orders
Twenty-five years ago Gribin Isaf was a green field, identical to the sheep grazing all around. Within a few years, under earlier custodians, it was being developed to grow vegetables and increase diversity – this picture dates from 2000
Many trees were planted and they have transformed the site:
Included in the broad mix of native trees, to get some growth going quickly, were our landmark Eucalyptus and a number of conifers
which now look like this
We have approached any tree removals with caution, but today entrusted the wonderful people from Tree Mendus to remove these two
to open up a new space
One of the few trees at Gribin Isaf that predates that planting is this mature Ash
Through storms of the last few years it had collected a few broken and twisted limbs
So Tree Mendus gave it a bit of a tidy up
So tonight, by the nearly full moon,
when the Starlings assembled to head off to roost
they found a slightly trimmed perch
but hopefully one they will keep going for a few more years
Every winter flocks of exotically marked birds come from all over Eastern and Northern Europe to visit us
Their numbers build as word spreads
that people here actually provide free food for birds
They pay for this bounty with sweet song
and entertaining antics
bringing energy to these dull days
Gribin Isaf 