Jouijthbsefo
As autumn leaves fall so does the temperature,
Time to prepare
meaning it’s time for both you and the wildlife in
your garden to start making plans for winter.
Country&BorderLife’s resident wildlife gardener
Jenny Steel is already reacting to the change...
OCTOBER’S A WONDERFUL AUTUMNAL It’s a time when birds are moving from their
month that truly spans the seasons. breeding territories and searching for food
We might experience an occasional flash of further afield. I’m more likely to see small
summer, but glimpses of cold weather are a flocks of birds such as pied wagtails, which
constant reminder of the winter ahead. visit the pond, or whole families of
I may see an occasional swallow passing bullfinches feeding in the hedges.
over my garden in the first few days. If the Birds that had been moulting, and
weather is warm, bumblebees will still be therefore less in evidence, also reappear this
taking nectar from late flowering month, and our yellowhammers in particular
helenium and echinacea in the borders. sit on the hedge tops in all their canary
Butterflies, especially red admirals yellow glory.
and small tortoiseshells, continue to visit The days are quickly growing shorter,
the verbena bonariensis and ivy flowers, which means I can expect to hear the
but by the end of the month frosts will local tawny owls calling throughout the
have changed the landscape around evenings. These birds start to nest as
me, and my hedges will have the russet early as February, so a lot of territorial
colours of autumn. hooting goes on now.
This month all sorts of bird species Other creatures are preparing for winter
return to my garden, to take advantage of too, and the local grey squirrels are busy
wild seeds, honeysuckle and cotoneaster burying hazelnuts from the adjacent wood all
berries, windfall fruit and of course – peanuts, over the lawn. Each spring I pot up any that
sunflower seeds and other foods I provide manage to germinate to grow on to fill in
for them. gaps in the boundaries.
Last year, fieldfares and redwings – the But in general, it’s the birds in the garden
Scandinavian cousins of our song and mistle attracting my attention this month. As the
thrush – arrived early to quickly demolish the species around the garden change and the
holly berries and they made quite an impact leaves begin to fall, I can no longer ignore the
on the hawthorn too! fact that winter is on its way.
Jenny Steel lives in the south Shropshire Hills, where she is busy establishing a natural garden with wildflower meadows, an orchard, ponds
and nectar borders, all to encourage and support wildlife. For further advice and tips, visit her website at
www.wildlife-gardening.co.uk
Country & Border Life October 2008 95
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114