Misty, Icy Weather

Temperature dropped to -5.3C at one point in the early hours of the day with freezing fog. It has stayed below 0C all day with a cold mist. The area looks as though Nature has added its own Christmas decorations to everything.







I don't think the spider webs will be catching much ..



It always surprises me that this is the time of year the corkscrew Hazel starts to produce its catkins ready to open when Spring warmth returns.





Some shots were a bit hurried as my fingers were freezing but at least there was no snow, yet, so walking about was easy.

Corkscrew Hazel

Some of the catkins on my Corkscrew Hazel bush are opening as are the flowers.



I brought one piece indoors to take some close shots.
The crimson flowers are minute as can be seen here:




A macro shot of the male catkin which produces the pollen.




A macro view of the minute female flowers.



There are several flowers in each bud.

Catkin Time

The catkins on my corkscrew hazel bush are forming well.

Composite from three close shots:



Composite of four photos taken through the microscope:
Top two are of the outer surface.



Bottom two are of the inside of the catkin.
All taken with the iPhone 6s
Composite pictures created using the Mac app Photo Tangler.

Heard but not seen this morning was the song of our local Mistle Thrush.

Whoa. It's Not Spring Yet

I just spied one of the tiny flowers opening on the Corkscrew Hazel bush. It's a bit on the early side to say the least. The catkins haven't started to open up yet:



It looks like a couple of weeks ahead with temperatures hovering around 0C while the weather system brings cold air from Siberia. Snow warnings have already been issued for next Tuesday on this coast.

I am Oliver

I have had a standard version of this for about three years. Can't say it has come to much. In spite of the label saying they are tolerant to -30C new growth on mine had died back each Winter so I've moved it to a spot where it gets the Sun for longer each day and should be a bit better sheltered from any cold winds.

At the moment it has catkins which looked interesting enough for a bit of focus stacking. First I tried taking some hand held photos but they were pretty useless so in the end I set up the 50D with 70-200 zoom lens plus Raynox macro lens with LED ring light on a tripod:



The results made using Zerene Stacker:



These two with a bit of added colour emphasis in Serif Affinity Photo Beta:





Not fully in focus but still quite nice.

Bugs, Blooms and Frog Spawn

This morning I made my daily check of the pond to see whether any frogs had appeared. No, still no sign of any. I did get a clear view of one of the resident newts for a couple of seconds so I am now certain that at least one survived the winter. It was in view too briefly to get a photo though.

There are a few fish in the pond and I spotted a couple of fry which cannot be all that old as they are about 2.5cm long. Just as I was watching one of them it suddenly started darting about very haphazardly. Closer inspection showed that it had been caught by a Water Boatman which was intent in making a meal of it. That took me by surprise as I hadn't thought of Water Boatmen as being carnivorous. At least not until I checked with Wild England.





I had been looking out for signs of 'minibeast' life in the pond and this was the first I have seen this year. By Summer there will be lots of Water Boatmen and Pond Skaters about.

Despite the thermometer showing 9 degrees my hands were getting frozen holding the camera so I had a quick tour round the garden and came back in for a well needed cuppa! On the way I could see that the catkins on the Corkscrew Hazel are now fully open and that a clump of Muscari were looking at their best.





A couple of days ago there were scores of small flies appearing everywhere and I thought I was photographing one on the inside of the kitchen window ... until I looked at the results. So - one unidentified bug, size about 9mm:



Later:

Well knock me down with a feather!! I thought I heard croaking a couple of days ago but saw nothing. I have just had another look in the pond as the Sun had come out again and there it was. A nice big dollop of frog spawn.

In the main pond:


As the fish in the pond normally dispose of the tadpoles before they are big enough to survive I had prepared a nursery pond in an old water feature with plants and water from the main pond. I have now transferred a lot of the spawn along with sludge and water from the main pond. Next job will be to build a secure area in the main pond for the tadpoles as they hatch. Easier said than done. I tried last year but all the tadpoles managed to escape into the main part of the pond and I don't think any reached maturity.

In its temporary home:


Nest Box Update:

What are the Blue Tits up to? Bits of moss in - bits of moss out. Bits of straw in - bits of straw out again. Feathers appearing - feathers disappearing. Gradually there is more moss appearing in one corner of the box. They are certainly still active in the box - just so much dithering!

Present state of affairs:

Buds a Bursting

Looking round the garden yesterday showed more evidence of nature's awakening. I was catching up on the gossip with my neighbour when I noticed the tiny flowers, no more than 3mm across, on the Corkscrew Hazel. Although the bush has been there for a few years I had never noticed the flowers before but it had been fairly well buried behind other plants which I had removed last Autumn.

Corkscrew Hazel - catkins opening - tiny red flowers
(All photos can be seen larger by clicking on them)



Also in evidence were some flower buds on the Salix Flamingo and leaf buds just opening on a dwarf standard rose.



Finally on a close inspection in the fruit cage I could see flower buds opening on an early fruiting Blueberry bush and signs that the Blackcurrant bushes were coming to life. The Blueberry bushes are grown in large tubs of lime free compost as there is a lot of chalk in this area of Lincolnshire. I am hoping they repeat last years bumper crop.



I just hope that they are not starting too early as temperatures are expected to fall again over the coming week with forecasts of frosty nights returning.

A Mild February Day

I spent the morning tidying up in the fruit cage. I might feed the birds and encourage them to visit the garden but they are not really welcome to help themselves to my blueberries and blackcurrants so I have those in a large walk-in caged area. While I was pottering about the garden I saw a Bumble Bee visiting a crocus flower. I think that was only the second one I have seen so far this year.

This afternoon as the Sun was shining for a change and the temperature had reached 11C I took the camera with me on our afternoon visit to the cricket field. In one distant field there were several horses; most standing so the cold wind was behind them.



In another field were a few sheep. Only one of the lambs was in view.



All the time Bobby and I were on the cricket field we saw little wild life. Just a couple of Rooks and the odd Rabbit.



I've always been fascinated by the contrast between these trees. The poplar being more pliable is able to bend with strong winds. The older tree has lost one of its twin trunks and the other has been shaped by the prevailing winds.



As we left the one thing which reminded me that Summer is a long way off yet was the sight of a magnificent Weeping Willow seen here as it is today and compared with last Summer.



Returning to the front garden I saw that there were more catkins and that the Mahonia was giving a good display of yellow flowers as were some crocuses.





Finally, just as we about to go back in the warmth, I spotted another Bumble Bee, well maybe the same one I saw this morning, visiting a heather plant.



So at least there are signs of Spring awakening even if I do have to wait a few months for Summer.