Beckenham nature and garden watch

[dickensman]

The magpies are four-handed now and showing up in the garden on a daily basis, I would like to thin them out but they are very wary, if I so much as touch the back door they are off before I get out.

The blackbirds are wary of them and disappear more readily when they are around.

The 12 inch deep rain-gauge is almost full, the last time I emptied it was the first of August, so we have had less then 30cms since then.
We had that much in June.

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[dickensman]

Lovely garden Nick and discovering that you are a photographer comes as no surprise judging by your earlier offerings.

I have never seen a woodpecker in my garden but I do have the odd jay drop in, blue and great tits are regular visitors.

The Blue tit got his own back on the robin by taking some peanuts that I put out on the arm of a chair for the robin just outside the window so I can refill it from within.

He flew over to the chair and helped himself then disappeared. I thought it rather clever he helped himself when the robin was picking up peanut off the floor whilst blue tit was gathering of peanut off the chair.

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[nick]

I have to confess dickensman that I do take pictures for a living so I have some decent equipment which really helps.

However this is a quick iPhone picture out of my office window, I love how green Beckenham is in general and spend as much time looking out at this as I do working on my computer. I have lots of evergreen plants and trees in my garden so it doesn’t change too dramatically at this time of the year when the leaves fall.

My main visitors are squirrels and pigeons and neighbours cats at night which do a lot of digging and make a mess. I caught them on a night vision camera that detects movement in the garden. Like you I get a lot of very tame Robins and I had Blue tits nesting in our little dovecot this year. I also had a fox looking into the living room through the patio windows this summer in broad daylight. I do get occasional Woodpeckers and Jays as well.

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[dickensman]

More excellent photography from Nick, good shooting.

I am no fan of foreign interlopers and see them as a potential threat to the local song bird population.

If I had a magic wand I would wave them all back to Oz.

Three parakeets flew over the neighbours house screeching and twenty pigeons which had been resting there, suddenly rose as one off the roof.

Pigeons are substantially heavier but they were obviously intimidated or they would not have left their roost.

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[nick]

What do you think of these interlopers? are you a fan?

Took this from the bedroom window.

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[dickensman]

A pair of magpies have taken more interest in the garden recently, so I will have to find some way of thinning them out which is not easy, as they are very wary birds.

They prey on songbirds, ravage their nests containing eggs, and eat their young when available, other than that they make lovely garden visitors.

When we had gamekeepers roaming the land they used to be kept down as pests.

They would trap them in a such a way so keeping them alive to call and complain to their relatives, which attracted them to investigate and they would get trapped also.

Sadly the gamekeepers are seldom seen these days so the magpies flourish, may have to revert to culling with my two-two.

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[dickensman]

Thanks for the video Alice I will need some instruction from my daughters to get the pictures the computer, but in the next week or two I will supply photo’s.
PS dickensman please Alice as dickensian makes me sound like I’m a hundred and seventy just one hundred too many.

Meanwhile back in the garden last night was the first night of frost the shed roof was white over but I have not planted the delicate apricot trees yet, so that’s alright then.

The blackbirds were arguing with there adult son who doesn’t want to leave, they both flew upwards facing each other and squawking then back to the ground.

Since that little episode they have been pecking away at the pear which is a first this year, I suspect their son wanted to scoff it.
Although there are grapes outside for them they are more interested in pears now.

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[beckenhamlife]

Hi Dickensian,

We are all loving the daily narration of your garden, do thank you for your post & thank you for the details of the gardeners you use.

It would be wonderful if you could perhaps post some photos of what you see, it’s easy to do, here is a video that talks you through.

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=16

Many thanks
Alice @ The Beckenham Forum

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[dickensman]

I saw the little wren hopping about yesterday, he has found the gap between the existing wall and the new one.

An expansion gap was left and that is just enough to let the wren through, but little else.

A very handy gap for a wren if you are avoiding the sparrow hawk.

Robin seems pleased that the sparrows which were dominant on his patch have now found somewhere else to live,

as I have not seen them for a few days.

The plan to grow apricots against the wall has changed slightly, as apparently I need a structure over them to maintain their life during the frosts so I shall have to think about that.
It has to be something which is easy and simple or I fear it won’t get done.

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[dickensman]

The feisty robin was challenged by a gang of sparrows yesterday.

The sparrows thought that anything on the ground was fair game and did not belong to robin, so they gave him the runaround by taking any scraps they could find.

He is a lone wolf and cannot possibly take on the group which recently left a very spiny bush across the road as their habitat, but it has been pruned and they do not feel they get the protection and cover they need so they wandered over and chanced their arm.

There is no sign of them today but robin is very much in attendance.

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[dickensman]

I have started to throw out the odd ripe pear for the blackbirds to peck, they are quite picky as they only seem to eat the Conference, but leave the Comice and Williams.

I guess I’m over indulging their whims as they appear to be getting too much too easy!

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[dickensman]

The front garden has been attended to by oli’s team by cutting out some hugely grown grass that has been there for years and an apple tree which started life a couple of years ago quite vigorously…..and then started to look rather sickly.

I am changing it at the suggestion of Nigel to a russet, to see if I can raise it to maturity it has to be a dwarf as it’s a small space.

In the garden of my neighbour’s house lives a large conifer which has recently become a perch for some ring-necked parakeets and their screeching, many of these exotic birds have ear-aching calls. I heard on one of the nature programme’s that there is a roost of 5000 birds in west London near Wormwood Scrubs so it is appropriate they come from Oz.

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[dickensman]

The robin is finding things tougher, as the new patio covers some of the ground which he considers table so he is not best pleased with the disruption.

The blackbird was here before anyone had arrived this morning, anxious to take a couple of grapes but being the first to peck over the newly upturned earth from oli,s spade.

There will be more good fortune for Mr blackbird very shortly as the dwarf plum has to be dug up and moved into another bed which has more space for the dwarf to grow into a giant.

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[dickensman]

Nigel and his son oli pronounced olly of Exterior Design Gardens 07961 888 253 have worked on my garden for the last 4 years they are very good at straightening out the garden after a hard years growing.

This time they are laying a blue brick patio and path from mainly left overs of the wall project. They also prune and cut back the apple, greengage, plum and cherry trees and turn over any earth that needs it.

I am having a couple of apricot fans planted in front of a newly built and my first ever, south facing wall which I am dead chuffed with. So Nigel and oli are stringing some wires across the brick peers to tie the fans to.

Built by David Buchanan 075075 62681 and 0779 559 5954
and his team, my only regret is I should have done it years ago when I first moved in, but it’s pointless dwelling on the “if only’s”!

 

 

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[alice marsh]

Do let us know who you use, always good to get a recommendation from some one. thanks

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[Author]

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