Category: Nature

Dragons and Damsels

Dragonflies and Damselflies

From warmer days in May onwards you could find Dragonflies in your garden. Whilst it helps if you have a pond, they can fly some distance so most gardens will receive a visit. Dragonflies are bigger insects and usually rest with their wings stretched out at 90 degrees to their body. Damselflies are much daintier and mainly rest with their wings alongside their bodies.

If you do not have a pond the best places to see the larger Dragonflies are either the pond in the Community Orchard off Station Road or the Salmon Leaps. One of our largest Dragonflies, the Emperor, can be found on the Salmon Leaps ponds, patrolling up and down and catching smaller insects in mid-air. If you walk through the woods to the Salmon Leaps you might also see two very attractive Damselflies, the Banded and Beautiful Demoiselles.

Dragonflies lay their eggs often under water or near the surface and the larvae can take anything from 2- 3 months to 5 years to mature during which time they are voracious predators eating worms, snails, leeches, tadpoles and even small fish.

 

 

When ready to emerge the larvae climb up vegetation and the adult insects breaks out of the larval skin. You will often see exuvia on these plants which is the remaining skin once the adult has flown off. Dragonflies were one of the first winged insects to evolve and this was around 300 million years ago and some of these were the size of our seagulls.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Donation of a Moth Trap

Wenvoe Wildlife Group

The donation of a Moth Trap to the Group by the Vale Nature Partnership has dramatically increased the number and variety of species we are finding and recording. Most moths fly at night and whilst we do find some of the day-flying moths or disturb some resting night-flying ones when we are gardening, the vast majority of moths go undetected. A moth trap includes a prominent light which attracts them and they drop down into an area where they will settle until the morning. Once the moths have been checked, identified and/or photographed they are placed carefully in vegetation where they will not be predated by birds. On the first night we put the trap out we had 8 species, with 20 the following night including the Buff Tip in the photo. And this is still quite early in the season. The traps will often attract other flying insects and we get a good number of Garden Chafer beetles every night.

Our Green Flag judge will be inspecting our sites in mid-July and we have quite a bit of work to do to bring them up to standard. Any notices in our sites or on our noticeboards that have not been put there by the Group will be removed although we will be sympathetic to any applicants after the judging who wish to put a notice up which has a wildlife or community association. We have planted 20 Silver Birch trees donated by a contact in Penarth and some Stachys or Lambs Ear. The latter is in the hope of attracting Wool Carder Bees which like to use the hairy fibres you get on this plant but also Mullein and Yarrow. Plants added to the small Goldsland Meadow include Birds Foot Trefoil, Milkwort, Common Gromwell and Kidney Vetch.

We shall be leading a short walk around the Upper Orchid Field on Tuesday 6th July starting at 2pm and meeting by the wooden gate at the bottom entrance to the field. This is to celebrate National Meadows Day and is a chance to find out why meadows are so important and what has been and will be happening on the field. All welcome including dogs on leads.

 

 

Feeding The Worms

FEEDING THE WORMS

by Danusha Laméris

Ever since I found out that earth worms have taste buds all over the delicate pink strings of their bodies, I pause dropping apple peels into the compost bin, imagine the dark, writhing ecstasy, the sweetness of apples permeating their pores. I offer beets and parsley, avocado, and melon, the feathery tops of carrots.

I’d always thought theirs a menial life, eyeless and hidden, almost vulgar—though now, it seems, they bear a pleasure so sublime, so decadent, I want to contribute however I can, forgetting, a moment, my place on the menu.

 

 

 

Garden Wisdom for July

THE VILLAGE GARDENER

Stella Gardening Tips for July

Wenvoe Kings Of The Road have a secret passion for all things flora. Firstly Dai (The Ditch) Cannon gives us his tips on keeping on top of things in the garden.

  1. Don’t worry, there’s always tomorrow.
  2. Deadhead roses to keep them flowering.
  3. If you are stumped by trying to name a plant, organise a quiz, someone will know.
  4. Give Dahlias a feed and keep well watered.
  5. The plants we buy on a whim never get looked after like the ones we intended to buy.

Roger ‘Triumph’ Davies tells us about things to do in July.

  1. Autumn king carrots can still be planted to prolong the harvest.
  2. Feed and deadhead roses.
  3. Remove whippy side shoots of wisteria
  4. Cut as many flowers as you can off your sweet peas to put in vases as the more you cut, the more they flower.
  5. If you’re buying shrubs at the garden centre, don’t take the motorbike,

The Soil Association is a charity which was formed in 1946 to promote the use of organic solutions for keeping soil healthy and safe to use. They work with farmers and growers to change some of their practices.

Some soil facts.

  1. Soil stores more carbon than the atmosphere and all forests,
  2. Healthy soil can help prevent flooding.
  3. Every minute we lose the equivalent of 30 football pitches.
  4. It can take up to a 1000 years for a single centimetre of soil to form.

One of the Soil Association’s main recommendations is that we try to keep the soil covered at all times, most of the year it’s not a problem as plants cover the soil. During the winter they recommend that we use a thick layer of mulch, green manure crops or old blankets to cover the soil to prevent erosion.

We are asked to help wildlife in our gardens where we can. One of the most fascinating mammals to see is the bat. A simple bat box and some night scented flowers, such as evening primrose to attract moths, and it won’t be long before bats are coming to your garden at dusk.

Try not to let seed pods form on sweet peas yet or they will stop flowering. If you would like to see sweet peas at their grandest, then the rear garden of Mr Crumps in Rectory Close is a must. Keep up the deadheading of bedding plants and repeat flowering perennials. July is a good month to take hydrangea cutting, cut off a non-flowering stem just below a leaf joint and stick it in soil. Watering is a task that we have to undertake especially if you have a lot of pots. thick mulch on the top of pots will help reduce the evaporation.

On the allotment and in veg gardens watering can sometimes be a choice of which plants get watered, especially if you have to carry it a fair distance. Lettuce, rocket and spinach will bolt and go to seed if allowed to dry out. Gardeners will be harvesting some of their fruit and veg this month, as well as planning for later this year and the following spring, seeds like lettuce, beetroot and carrot can be sown along with winter cabbage and kale, plus some potatoes for Christmas dinner.

Take care and happy gardening.

 

 

Native Variety Water Lilies

Native Variety Water Lilies

If you are tempted to include a water lily in your pond there is a wide range of colours and types to choose from in the Garden Centres. But what about our native varieties?

One is the White Water Lily which looks just as you would expect a water lily to be. This is a common plant of still or slow-moving ponds, streams and canals but you would need a big pond to accommodate one. The leaves or lily pads can be up to 30cms across and the flowers 20cms – this is the UK’s largest flower. It can grow in water up to 5 metres deep. It has been used medicinally for centuries, including by monks and nuns as an anaphrodisiac.

Then there is the Yellow Water Lily, looking more like a huge Buttercup, and also called Brandy Bottle. Bees enjoy it which is great but, again, you need a very large pond or slow-moving stream for it. A good place to see it is the Glamorganshire canal at Forest Farm, Cardiff

The Fringed Water Lily is another variety and is the plant that the Wildlife Group have included in their newest 750 litre pond. It is native to certain parts of England but not Wales although it is well-established in some ponds, particularly on Gower where you can find it in Broad Pool. It is suitable for smaller ponds but botanically is not actually a member of the water-lily family. It is one of the Bog -Beans which you will also find in the same pond. Available to purchase locally.

 

 

Haiku Competition Result

Wenvoe Wildlife Group

 

Red Kite flies blue skies 

Brown rabbit runs green meadows

Colours of Springtime

This was the winner of our Haiku competition and the creator was Paul Thomas. Thanks to all of you who responded.

Many of you visited the Tuckers plant sale which raised over £1,000 for the Wildlife Group. Our thanks to everyone who donated raffle prizes, bought plants and other items on the day and donated their change. Particular thanks to Gordon and Elizabeth Jones, Eric White, Mary Lucas, Bethan Darwin, Joyce Hoy, Judy McDonald, Michelle Morgan, Leslie Sherard and Justine who

manned stalls gave donations or donated items for sale on the stalls. And not forgetting the two without whom none of this would have happened – Mike and Glenys Tucker. Watch this space for updates on how the money is being spent.

And a final thank you to Ann Daniel who donated a bench. This has been refurbished and repainted by Mervyn Greenwood and now sits in the Goldsland Orchard which is rapidly becoming a very popular spot to sit and take in the views.

 

 

Village Gardener Tips for June

THE VILLAGE GARDENER

Stella Gardening Tips for June

Tips from Heulwyn Davies of the cherry tree garden.

  1. Grow more veg in pots, it’s so easy and tastes better than flowers.
  2. Think of the future and put in some raised beds.
  3. Sow pansies for Autumn flowering this month.
  4. Gardeners will always share their Knowledge, just ask.
  5. If you’re planning to purchase a greenhouse. Get the biggest you have room for, as they soon fill up.

 

Brian & Sandra Jones of open garden fame. Best practice.

  1. A little often is a good way to keep the garden looking nice.
  2. Forward planning will cut down on wastage.
  3. Do not plant out until temperatures are right and constant.
  4. Keep a diary along with photographs.
  5. It is so important to label everything.

 

There is still plenty of time to plant out your summer bedding. If you are in any doubt just check on Mr Crump and Mr Williams of Rectory Close as they are well known for getting it right. It is always better to wait until conditions are suitable. The same goes for vegetables. Although some veg are tolerant of poor weather others, especially runner beans, are not. A later planting time will save you a lot of work protecting these plants and you are guaranteed a better crop. You should by now have some empty trays and pots, so it’s time to sow Polyanthus, Primrose and Pansies in the greenhouse and outdoor sowing of Alstroemeria, Canterbury Bells, Sweet William and Wallflowers for strong plants next year. Make sure you get rid of leftover Forget-me-Nots before powdery mildew takes hold as this can affect other plants. Cutting back alchemilla mollis, Geranium and Heuchera if they start to look raggy, new growth will soon come back.

One of the hardest infections to halt in the veg garden is potato blight. This is an airborne fungus type disease that attacks the foliage, then the tubers, it will also affect tomatoes. Wet and humid conditions bring it to the plants and once there it is near impossible to manage. Brown marks on the leaves are the first sign and it spreads rapidly. Good air circulation can help prevent infection, so please leave at least 30 to 40cms between each tuber when planting. Do not leave any potatoes in the ground when clearing as the disease can infect the following season’s crop. Early and blight resistant varieties are the best option.

The Sexton at the church has been conducting trials on different compost bins to establish which produced usable compost in the shortest time. The type which sits on a cradle that you turn weekly was, by a long way, the most efficient.

The plant sale in Vennwood at the start of May went really well. Luckily for me Sue Williams of Wenvoe Wheelers was on hand to prevent the Village Gardener selling weeds as flowers to unsuspecting customers.

Take care and happy gardening.

 

 

Theft Continues To Be A Problem

Wenvoe Wildlife Group

Whilst we are making progress on several fronts, theft continues to be a problem. In the first incident on the Upper Orchid Field, three newly-planted trees were stolen. The individual chose the trees they were taking carefully and replaced the spiral rings and bamboo supports so that it would look as if nothing had been removed. The pattern of theft suggests that this could be the same person who took plants from a front garden on Old Port Road recently. In the second incident on the same field some logs which had formed an impromptu picnic area have disappeared, again presumed stolen. As with other similar incidents, the police have been notified.

However most of our news is positive as residents and visitors continue to enjoy the orchards and other sites. The blossom on the various fruit trees is coming along and should be spectacular during May. Two new ponds have been installed, the larger one 750 litres. We have received over 100 plug plants of native wildflowers (locally sourced) and these will be planted in Cae Ysbyty, a small patch of a field near Goldsland Farm. Hospital Fields were very much a part of traditional Welsh Farming where sick cows could graze in a species-rich field, many of the plants acting medicinally. Some of our new plants include Birds Foot Trefoil, Betony, Vipers Bugloss, Cowslip and Wild Thyme. We shall be litter-picking on our 10 sites at the end of May as part of the Keep Wales Tidy initiative – Spring Clean Cymru. Green Flag judging has been affected by Covid and will now take place in June.

 

Oak Apple Day

Oak Apple Day

Saturday 29th May is Oak Apple Day so don’t forget to celebrate our wonderful oak trees. Take the time to admire them, give them a hug, write a poem about them or paint or photograph them. If you have children, make sure they can identify an oak with its very distinctive leaves and its acorns. You won’t have to go far to find them as they are in the school playground next to the pavement.

So what is Oak Apple Day all about? When Prince Charles (the Stuart one!), who was eventually to become King Charles II, was being pursued by the Parliamentarians (Roundheads) he hid in an oak tree near Boscobel Hall in Staffordshire. The oak is still there and is known as the Boscobel Oak. Those who supported the restoration of the monarchy would wear a sprig of oak and if you did not you might have your bottom pinched – so, Wenvoe – beware! The day also became known as Pinch-Bum- Day. It is celebrated in many places with processions and the drinking of beer and eating plum pudding. The nearby Battle of St Fagans in 1648 between the Royalists and Parliamentarians was probably the largest battle ever to take place on Welsh soil. There are an estimated 467 pubs in Britain called the Royal Oak, most featuring an Oak Tree, Prince Charles or a Crown and some with Parliamentarians prowling in the vicinity. It is possible that the Royal connections took over a much earlier pagan tradition.

There are two native oaks in Britain. The more common around here is the Pedunculate or English Oak – Quercus robur. Then there is the Sessile Oak – Quercus petraea – which is more frequently found in the North and West of Britain, often on higher ground. To tell them apart, the English Oak has its acorns on stalks, the Sessile Oak has them attached directly to the twig. But, as always, just to make things awkward, the two species do hybridise. An impressive total of 1,455 Sessile Oaks have been planted recently in Whitehall Quarry. There are many types of non-native Oaks planted in our Parks and larger Gardens including the Turkey Oak.

But what is an Oak Apple? It is a gall, that is a malformation in the bud, leaf or twig of a tree caused by tiny wasps or fungi. The common gall on Oak is the Marble Gall – this is hard and looks very much like a Malteser. Many people think these are Oak Apples but they have only appeared in the last couple of hundred years and need Turkey Oaks to be around as part of their life cycle and they were only introduced to Britain in the 1700s. The Oak Apple is much less common and is only very occasionally seen around Wenvoe. It is much larger than the Marble Gall – up to 4 centimetres across and is soft and spongy. One very similar to the one shown in the photo was found near Goldsland Farm. If you come across one, do let the Wildlife Group know as they can then be recorded. In the meantime, celebrate your Oaks and wear your sprig with pride!

 

 

Star Gardening Tips for May

THE VILLAGE GARDENER

Stella Gardening Tips for May

Alex Cooper’s tips from the force

  1. Edge the borders to keep them neat and tidy.
  2. Don’t sow all your veg at once , spread them out to prolong the harvest season.
  3. Pine needles make a good mulch for camellias rhododendrons and azaleas.
  4. Leave a hoe by the back door to remind you of weeding.
  5. Check your soil PH so that you only purchase plants suitable for your soil type.

Dilys Jenkins gardening knowhow

  1. Water plants early in the morning.
  2. Mulch the top of pots with bark or stone to aid water retention.
  3. Planting runner beans this month will produce the best crops.
  4. Make sure you level the soil in trays before planting seed as all good nursery people do.
  5. Grow sunflowers in partial shade. They will grow taller searching for the light.

The Chelsea chop is a method used by nurseries after the London show to rejuvenate their perennial plants. Many perennials flop by midsummer, rudbeckia, helenium and sedam can be cut back by half, resulting in a bushier plant that will flower slightly later. Gwen Williams of the walled garden uses this technique every year to give a longer lasting display.

Dahlias and canna lilies can be put outside now. Cut back aubrieta, alyssum and candytuft to encourage new flowers. clear away forget-me-nots to prevent over seeding. Tie in shoots of rambling roses, lay the stems horizontally to produce more flowers and side shoots. Lift and divide clumps of daffodils. Tulip bulbs take a bit of work to keep every year. First snip off the flower as it fades then allow foliage to die back, lift the bulbs and dry on newspaper, store in a cool dry place ready to plant out in the Autumn. Keep the sweet peas climbing by tieing in the shoots. Be sure to feed container plants every 2 to 3 weeks. Take cuttings of fuchsia and softwood cuttings of sage. Deadhead lilac as flowers fade; to do this wait until you see the two shoots below the faded bloom start to swell then snip off the flower just above.

At this time of year most of the ground on vegetable gardens and allotments are covered in new growth. Keep sowing peas and carrots every few weeks to prolong the harvest season. Take the tips off your broad beans once the pods start to form to prevent blackfly. If you can bear to do it, take the blossom off your newly planted fruit trees so that they can establish properly during their first year. Keep raspberry canes tidy by pulling up shoots that are too far away to tie in. If you’re using netting to protect your crops please secure it properly to prevent any wildlife becoming trapped. On the off chance that you’re wondering what to do next on the veg plot, just have a look at the allotment of Colin Thomas. His book on high altitude allotment gardening is at the publishers.

When the garden centres opened in the middle of March, people were chomping at the bit to buy plants. We then had a cold spell over Easter where the plants bought, which had previously been kept in warm temperatures before, were now exposed to cold northerly winds. To add to the plants’ demise the first minister told people they could now go on holiday within Wales. With good, dry (albeit cold) weather forecast, the poor plants didn’t stand a chance. So back to the garden centre to line their pockets.

Take care and happy gardening.

 

 

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