April08

Wednesday, 2nd

I've got to record this: we've had the full possible complement of eggs today, very exciting.

So that was the pleasing bit. On the other hand I noted yesterday that Circle was limping and frequently shaking her head, and today I saw the white matter over her left eye - the trouble that Chissit had last year. I am a little comforted because both limp and eye seem better today.

Wednesday, 9th April 2008

A week on from the last entry - it only seems like yesterday.

Circle still has a little problem with her eye, but nowhere near as bad as Chissit had it. We've not had any of the ducks limping the last few days, either, although the pirating raids from opposing camps still go on and I break them up as I see them. The groups keep apart just like last year. One more worrying thing: saw a fox going by last Thursday, 3rd.

There was a big event on Sunday: SNOW!

The ducky folk at the top didn't like it at all:

And those at the bottom weren't much keener:

I enjoyed the sight of all that pristine whiteness, though, took loads of pictures like this one - - -

- and at lunchtime it was nearly all gone and we got hail ~ and snow showers mixed with bouts of sunshine.

Wednesday, 23rd April 2008 St. George's Day and John's auntie Norah's 96th birthday!

I'm not getting any better with my entries, am I. Very sorry if anybody was wondering if there was something wrong.

I've had Eleanor staying with me for a week and Annie and Charlotte made the trip from Salisbury and back twice that week, which finished with an absolutely great 70's style party for Andy's birthday last Saturday.

Eleanor was great to have around. She helped with the ducks, of course, but what really amazed me were her building skills with flat-pack furniture. She's not 10 yet! I'm sure she'd never done it before, but she read all the instructions, wielded screwdrivers and other tools and built two shelf units and three chairs entirely by herself while ably assisting with all those I built. And then she put me right when I'd gone wrong on my chairs!

I think I mentioned earlier that I thought Circle's eye injury was not as bad as Chissit's had been the year before. Well, I got very worried about her the Monday after Eleanor arrived when I witnessed a particularly nasty "raid" on her by Captain which was made worse by Blob and Donald joining in - Circle was making pityful noises. I took the decision there and then that I had to separate the two groups again, much as I hate having them apart.

So they've been separated for more than a week now and things have been much easier for the ducks - mainly Circle and Sweetie - who suffered most from Captains frequent pirating raids.

I've not got around to taking recent pictures of the ducks, but Eleanor took loads. Here are just 3; Eleanor particularly liked the "framed" shot:

Sunday, 27th April 2008

It's been a pleasant and warm morning - not as gardening-glorious as yesterday, but still - until the heavens opened this afternoon. First with a belter of a hail shower which had the ducks scurrying for shelter, and then several extremely heavy rain showers. In one of the 4 photos I took you can see how they just stand there and take it.

I've put an arrow here on the left where you may just see the 3 white ducks at the edge of the duck pond.

Talking duck pond - the moorhen has been at it again. You might recall this picture below from last month:
Well, both reed plantings have been bashed about somewhat but remain without nests. However, there's been a lot of activity in the space between. All the buff old growth of the bull rushes has been picked to pieces and is floating all over the pond, the surrounding netting has been bent down AND, most amazingly, two guy ropes including their yellow pegs from the electric fence [the rabbits had chewed through them and they were on the duck hut waiting to be mended] have been carefully arranged in the middle there. I will try and get a photo tomorrow. I really don't know what more I can do to put the little tykes off from nesting in my plants.

Monday, 28th April 2008

I did take pictures of my plantings in the big pond, here's one showing the 2 yellow fence pegs and the nicely woven "string" attached to them:

I was wrong about there being no nest, though. It's in the left hand container [where I'd put the "fake" moorhen in my photo montage], hidden from view at the front.

She's used the dead bits of the bullrushes to make it by the look of it, on top of the dished-in netting I put over the reeds.

Washed out the top hut [with hot water and vinegar] this morning while the adjacent pond was being emptied. Our group of 9 had a splashing good time in it before it was filled again, but rushed off as if guilt-ridden when I approached with the camera. Only caught them a bit later through the dilapidated greenhouse [John has taken the glass out now; it was getting dangerous].

That's Circle, by the way, in the middle, but showing her right, good eye. I tried like mad to catch a photo of her showing her much improved left eye, but she always seems to turn her head or stick it into some foliage at the last minute:

Did I mention some time ago that we thought we'd lost all our fishes to the heron? We'd seen the big bird swooping right by the conservatory on a couple of occasions and couldn't see a single fish for a couple of weeks - they must have been hiding from him. Carl reassured us when he came to meet up with Annie mid-month that he'd seen plenty, and here's the proof:

Last week John started to have the 2 fields cut by gang mower, thus reducing his cutting workload considerably. I think the result looks very good:

While I had the camera out for the moorhen activity I also took a few pictures of the garden. Here's one of the broom, now flowering after you last saw it covered in snow [last photo 9th April above].