I'm still getting regular visits from a pair of Mallards. He usually watches while she stuffs her face. This morning at 4.45, OH said the male was asleep in the middle of the pond,but he couldn't see her, but then her disguise is better in half light. No sign of any eggs or ducklings. If she's laid them by the canal. they must have other egg or duckling sitters. When I got up, he had gone.
Magpies were the main cause of duckling demise when we lived at the mill Wonky, foxes targetted the adults. When I was a child on the farm moorhens (or Waterhens as my Pa called them ) would drown mallard ducklings by swimming under water and pulling them under by their legs - but I like moorhens
As you say - the Circle of Life
Right, off to Cromer - will someone keep an eye on my tomato plants in the little greenhouse please?
Have a good day folks
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Back from GC, well I needed a new watering can got two already but no hose since Flynn tackled the old one
Two more Potentilla got stuck to me, and some more Pelargonium and Argaranthums? Did I spell that correctly? Just too pretty and I needed to fatten out my chocolate Cosmos display in a large pot because I invested in 5 early in the year and 5 became 1 still, 1 is doing really well, just needs friends
I know the Potentilla aren't a WOW shrub, but it's a soft shade flower for my inyourface middle garden. Red is a difficult colour to get right and everything there is built off my red climbing rose.
Talking of red, the red Hydrangea leapt at me again today, it went straight in my trolley but I was good and put it back because the label says ericaceous soil and mine is only just neutral. I don't like the pink ones
Thanks for posting your pics Hosta. Shame about the ducklings but as everyone has said it's natures way. Have you thought about a duck house on a raft on your lake
Verdun don't make Winter go out again, she's already been. Nice haul Winter.
Got rained off so invented a dessert, custard brioche sliced and layered with home grown stewed rhubarb,more brioche the milk,egg, and vanilla, cross between bread and butter pudding and I don't know what.....but oh my gosh!!!!! and now the rain has stopped! If only my stomach would bend, I could plant, but.....
Hi Verdun, couldn't tell you the name of the hydrangea but it's okay, I did some research myself and you are right, reds are along the same vein as pinks but I'm a control freak and apparently these plants can feature several colours on the same shrub, and colour saturation is problematic. I might try a green one, I will think about it.
Spent all afternoon potting up my summer displays and letting them grow on a bit in coldframes. The next door neighbour's children were playing with their ball and the rule is one time. If the ball comes again they know not to bother asking. I've had plants squashed by flying balls but today they managed to kick it into the kitchen! I told the boy no more chances. Wish I didn't have to be so mean but they don't learn otherwise and they have no respect for anything.
Got to take my youngest to college open evening and sign him up for some A levels
Posts
Mr Fox got one of the adult Canada geese a couple of years ago.
They had 6 decent sized goslings about 2 days after I first saw them on land and after 24 hours, the other parent had abandoned them and flew off.
I reckon he got mum and dad gave up.
I said exactly that wonky, baby foxes need feeding too (and they do a great job of keeping down our rabbet warren population.)
I'm still getting regular visits from a pair of Mallards. He usually watches while she stuffs her face. This morning at 4.45, OH said the male was asleep in the middle of the pond,but he couldn't see her, but then her disguise is better in half light. No sign of any eggs or ducklings. If she's laid them by the canal. they must have other egg or duckling sitters. When I got up, he had gone.
Magpies were the main cause of duckling demise when we lived at the mill Wonky, foxes targetted the adults. When I was a child on the farm moorhens (or Waterhens as my Pa called them
) would drown mallard ducklings by swimming under water and pulling them under by their legs - but I like moorhens 
As you say - the Circle of Life
Right, off to Cromer - will someone keep an eye on my tomato plants in the little greenhouse please?
Have a good day folks
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Back from GC, well I needed a new watering can
got two already but no hose since Flynn tackled the old one
Two more Potentilla got stuck to me, and some more Pelargonium and Argaranthums? Did I spell that correctly?
Just too pretty and I needed to fatten out my chocolate Cosmos display in a large pot because I invested in 5 early in the year and 5 became 1
still, 1 is doing really well, just needs friends 
I know the Potentilla aren't a WOW shrub, but it's a soft shade flower for my inyourface middle garden. Red is a difficult colour to get right and everything there is built off my red climbing rose.
Talking of red, the red Hydrangea leapt at me again today, it went straight in my trolley but I was good and put it back because the label says ericaceous soil
and mine is only just neutral. I don't like the pink ones
Now to pot up my summer bedding
P'S love the Gunnera Hosta !
Thanks for posting your pics Hosta. Shame about the ducklings but as everyone has said it's natures way. Have you thought about a duck house on a raft on your lake
Verdun don't make Winter go out again, she's already been
. Nice haul Winter
.
Got rained off so invented a dessert, custard brioche sliced and layered with home grown stewed rhubarb,more brioche the milk,egg, and vanilla, cross between bread and butter pudding and I don't know what.....but oh my gosh!!!!!
and now the rain has stopped! If only my stomach would bend, I could plant, but.....
Hi Verdun, couldn't tell you the name of the hydrangea but it's okay, I did some research myself and you are right, reds are along the same vein as pinks but I'm a control freak
and apparently these plants can feature several colours on the same shrub, and colour saturation is problematic. I might try a green one, 
I will think about it.
Spent all afternoon potting up my summer displays and letting them grow on a bit in coldframes. The next door neighbour's children were playing with their ball and the rule is one time. If the ball comes again they know not to bother asking. I've had plants squashed by flying balls but today they managed to kick it into the kitchen! I told the boy no more chances.
Wish I didn't have to be so mean but they don't learn otherwise and they have no respect for anything.
Got to take my youngest to college open evening and sign him up for some A levels
SYL