A sad end to 2010

We end 2010 on a rather sad note at The Regent’s Park Wildlife Community Garden. Jill Dickens, a long standing and devoted volunteer passed away on the 27th December after a battle with illness over the past few months.

Jill loved our garden, devoted many hours to it and it will be hard for us all to imagine not having her never ending energy and enthusiasm encouraging us all to put in some extra effort whenever it was needed.

When it seemed unlikely that Jill would be able to return to work in the garden, an oak tree was planted as a gift to her for all the hard work and devotion she gave.

She will be missed by us all.

Of all the trees that grow so fair, Old England to adorn, Greater are none beneath the Sun, Than Oak and Ash and Thorn. Sing Oak and Ash and Thorn, good Sirs (All of a Midsummer morn)! Surely we sing no little thing, In Oak and Ash and Thorn! Rudyard Kipling

Autumn

Autumn is taking hold in our garden and there is lots of work to be done.

Leave clearing takes up a lot of time, clearing out the bird boxes is another chore and thinning out and tidying up the beds is also on the 'must do' list.

Our pond has had a rough time lately, so this week we've been planting around the border to encourage wildlife back. As you can see from the picture, leaves love our pond too. It's important to clear these otherwise they will rot at the bottom of the pond.

If you're thinking about adding a pond to your garden, check out http://www.pondconservation.org.uk/

Remember, when clearing up the leaves and debris, to check for hedgehogs. They love to hideaway in a bundle for the winter. WIth bonfire night looming too, please double check that none of our spiky friends have wandered into the wrong place. If you find one and don't know what to do, please contact http://www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk/

100th Post!

We celebrate the 100th blog entry with a some vibrant colour. As summer fades away, there is still plenty to see in our garden. The sunflowers are basking in the sunshine and the garden is full of wildlife including egyptian and canadian geese, bees, bats and plenty more.

Work has begun on renovating the pond. It didn't survive last winter and funding has been found to replace it with a new one ready for the next season. Ponds play an important role in the biodiversity of any wildlife garden. The provide breeding space for dragonfly, frogs and toads and are source of water for birds and mammals. If

you have space, think about creating your own. More information can be obtained from various organisations including http://www.pondconservation.org.uk/

We also have good news for cyclists. Users of Boris' bike scheme will be delighted to discover we have a bike docking station next to the entrance to our garden. (Just visible in the photograph above. There are three in The Regent's Park area, the other two are at ZSL London Zoo, one opposite the main entrance and the other in the main Zoo carpark. So, next time your pedalling around town, pop in and see our garden!

Burst of colour!

While the summer moves on and the grass goes brown from the sunshine, there is always something adding a little colour to our garden!

Blooming marvellous!

Even though London has been struggling with some very unseasonal weather, life continues to flower at the The Regent's Park Wildlife Garden.

All those long cold winter mornings with volunteers struggling to work through the rain, bitter wind and snow have paid off!

Come and see the results soon..........

Bursting with colour!

The warm weather has certainly woken our garden up! Just a few of weeks ago, it looked a little tired and in need of some tender care.

This week it looks splendid with blossom everywhere, late flowering daffodils and enormous amounts of bird activity as they devour the tasty food on offer. As well as the usual birdsong, chiff-chaffs could be heard chirping loudly too.

Finally, it was a delight to discover some rare native plants growing. Fritillaria meleagris, common name snake's head fritillaries can be seen enjoying the Spring sunshine.

Busy day!

Volunteers have been busy today planting a hazel copse in the wildlife garden close to the entrance. We're hoping that this native species will provide a green and pleasant covering for this once bare area that will prove attractive both to the birds and wildlife as well as our human visitors.

Sightings today included: Gt spotted woodpeckers (2), long tail tits (2), great tits (6), blue tits (6), greenfinches (2), egyptian geese (2), swans (4), coots (2), parakeets (2), crows (6), jays(2), magpies (3) and robin(1).

Attracting the birds in the city

Many visitors to our wildlife habit live in central London and don't have a garden. However, don't put that off you feeding the birds at home!

Purchase a simple window feeder (available from the RSPB, WWT and all good wildlife organisations), fill it with good quality food (premium sunflower seeds attract an array of birds) and place it in a good window, away from any ledges that can be reached by cats and wait.

You may be lucky and get birds visiting your home within hours, though it's usual to wait a few days. Be patient!

Once you start feeding the birds, remember to fill the feeder regularly: once they start visiting, they begin relying on you for food, so don't let them down!

Somewhere over the park......

Meanwhile elsewhere in The Regent's Park, after the rain poured one of our volunteers snapped our first rainbow of the year spanning the canal and into ZSL London Zoo.

Spring.

Spring has finally arrived in NW1 with our Community Wildlife Garden already becoming very busy with wildlife.

The daffodils are blooming, ladybirds have been spotted (sorry...!) and the birds are gathering material for their nests.

In a few minutes our volunteers spotted (sorry again!) woodpeckers, blue, long-tail and great tits, greenfinches, bumblebees and robins.

It won't be long before the swifts arrive and the bats start visiting once again after what seems like a long hibernation.

So come and pay us and the wildlife a visit in our oasis of peace and wildlife in our brilliant capital city.

Birds flock to new feeders!

Two new feeders have been installed at our garden and have proved to be an instant hit with our array of feathered friends.

Blue, great and long-tail tits have been seen in large numbers, our friendly robin is also seen enjoying the feast and two spotted woodpeckers are regular visitors as well.

Pop in soon and see them enjoying the sunflower seeds and nuts!

The big freeze continues!

Work in the Wildlife Garden has come to a halt recently as it, like most of the country is covered in snow!

However, wildlife and particulary birds struggle to survive in these icy temperatures. Our feeders are getting extra attention from both the birds and the volunteers who are filling them as soon as the run out. Sightings this week include long tail tits, great and blue tits and a green woodpecker.

If you can, please put out extra food for your birds and where possible, water. Birds find it very difficult to find fresh water in these conditions, so a small bowl with clean tepid water left out in the morning will help.

Happy New Year!