General Chat

Oh dear Mayfield... I am sorry but I am laughing here at the image of half a dozen grey squirrels furtively trundling wheelbarrows full of sunflowers, lolol

Jean, I think I need to protect my young Rowan, don't I? They do run up and down that fence, you see.....

TW you are absolutely right... they brought in some horrendous stuff... and we are still doing it now... the blight that is currently decimating Horse Chestnuts came into this country from overseas somewhere, and it is spreading like wildfire... many trees are dying, I have lost one of the three here, and the other two definitely have it now, so they might be for the chop as well. My garden is planned around the shade they give, as well!

~~~ to Hoff... yes, I do hope they are not wiped out... it would be such a shame.

Love

Daff xxxx

Yes Daff, most of our horse chestnuts are bare by June, have been for the last three years. Some damn moth larvae eating them.

Not to mention Harlequin ladybirds, which have somehow got here in their millions....and threatening our own various species of native ladybirds.

The numerous grey squirrels here have chewed through the string of two half-coconuts and made off with them! Only put them up on Monday!
I will not bother to buy any more.

I first noticed the trees in Gloucester when I lived there, 5 or 6 years ago it started, I think... mine were a bit ropey when I moved here to Newport 4 years last Sept, but as it was September that was sort of ok, but although they start really well the following Spring, within weeks they are all brown and shrivelled... and the moth larvae attacks other things as well, it's a blinking nuisance.... and at first I thought it might have been us that brought it in, but it wasn't according to the tree surgeon (drools a bit)

but it isn't just the moth... it seems there are another two diseases.. one is fungal... and they believe that each on their own, a healthy tree might recover from, but not all three together. For one of them, there is no cure... although they think the tree might grow out of it eventually... for the others, the cure is so drastic that people would have to be moved out, and it would destroy the surrounding flora and fauna, so no can do there on trees 150 years + old!

I could weep sometimes!

Love

Daff xxx

Daff - I know all about 'em - just not sure if it's safe for me to say it these days ...

Greys are a variety of blacks.

Greys and blacks are aggressive and will take over squirrel habitat from reds. You have greys only because some wealthy Victorian nincompoop imported a pair and released them into the wild in England.

Where I grew up, in London, Ontario, the central downtown park - Victoria Park, actually ;) - was full of red squirrels. They are now gone.

I used to have loads of both black and grey in my backyard in the downtown area where I now live. I've never seen a red here. The population has declined since the huge soft maple in the next yard over was executed to make way for a townhouse development five years ago -- this year I have two blacks and one grey who climb the wall to my second-floor office window daily for whatever I have to give them. And the blacks, at least, have taken up residence in the space behind the knee-wall in my third floor bedroom, and kick up quite a fuss regularly. We're just hoping they don't dine on the wiring until we can afford to do something about them.

The blacks are also hostile to the greys, and usually win any battle over food and territory, even though they tend to be smaller. (Reds are smaller again, as I recall.)

I understand that in parts of England there are bounties on blacks, to try to preserve the red population.

Not much one can do personally to protect the reds, I guess, except try to give them special attention for feeding and such if they're around. It would be a shame to see your reds go the way of ours.

Hi daff weve' had plenty this year as useall in Peterborough they have been digging all my plant pots and hiding nuts in them and all around the garden to its quite funny to watch them as half the time they forget where they have hidden them lol Jean

Hi Daff - St Mary's Churchyard down the village is full of grey squirrels - they are all over the place there - they've been nibbling the fruit and nuts on the wreath I put on Lawrence's stone!! I just love watching them and always take the opportunity to walk through the churchyard when I'm down there

we had nothing but red squirrels when I was a child - years before I saw a grey one and now there are no reds, but I gather there are some around the UK now

never seen a black one Janey

A squirrel is just a rat with good PR.

Until she died (at 95 - good genes!), my grandmother lived in the little house she and my grandfather had bought 40 years earlier.

She had one red tulip by her side walk, up against the house, that bloomed spring after spring.

She'd never planted red tulips. But her neighbour across the street had.

Squirrels enjoy landscaping. ;)

When I visited England in '97 I saw one red squirrel. Unfortunately it was a dead on on the road.

Here in NZ we have problems with a lot of the things that were introduced by the settlers way back before my time (i.e. in the 19th Century). Gorse was brought in to form hedges. Now it forms forests. Rabbits breed like ......well, you know what they breed like and a d.... pest they are. Likewise hares. And as for the Aussie possums *@#%@. Some of the garden plants have become pest too. It is no longer permitted for plant shops to sell most varieties of Agapanthus. Cotoneaster is another pest. The list is endless.

Huia.

Agapanthus!!! I adore mine - have two large pots of white ones and one pot of blue - they are gorgeous!!

It's rhododendrons they have problems with particularly in Scotland where they have taken over vast swathes of the countryside

Yes, Ann of GG, I can understand Rhodos taking over Scotland. They are a native of the Himalayas so Scotland would be more to their liking than further south.

Huia.

As for the agapanthus, I used to have them lining our drive, but when my OH found them marching down the road he decided they had to come out, the ones down the drive plus the ones down the road. He was also waging war on the cotoneasters that the birds spread everywhere.

Huia.

Hiya Ann... I was down that way a couple of days ago... saw your car in the drive, but was on an errand, lol.... we must meet up for coffee again.

I have a vague recollection of red squirrels around Melyn Griffith area when I was a teenager... so they haven't been gone from the area that long.... long enough, though.

Janey, they are quite aggressive, aren't they? One used to wait for my cats to be let out when we first moved back into this house... and then hurl conkers and twigs at them.. it was just so funny, but the poor cat was terrified... we had three then, and two took it in their stride, but the one, normally fearless, was reduced to a trembling heap. No problems now though.... she has gone back to being fearless again, lol Yes, the Victorians have a lot to answer for, don't they?

Jean, I know... every year I find baby Horse Chestnuts growing in the oddest of places, lol.... hanging baskets... compost heap, etc etc, lol

Love

Daff xxx

Huia, there are a lot of rhododendrons in the south too, especially the new forest.

I love the look of them, but again they are invasive.

This Horse Chestnut problem is soooo similar to the dutch elm disease that decamated our Elms in the 70s.

Sorry.... hubby came in as I was typing the last post... so I left it, fed him.... and submitted just now... didn't realise others had come onto the thread in the meantime.... I wasn't ignoring you ,honestly!!

Sharron, you may be right... but the red is much shyer and gentler than his black and grey cousins.... I'll give good pr if ever one came into my garden, lolol ;¬))

Hello Huia, how are you? that is the problem when we move plants from one environment to another... if they like it they can take over completely, to the detriment of everything else in the area, such a shame... the invaders!!

I love Agapanthus, too, Ann... don't have one, not yet, anyway, but the weather is getting brighter, and soon I'll be thinking about gardening!

Janey.... I have rellies with good long-lived genes, as well.... the others just got in the way... here's to us inheriting the long-lived ones, lol

Love

Daff xxx

~~~~~~~ to TW.... I love Rhododendrons, too and they seem to do ok in my soil... so I'd better watch them, I have gone for hybrid small ones, to stop them getting too big... fingers crossed!!

Love

Daff xxx

if ever you're passing and "just call in" Daff which you are more than welcome to do, just because I subscribe to Good Housekeeping means nothing - I have taken the advice a friend gave me - keep three Get Well cards to hand and if someone calls unexpectedly, put them on the mantlepiece and say you've been ill!!

I'll phone first, Ann, to give you time to put them up, lolol.... xx

My sister bought me a little plaque, Housework won't kill you but why take the chance* another bought me a fridge magnet saying *My idea of housework is to sweep the room with a glance*

The best one is *if you want the best seat in the house, you'll have to move a cat* lolol

Love

Daff xxx