[Auntiemogs]

I feel like I'm missing out here as it all seems to be going on at Mum's this year...

She went to water the strawberries yesterday, and had to rescue a small (2ft) grass snake, which had become tangled in the netting.  Half an hour of patient snipping and it shot off under the shed.  Netting now disposed of - I do wish she'd checked it wasn't an adder first though (not that it would have made any difference...

[devonbarmygardener]

Ripe sloes in a hedge in a field at Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire we noticed this morning

[snowdrops]

Garden club talk on bats tonight,the lady brought a hand reared bat for us to see then took her bat monitor(yes really) outside to see if she could detect any bats nearby & there was one flying round the pubs garden that you could see very clearly. A pipestrelle she informed us. Also a lovely kitten that I entertained so it wouldn't have a swipe at the bat.

[Springlands]

Garden club talk on bats tonight,the lady brought a hand reared bat for us to see then took her bat monitor(yes really) outside to see if she could detect any bats nearby & there was one flying round the pubs garden that you could see very clearly. A pipestrelle she informed us. Also a lovely kitten that I entertained so it wouldn't have a swipe at the bat.

What a lovely evening Snowy - that is one thing that I have missed this year. We have had very few bats flying around the garden in the evening. 

[Springlands]

Ripe sloes in a hedge in a field at Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire we noticed this morning

So autumn is slowly arriving. OH and I were out yesterday morning and noticed that the trees at Mount Stewart (National Trust place) were on the turn. And the grains in the fields are all a lovely golden colour.

[tosca100]

Ripe sloes in a hedge in a field at Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire we noticed this morning

So autumn is slowly arriving. OH and I were out yesterday morning and noticed that the trees at Mount Stewart (National Trust place) were on the turn. And the grains in the fields are all a lovely golden colour.

How quickly we forget. The grain/rape harvest has been in for weeks here, a sign of summer rather than autumn. Next in are sunflowers which are looking pretty sick in the fields at the moment. We are already eating pears and apples.

[snowdrops]

Garden club talk on bats tonight,the lady brought a hand reared bat for us to see then took her bat monitor(yes really) outside to see if she could detect any bats nearby & there was one flying round the pubs garden that you could see very clearly. A pipestrelle she informed us. Also a lovely kitten that I entertained so it wouldn't have a swipe at the bat.

What a lovely evening Snowy - that is one thing that I have missed this year. We have had very few bats flying around the garden in the evening. 

It was a real treat

[devonbarmygardener]

Ripe sloes in a hedge in a field at Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire we noticed this morning

So autumn is slowly arriving. OH and I were out yesterday morning and noticed that the trees at Mount Stewart (National Trust place) were on the turn. And the grains in the fields are all a lovely golden colour.

The fields are looking amazing in all this sunshine this year. It reminds me of my childhood when summers seemed to be proper summers. 

[tosca100]

AS we tend to go to bed before it is very dark in summer we don't see a lot of moths. But this huge hawk moth (having trouble finding out which one) was attracted to Dave's torch when he let the dogs out later than usual. A real beauty.

[jay001]

Tosca it looks like a privet hawk moth to me . . but I could be wrong ! 

[Snoop]

Garden club talk on bats tonight,the lady brought a hand reared bat for us to see then took her bat monitor(yes really) outside to see if she could detect any bats nearby & there was one flying round the pubs garden that you could see very clearly. A pipestrelle she informed us. Also a lovely kitten that I entertained so it wouldn't have a swipe at the bat.

What a lovely evening Snowy - that is one thing that I have missed this year. We have had very few bats flying around the garden in the evening. 

It was a real treat

Interesting. Just the other day I saw a flock of half a dozen or so bats swooping around outside, but they were the first I'd seen all year. We used to have them swoop in and out of the windows and get stuck sometimes in corners. Glad that hasn't happened this year (yet), but it was good to see them.

[jay001]

we have had bats each summer evening over the rear garden but alas nothing this year . . and our garden and park squirrels are missing !!

[tosca100]

Tosca it looks like a privet hawk moth to me . . but I could be wrong ! 

 I have looked at so many photos but the wings are so much more clean cut with sharp veins than most of the pictures. Unfortunately there are a lot of hawk moths with a similar body. Pretty amazing thing though, makes a huge amount of noise.

[RubyR3d]

It has speckled grey wings and has brown colouring rather than pink on its abdomen. Its a convolvulus hawkmoth.

[jay001]

a few shots from the rear garden yesterday in-between the rain showers . . just playing with the macro settings on the new camera .