The yellow crocus have appeared in East Anglia in the past week,still waiting for the purple ones. Early snowdrops are going over,but still plenty of good ones. About average for this time of year.

Knapweed is possible,agreed,but from the size of the leaves, i still think cornflower is most likely.
Cheers,Mark.

I am jealous of anyone who lives in fritillary country! But yes,worth a try if you do! Dappled shade for Silver-washed,sun for Dark Green.

I enjoyed the progamme. I was impressed with the Sheffied sites,in particular. I always thought it was a bit narrow minded to plant just native species. A blend with carefully selected introduced flowers,to extend the season,seems to please the wider public taste. The Olimpic park looked good,too.

Stingers,of course! And thistles if you have room. Must be growing in bright sunshine to be of use. Cut down some of the nettles in late May,to give a new flush of leaves for 2nd generation Small Torts.
And a self fertile Holly for Holly blues. Ilex 'J.C. van Tol is good.

Yes,forget-me-nots very good.I forgot forget-me-nots!Well done Susie! If there is room, sallow-willow is good for Peacocks. Although big,there is a small,weeping form avalable Salix capria 'Kilmarnock'.

Without the leaves,i cant do the willows i'm afraid,but the others,in my opinion,are 1 Meadow Buttercup
2 Perennial Cornflower (Centurea montana)
3 Alexanders. Very common near coasts.

I go for Cuckoo Flower and Garlic Mustard,for Orange tips and Green-veined Whites. These plants provide not only for adults, but for the immature stages as well.Honesty plants work too. Plant in sun or dappled shade. Near trees or bushes if you have them. Aubretia is a good nectar source,as is wallf...

Looks like a Spear Thistle to me. It is biennial,and the one in the picture is a year old,which will flower,set seed and die,by the end of August. Good caterpillar foodplant for Painted ladies,and Goldfinches love the seeds.
Cheers all, Mark.

The problem with that bed was they filled it up with mainly rudbeckia, which doesn't really peak untill the summer is ending! Had they used bedding daliah's,which flower from June onwards,and swopped african marigolds for english and single french ones,they may have had a much earlier,longer lasting...

We agree to disagree,Susie! I found todays programme more interesting than the last,because it was aimed at ordinary people,with ordinary gardens, showing them simple measures they can undertake to make their gardens more polinator friendly. Not many of us have a large meadow to play with,but most o...

Hi folks, If growing cuckoo flowers for Orange tips, plant a couple of clumps in different places,to give them a choice. I have found in my sheltered south facing garden that it flowers in April,before the OT females emerge,but in dappled shade they last longer. Must not dry out in early summer. Eve...

It was an excellent peice of footage,but then i have the DVD!
It's great to get it on the programme Paul. This helps to open the minds of the general public to a species many probably no nothing about. Well done.

Wow,that sounds like a fantastic experience, Jack! Around our old home near Penzance,Buzzards were common from as far back as i can remember, but where i live now in Essex,it is only in the last 10 years that we have seen them regularly near our home. This is one of the birds that gives me the very ...

Your buzzards certainly seem to be full of the joys of spring. When we see them soar like that,they seem to be doing it for sheer pleasure,but they are probably re-confirming their pair bond,which, in buzzards,lasts throughout the year,and probably for life. The pair i saw in Sussex today were much ...

Hi folks!
Just back from a short break to our old county of Cornwall. It is with pleasure that i can report seeing a Red Admiral at Cotehele on Monday 16 January,my first January butterfly ever! Basking in brilliant sunshine,there was still frost in the shade!
Cheers,Mark.

Hi Susie, I myself took the long drive from East Anglia to the see the much talked about Starling flock at Brighton pier,and i have to say i was disappointed. It was cloudy and windy,which may have been the reason,but the birds arrived in small groups and went straight under the pier,instead of gath...

Don't do that,Jack! But i quite agree. Neil,you are a credit to Sussex and to conservation.Not least the Duke of Burgundy,in Sussex and beyond.
Keep up the good work and i hope to see you in Sussex very soon.
Kind regards,
Mark.

It may supprise many people living in England and Wales but in fact the weather is, more often than not, better in west Scotland in May than at any other time of year. This is because anticyclones (high preassure systems) often dominate,with east winds bringing the familiar 'harr' to east coast. But...

Yes,i agree,Susie-it's the length of winter that seems to be the killer-long cloudy damp spells when adults are unable to fly, may not do them any favours. It will be interesing to see if any Red Admirals have survived when the real spring arrives in April.
I do hope so!