My 30 Days Wild #30

Day 30 of my 30 Days Wild Challenge! WOW!

I did plan to make more fat balls and I probably still will but here is how I made them on day 8.

Vegetable suet is an ideal choice and here is why; it has next to no salt and sugar, sky high with fat and saturates and a good wedge of calories too.
Perfect for those fledglings!

In a mixing bowl, add 1 part suet to 2 parts seed.

So for every 100g of suet, you need 200g of seed.

You don't have to use just seed; low salt cheese, dried mealworms and fruit are all great to use.
As you can see in my mixing bowl, there are dried mealworms and seed.

Combine the suet and the food...

...until you are able to form balls.

Ta dah! Now to wait for those feasting birds!

My 30 Days Wild #29

It rained, again, today.
Still can't complain, the pond needed topping up and it is by far, better for the pond to be filled with rainwater than from a tap!
Eco-friendly and natural!

Anyway! Do you remember this?

Popular food I thought.
Turns out, a grey squirrel has been spotted on the neighbours roof!

Could explain all the bird seed on the ground...

My 30 Days Wild #28

This rain is to last the whole week apparently!
Very thorough watering mind you!

It's funny really, people don't like the rain so will not go out into it.
Wildlife on the other hand, has no choice. If it rains, they have to get on with life; hunt, forage and even scavenge.

In the end, I watched the rain come pouring down and make wonderful droplets on the windowpane.

My 30 Days Wild #27

It rained all day today but I can not complain, the garden received a thorough watering and the water butts are full once more!

Besides all the rain, I enjoyed a short walk through it and marvelled at my and any other reflections!

My 30 Days Wild #26

What a wonderful day today! The sun was out, the birds were singing and the wildlife in full action!

So, what did I get up to?
Well...

I replanted some carrots after they were thinned out from a couple of larger pots.

Helped dig up all the potatoes from one of the raised beds...

...and replanted it with broccoli and parsley.

Found a tiny long green bean!

And admired this lovely flowering waterlily.

My 30 Days Wild #25

After saying farewell to a good family friend, I took a stroll down by the river and saw alot of interesting things, which included a white duck!

There was a tree which leaned a great deal...

Some fantastic landscapes...

Wonderful fungi...

and peace and quiet!

My 30 Days Wild #24

The weather was much better today so I soaked up some rays during the evening.

It was lovely and warm!

My 30 Days Wild #23

What a miserable day!
But never mind, nature can't mope around and neither did I!

I went for a walk out in the rain, and blimey, it was refreshing!

My 30 Days Wild #22

The weather today was forecast to be storms with the chance of torrential rain. As a result, I spent most of the day inside waiting for these storms to pass.
No storms developed or past my way and late afternoon, the clouds cleared and the sun shone once again.
By this point, it was already too late in the day to start any project or activity.

Instead, I checked on my wild flower seedlings...

Nothing as of yet but I was recommended to use a netted tunnel. It was explained the seedlings will not become scorched or shrivelled and will also have a constant circulation of fresh air.

After, I checked on my bird feeders.

The birds certainly love my fat balls!

And the seed mix from Vine House Farm!

Before going back inside, my bug house caught my eye. I had forgotten to show you the new Pansy garden I planted up on day 17!

I hope you like it!

My 30 Days Wild #21

Today was, again, very warm! the sun wasn't out all that much but you could really feel the heat getting to you!

In comparison to previous mornings this week, this morning was quite chilly so I spent the day inside wondering what I could do for my 30 days wild challenge.

As the weather warmed, I ventured outside and decided to plant up yet more plants.
Here is one of them...

When this blooms, it will produce small orange flowers.

I thought it was about time I planted my wild flower seeds I received with my 30 days wild pack. So following the instructions, I got to work.

Raking the hard ground, loosened the top layer of soil needed to sew the seeds.

Once watered, I covered the area with a small greenhouse to protect it from birds and worse of all, cats.

After, I discovered some herb seeds which were yet to be sewn.
So off I went repeating the same instructions but on a smaller scale.

Over 2 thirds of the way there!

My 30 Days Wild #20

After Yesterday, it was a relief the sun wasn't out! With the temperature reaching 29'C, the cloud cover was more than welcome as I ate my lunch outside, listening to the birds!

My 30 Days Wild #19 Hedgehog Rescue

Late yesterday evening, just as we were leaving Filey, we came across a funny lump in the road.

We instantly recognised it as a Hedgehog though as we approached, the Hedgehog appeared to be an odd shape; not a plump hog scurrying around on all 4 legs but sloped back end with a Hedgehog head at the front.

As my friends ran out to it, mainly to move it from the middle of the car park entrance, they discovered it was dragging both it's hind legs which could only mean one thing; broken.

Picking the spritely creature up, we soon realised the severity of the situation. One leg was clearly swollen and the other, well, lets say it was a good thing my friend didn't take pictures, the other leg had a bone sticking out from it.

Placing the courageous hog into a box, we drove home, wondering had we left a couple of minutes earlier, we would never have seen it and its chances of survival were slim. Worried it would not be strong enough to make the night, we fed it apple. No need to be worried, it demolished the lot!

Finally back at home, a good hours drive from Filey, we re-homed our prickly friend into a bigger box, just for the night mind you!

Fresh newspaper lined the bottom of the box to prevent it's fragile legs from catching on anything.

Clean fresh rain water and VERY smelly turkey cat food were placed in separate bowls and the box we housed it in for the car journey, stuffed with fresh straw, became its bed chamber.

This photo was taken this morning and as you can see, there is hardly any cat food left! This greedy piggy has clearly lived up to its name!

After a major googling session, my friends dad contacted a rescue centre near Dewsbury, called Oggles Hedgehog Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre. We spoke to a passionate lady called Vicky who agreed to meet us at Ikea (an easy landmark!).

Off to Ikea we went with small yet smelly Hodgepig in the back of the car.

Once at Ikea, we handed (what turned out to be) little miss Hedgehog over to Vicky, a caring loving woman who wants nothing but the best for all Hedgehogs.

As all three of us stood, nervously waiting, like a patient awaiting test results, Vicky briefly examined her and confirmed one of our minor fears; she would live but our small lady would lose a leg. Not only that but on closer inspection, she had maggots and unhatched eggs. Fortunately, they could be washed away and removed.

Our lady hog is now in the best possible hands and I couldn't be more relieved. Is it fate we found her when we did or by sheer coincidence?

My friend chose not to take pictures of our short journey together with this miraculous Hedgehog because she did not wish to distress her and neither of us could not bring ourselves to face the reality of what had happened.

Was she hit by a car? Attacked by another animal maybe? Or did someone take it upon themselves to deliberately hurt her?

She will never be able to go back to the wild but she will live a pleasant thriving life in a secure garden under the watchful eye of someone who truly cares.

My 30 Days Wild #18

Blimey! Today was very hot!
After sitting out in the shade outside, it took us the morning to figure out what we could do in heat like this!

In the end, it was to be a day at the beach, so back to the sea I went if only for a day.
For the afternoon, we spent it pleasantly at RSPB Bempton Cliffs.

The views were stunning and the cliffs were filled to the brim with nesting seabirds of every size and species.

The section of cliff the majority of the Gannets occupied, had every nook and cranny filled with either an egg or a chick. As the one parent sat, the partner would return with a graceful landing. With a short beak 'clapping', the other bird with swoop off to take on its parental fishing duties.

The sea was a magnificent turquoise and with weather like this, fish must be plentiful.

Further along the cliff face, Kittiwakes filled the still air with their iconic calls and the odd Puffin could be seen, dumpingly flying from the grass verges along the clifftop.

During the warm evening was a walk along Filey beach. With no wind to chill us, the temperature was just right and a dip in the sea wouldn't go a miss!

With the obvious option for tea and a lemon top ice cream for pudding, it seemed daft not to carry on our stroll towards to Brigg.

Rock pooling was alot of fun. Though we did not catch anything, we saw plenty of salty life lurking under each rock and between the still seaweed.

To end a perfect day, was a glorious sunset.

But not as glorious seen from the top of the cliff.

Simply bliss!

My 30 Days Wild #17

What a scorcher of a day! By far warmer than the last couple of days!
Out in the garden, I noticed more of the edible plants on the nettle mound were flowering.
This time, the clover were in bloom.

I must say, the mound is looking very impressive at the moment!

Before...

After...

After cutting the hedge back a couple of days ago, I rediscovered last years Blackbird nest.
It was a very neat little nest and amazing to think it was home to possibly 4 Blackbird chicks!

Unfortunately, there was a small amount of plastic sheeting woven into the small twigs which formed the delicate nest. It's sad to see that this small piece of plastic may have already been in the hedge or worse, the Blackbird chose to use it as nesting material.

Nest aside, I carried on gardening.
Next up, I planted the remaining 3 tomato plants and hopefully, they will grow into a mini tomato bush!

And I also planted all the potted pansy's round the washing line. We need to jazz it up somehow if it is going to sit in our mini wildflower meadow!

Later on in the evening, after the worse of the suns heat had burnt off, I carried out a mini moth night with a couple of friends.

We attracted alot of male mosquitoes and midges along with 5 species of moth, which included the Swallowtail moth.

My 30 Days Wild #16

Again, not a very busy day. It has been very warm and the heat gets to a little sea lemon out of water!
However, hiding away from the heat of the sun was the last episode of Springwatch Unsprung.

Thank you Springwatch and Unsprung for a remarkable series. Filled with fun, facts and a little bit of daftness! It has been a fantastic 3 weeks!
Roll on Autumnwatch!