Garden bargains.

Don't you just love a garden bargain!
Mr TG and I took a trip up to a local DIY store today because there was 20% discount going on all the gardening stuff, top that with my daughters 20% staff discount and we stood a chance of picking up some bargains.
So what was in my garden bargain bag? Well firstly this Fatsia that was selling at £10 the other day (a price I refused to pay) and I figured the 40% discount would be something I would pay, so imagine my suprise when we found the same Fatsia's outside on the reduced isle already price slashed to £4.00. With the 40% discount I got this Fatsia for £2.40.

Next I have 3 Verbena Bonariensis - £1.75 each before discounts. I've never grown this plant before so it's going to be interesting to see how they cope with these conditions.

Next we got Asiatic Lily 'Vesuvius' in a pot, £3 before discount.

This Variegated Ivy is a bargain in more ways than just the discount on the £2 price tag - this one pot has at least 6 plants in it!

This final plant was Mr TG's choice and I have to say I'm more than a little shocked - it's very .....erm......fru fru!
Don't get me wrong there was a time when I would be drawn to the blowsy plants but even then this Ranunculus would not really be my cup of tea. Lord only knows where I'll be putting them! Still, I guess they were a bargain at £3 each before discounts.  I guess!

I honestly don't know what my hesitation with the Ranunculus is, I like the shape of the flowers (especially the Yellow one) but it may be the colours putting me off, they're very bright but bland if that makes sense?

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Fishtail Cottage
Rooted in Thyme

Another bird ID please and Lamb killers!

This year I'm finding myself far more interested than ever before at spotting the different species of birds in our garden. I've always enjoyed the Blue Tits, Great Tits, Coal Tits etc and we've had the odd visit from Green finches (though not for a coupe of years now), Pied Wagtails, Tree creepers and warblers but it's been a few years since we've seen anything other than the Tits and Sparrows - or so I thought!
I have to admit that until now every brown bird has been classed as a Sparrow to me and anything bigger is a Blackbird or a Starling, however I've been taking a closer look at those birds lately and already know that Tree pipits are here (previously classed as a Sparrow to me).
Today I took this photo

Nothing fancy or spectacular - it's a Song Thrush (I think). What makes this bird so nice to see though is that this is what the RSPB says about it

"A familiar and popular garden songbird whose numbers are declining seriously, especially on farmland making it a Red List species. Smaller and browner than a mistle thrush with smaller spotting. Its habit of repeating song phrases distinguish it from singing blackbirds. It likes to eat snails which it breaks into by smashing them against a stone with a flick of the head."

Red list species, whoda thought it. Even if it turns out to be the Mistle Thrush (I can't tell the difference) it would be an Amber List species.
I'm currently in the middle of building a new feeding station for the garden to encourage more birds in but I'm concerned that history will repeat and I'll be fending off the Rooks and crows again so I put a tester of food out on the table yesterday and look what appeared immediately

There is a Rookery just at the bottom of the field and the darned things are a nuisance. Not only do they eat everything put out but they scare off the smaller species and they also kill the lambs born outside in the field next door (the farmer has indulged me with some awful stories). the owners of the Rookery do let shooters take pot shots at the birds but to me that is the wrong way round things. The shooters shoot into the nests but those nests are 50+ years old and probably like cement so it does nothing. They need to remove the actual nests!
One day I'll be brave enough to get a picture of the Rooks as they swarm just before roosting - it's an unbelievable sight and sound but ridiculously scary too (think 'The Birds').

It seems the Blue Tits have vacated the nest box due to the Sparrows and even the Sparrows have deserted it so that was a pointless fight for them all to get in.
I'd not seen the Blue Tits for a while  then today a pair of them flew into the garden landed near me, looked at me, waited a bit and then flew off again. I like to think they just popped in to say Hi.

War of the nest boxes

For many years I've enjoyed watching the Blue Tits as they nest in my boxes and there is one box that seems to be a particular favourite for them though I have no idea what makes this particular condo more desirable than any of the others.
Anyway I was outside preparing the new flower beds today when I heard birds squabbling at the 'particular' nest box. It seems that a House Sparrow had decided he liked the look of the box and had dared to land on the entry hook - what a furore that started! The female Blue Tit literally attacked the Sparrow (who is 3 times her size) while the male Blue Tit appeared to come from nowhere and dive bombed it. For a few minutes the Blue Tits and the Sparrow were fighting intensely because the Sparrow kept flying back to the box and so many times I saw the 3 of them hit the floor.
Eventually I intervened ( I know, I know I should have just let nature take its course) by walking over to the birds, the Blue Tits flew to a tree next to me while the Sparrow hightailed it out.
I was concerned for the female Blue Tit because she didn't look right so I sat and watched her for a while until eventually she just fell to the floor. I love those birds and I couldn't just leave her on the floor because the dogs and cats were out there too so I gently scooped her up and encouraged her to perch on the nest box.
The poor bird was knackered I think and it took ages for her to actually step onto the nest box hook but then the most amazing thing happened. Thinking I had done all I could I turned to walk away and the tiny Blue Tit flew over to me and landed on my shoulder, not only that but she started chirping and singing away.
I stood there for a while thinking "kkkkkkkay, what do I do now" and I didn't think she'd stay there while I fished my camera back out my pocket (I'd took pictures as I'd encouraged her into the box)  but she did - bless her!

I sat with her until she was ready to fly off to the tree again but no sooner had she got to the tree and that Sparrow came back. Both the Blue Tits flew off but the Sparrow stayed in the tree.
I don't know what it is about that ruddy nest box but that Sparrow guarded that box all afternoon just watching it from the tree never attempting to go in it and I must admit I got really worried about the poor female Blue Tit, I feared she may have had some injury I couldn't see, but thankfully both Blue Tits came back a little while ago and again as soon as she tried to get in the box the Sparrow attacked so another fight ensued, this time the Sparrow actually went in the box.
I don't know how this will end now but I know next year I'll make sure there's plenty of boxes for all and I'll be making sure the holes for Blue Tits are too tiny for the Sparrows - the Sparrows will have a terraced block.

I've never seen that kind of bird behaviour before and have never seen the Sparrows even attempt to go for this particular nest box but I think the opening hole has gotten larger over time and it's only now suitable for them to get in.
Even the Great Tits who already have a nest box have been hovering the Blue Tits box all afternoon and looking inside and I haven't a clue what's actually going on.
Is this normal behaviour for birds? Have the Sparrows maybe lost their own nest so are after pinching off the smaller birds?