Bees, boxes and harmless helpers ... update

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Growing Degree Day 278 is upon us

GDDs are calculated by taking the average of the daily high and low temperature each day compared to a baseline (usually 10 °C). As an equation; GDD=(((High+Low)/2)-Baseline) GDDs are typically measured from the winter low.
For example, a day with a high of 23 °C and a low of 12 °C would contribute 7.5 GDDs. Any temperature below the baseline is set to the baseline before calculating the average. For example, a day with a high of 13 °C and a low of 7 °C would still contribute 1.5 GDDs. Likewise, the maximum temperature is usually capped at 30 °C because most plants and insects do not grow any faster above that temperature. However, some warm temperate and tropical plants do have significant requirements for days above 30 °C to mature fruit or seeds. Well what's all this got to do with the price of fish.



The Catalpa tree (catalpa bignonioides) starts flowering after 275 GDDs; this one started flowering three days ago, so in this part of leafy England we are on GDD 278.

What is the significance of this ? Well GDDs provide a means of predicting when a particular plant will crop or flower in any country in any part of the world. So if a packet of seeds had a GDD value printed on it you would be able to plan when to sow to provide a successional crop rather than the familiar summer glut.

I am told that commercial growers rely on GDDs but as far as I am concerned the pleasure in gardening is it's capricious nature so I'm sorry agronomists you can keep your GDDs - it's back to guesswork & glut for me.

Bees, boxes and harmless helpers

You've probably seen "bee boxes" for sale in your local garden centre and dismissed them as an expensive gimmick. If so then think again.

We bought this box because it was damaged and hence in the "bargain" section of a DIY warehouse (sometimes you just can't resist a bargain and I'm sure the bees aren't too bothered.)




This would appear to be a leaf cutter bee. I say this not through any profound knowledge of bees but simply because this is what it has done. i.e. cut leaves



In fact these weren't the first bees to take up residence and if you look closely at the picture you will see that one of the cavities in the bamboo cane has been blocked with earth courtesy of some previous visitors.

The female bee will have layed her eggs in the cavity, provided sufficient food for the soon to be larvae to mature into adult bees, plugged the hole with protective leaves and lastly had a tidy up and given the leaves a final trim.



Useful links; if this has whetted your appetite English Nature have produced a pamphlet "Helpful Bees and Wasps in your Garden" which provides instructions should you wish to make your own "bee box"
or
if you want to try the bespoke version Wiggly Wigglers sell a wide variety of homes for an even wider variety of bugs & bees.
and
if you want to know which bee is which there is a very useful site dedicated to solitary bees produced by Nigel Jones here.

Hummingbird Hawkmoth ....cont

I took a couple of photos of a hummingbird hawkmoth last week, published them on this blog and promptly (albeit accidently) deleted the originals - needless to say I was none to chuffed.

My moth book at least gave some hope "having found a food source, moths tend to return". Unfortunately the abnormally hot weather we're experiencing in the south of England means that the food source (salvia/sage) has only lasted a couple of days and is now a mass of seed heads not a moths banquet.



Well this moth seems to be happy enough to vary his diet.

In the same flower bed as the sage we have growing a Giant scabious - (Cephalaria gigantea), a magnificent plant which is now well over 6 feet tall and popular with bees and butterflies alike.





Let's just hope this food supply last a little longer.