I look out of the window, and because I have deliberately ‘neglected’ my lawn to encourage the wild flowers, it is awash with daisies, the odd wild pansy, the pale blue Persian speedwell, and even a few creeping buttercups. The only thing I do to neglect my lawn is to cut it less often than usual, with the mower set at its lowest, and to remove every scrap of the cuttings to the compost bin. Never in the twenty years that I have lived here have I put any kind of weedkiller or fertiliser on it
This has the effect of starving the soil of nutrients, which the lawn grasses do not like, but is to the benefit of many of the wild flowers that I like to see. Having the mower on its lowest setting, the blade tends to clear little bare patches amongst the grasses, and this also favours the wild flowers. To date I have counted over thirty species of wild flowers there. Naturally as wild things do, they tend to come and go. The daisies for example have increased greatly over recent times. Incidentally the name daisy is a corruption of ‘day’s-eye’, because its flowers close up tightly at night, and expand to greet the sun in the morning. The sun is further reflected in the little golden ‘eye’ at its centre.
One year I remember the lawn was covered with the greyish felted leaves and yellow dandelion-like flowers of a species of hawkweed. I can be no more precise than this, as this family of plants is notoriously hard to identify, and I do not have the time, or it has to be said, the inclination to delve into them. That way, I feel,lies the route to being an expert, but on very little. Pretty little plants they are though, especially when seen en masse.
To date I have not had any uncommon or rare plants turn up on my lawn. Not far away something very special did turn up. I remember having a telephone call inviting me to look at a bee orchid in flower in someone’s front garden. Privately expressing doubts to myself I set off to see it. As I turned off the road into an estate of newly built houses my doubts intensified. Yet there it was, in all its glory, a magnificent bee orchid, surrounded by its own little wire-netting cage in case any harm should come to it. I was allowed to take the cage off briefly to photograph it. To my knowledge it has not been seen in subsequent years.
Around the edges of my lawn the tiny white-flowered member of the cabbage family known as hairy bittercress turns every year in the early spring. I do tend to control this one to some extent as it can take over. As a wild cabbage it is edible and tastes a little like radishes. So long as you have not doused your garden with chemicals it is fine to include it in your spring salads. Pick the whole plant, flowers and all, and just give them a quick wash under the tap to remove any grit.
Once again I find myself in the position of having to apologise for the late appearance of my diary. So many things seem to be happening lately. If it were not for Dave and his plaintive reminders, I think sometimes I may forget altogether. But please stay with me. Despite Dave treading on my heels every so often, I do enjoy talking to you all. It would be great to hear from you. We are just an email away, or even a snail mail via the postman. And there is always the good old telephone.