1st March
A day full of birds for John and Clare. As they arrived, they heard a Curlew caling in a neighbouring field; two Buzzards were flying over the Wetland; Jays called from within the PIt Wood; Long-tailed Tits, Redpolls, Dunnocks and Tree Sparrows arrived on the feeders and a Greenfinch wheezed nearby.
Clare found frogspawn in the Crag pond.
2nd March
John took his cameras to the hide.
Male Redpoll
Lookout!
It’s behind you
2nd - 3rd March
The first full Moon of the season arrives just as meteorological Spring springs on 3 March. Known as the Worm Moon, it is the third full Moon of 2026. It is called the Worm Moon because it traditionally signals the time of year when the ground begins to thaw and earthworms emerge, marking the return of Spring.
John and Clare heard their first Great Spotted Woodpecker of the year drumming near the Orchard. John noticed the first Peacock butterfly of the season and a Blue Tit had two looks into J1.
John rehung the bottom gate so it no longer sticks or catches on the ground. While he was doing that Clare went on a frogspawn check and noticed that with the warm weather, the water level in the Roadside Pond had dropped, all but stranding the frogspawn. Clare effected a frogspawn rescue operation, scraping the frogspawn off the damp pond edges and into the pond.
John and Clare measured for the new hedge.
4th March
John fixed more fastenings on nest boxes.
6th March
It was suddenly a lot colder and snow fell in the morning. A pheasant seems to be confused by the weather. It doesn’t take much to confuse a pheasant.
Later the same day the snow has melted and the old buck is captured in tatters. New readers of the Blog might not know that when bucks fray to remove the velvet covering their newly grown antlers and the velvet starts coming off, they are said to be ‘in tatters’.
7th March
The young buck with antlers like candles is still in full velvet. Clare rather liked this footage of him with the sun’s rays catching the camera lens. Not quite an Elton John song. A Chaffinch sings in the background - it’s the song that ends with what Clare thinks sounds like a sneeze.
8th March
John put in more work taking down the now redundant fence (this included a spell of wool gathering); Clare helped remove one of the cages from the Spindle Trees and replaced it with her own version of protection.
Unfortunately a sudden cold spell did for the frogspawn in the Roadside pond. Clare spotted another unfamiliar pareidolic creature in the Pit Wood.
Wool gathering
Redundant gate and wire
Gorse protection for Spindle tree
Frozen/dead frogspawn
Llama?
12th - 14th March
John finished taking down the fence and he and Clare worked out the line for he new hedge, leaving gaps to access the apiary and the Orchard and Pit Wood.
Badgers make frequent excursions through the Pit Wood; usually the camera captures their retreating backsides. This time a badger is taking its time, probably sniffing out worms, slugs and snails.
15th - 18th March
A dog fox marks its territory in the Pit Wood.
Two videos of hares - both really included so Clare could use the captions - and a Jay which is maybe looking for lost acorns. It could be a lost cause as there are no Oaks in this part of the Pit Wood.
18th March
Two Johns managed to replace the Barn Owl box on the Oak tree on the Wetland. February and March have been the months when Clare and John have most often seen the birds hunting over Liddells. John and Clare hope the birds will hunt out the box. The Two Johns making such a successful working double act, they also removed the hide roof before finishing.
19th March
The Two Johns replaced the hide roof in no time at all. Meanwhile Clare was at home doing some one-handed weeding and heard a Chiffchaff. She quickly sent a message to John suggesting he might listen out for them on Liddells. His response was somewhat compromised by autocorrect - ‘yes, chitchats’. Good to know they are socialising. The other John generously donated more trees that he had grown - Oaks and Sweet Chestnut.
20th March
Spring Equinox and a day of import for nature - World Wildlife Day and World Frog Day. Clare was pleased to see frogspawn surviving in both Crag and Roadside ponds. The frogs have obviously had a second mating session since the cold spell.
Furthering her involvement in the significance of the day, Clare spotted Opposite-leaved Golden Saxifrage in flower in the Pit Wood. She walked through the Top Strip to see how the Daffodils are spreading and found Wild Garlic in abundance and Pulmonaria (Lungwort) in flower. It was only when she looked at the photo of the Pulmonaria that she noticed the new Nettle growth. Wild garlic and Nettle soup and pesto on the to-do list.
Opposite-leaved Golden Saxifrage - a long name for a small plant
Pesto time…
lots of pesto potential
This is just one of twelve clumps of Daffodils thriving in the Top Strip
Pulmonaria/Lungwort- tea made from infusing the leaves is thought to help with respiratory ailments
21st March
More Spring delights. Not only have the Daffodils spread - this year Clare found that the patch of Coltsfoot in the north-east corner is bigger than it has ever been. She suspects that deer eat the flowers so is pleased that she happened upon the profusion before the deer demolished them. Primroseside is living up to its name. According to the Wildlife Trusts, Primroses ‘are regarded as an ancient woodland indicator plant and a sign of a special habitat’. Willows and Horse Chestnuts are joining the Spring emergence and Clare saw a Small Tortoiseshell flitting about along the Wetland path.
22nd March
There haven’t been many videos of deer this month so John was pleased to see the old doe and her daughter from last year together in the Pit Wood. The younger deer is almost as big as the older now.
24th March
John and Clare enjoyed sitting in the hide without any damp patches or drips to negotiate. They saw the first (male) Siskin of the year feeding on Nyjer seeds and two Blue Tits viewing J1. Two Bank voles benefitted from the ground feeder - John captured one on video.
Room with a view
24th - 27th March
John and Clare each prepared for Green Gym Day in their own way - John strimmed the planting area, collected the hedge plants, tubes and canes from a local grower, made sure the Necessarium was ready for guest use, bagged up compost, assembled spades and other planting equipment; Clare set about baked goods. It might not seem a fair division of labour, however both efforts were essential to the success of the day.
Maybe the hare below was catching some of the anticipation. Or maybe its paws were cold.
28th March
A good forecast came as a relief. Seven noble friends and helpers arrived with spades, energy and goodwill and the planting began. By lunchtime, assisted by a shortbread break, over half the planting was complete. John wondered whether to defer the rest till the next day, however the general consensus was to press on. Lunch and more baked goods were restorative and by 2.17 all the work was done. It was fortunate that the work finished before the appointed time of 3pm. At 2.55 an almighty hail storm erupted. The planting was a terrific achievement and Clare and John are hugely appreciative of all the friends who gave up their time to help. People seem to enjoy getting tired, sometimes wet, muddy, scratched, stung more besides and come back for more, thanking John and Clare for the opportunity. It is a source of touching wonder to John and Clare. Long may it continue.
Praying to the hedge?
Hedging their bets
Paul became entrenched
You tube, I’ll stake
Hedge fund
All hail
29th March
John and Clare rested and let the day’s rain water the hedge in. Result.
30th March
The buck’s Spring cleaning is complete - his antler’s are free of velvet.