Sunrise 05.16 Sunset 20.56 BST

What a week, the weather has improved and we have had a couple of really hot days. Everything is growing like mad and the hedges and fields are looking good. The farmers are busy cutting grass for silage. The only trees that are slow to come out this year are the Ash trees, some look very bare still, although the leaves are starting to come out now. If the country saying of:

“Oak before the Ash then we’ll have a splash,
Ash before the Oak then we’ll have a soak.”

Then we are in for a dry summer as the oaks are well in leaf.

I’ve had some lovely morning walks, some quite misty but it has soon cleared to sunny days. I haven’t seen so many deer this week they can hide more easily in the undergrowth so Kim has been off the lead more, although I have to keep my eyes peeled. The Cuckoo has been about and I managed to take a picture, unfortunately I only had my 200mm lens, but I got him (click on the picture below for a bigger view). I haven’t heard another answer as yet but hopefully we will have Cuckoos next year.

The buttercups in the meadows are in full bloom now and it looks like the farmer will not be spraying them like last year, too expensive I would think and they are back better than ever this year!

I was 95% sure I disturbed an Otter this week, it wasn’t a fish and the way it splashed under the water as we came through the spinney was a sure sign, he must have been aware we were there and disappeared.

Our blackbird is still singing in our garden he has given us so much pleasure this year and we hope he continues for some time yet.