I welcome it, not because it means I can put out fewer seeds and grains for them, but for the normality it signifies. Man through modern farming methods and careless-ness has upset the balance of the natural world so much that the traditional and necessary feeding (and nesting) grounds have gone, and many species depend on human support for survival now. So, to know that for the next two months or so nature can provide for them is a happy thought, for they prefer it.
The food supply for wildlife seems greater than in past years, due I believe to the constancy of the rain for much of the summer. It may have inhibited human pleasure and affected breeding for some birds, but its legacy is fields and hedgerows laden with berries and full of weeds and plants carrying the seeds that dormice, for example, as well as birds love to eat. All disadvantages prove to be a blessing in the end.
My garden is quiet with fewer birds, and because this phase is the harbinger of autumn I am more aware of the passing of the year. The chimney sweep has been and we have ordered wood in anticipation of the need for night fires soon, and already despite warm days still there is a coolness in the early morning air. 2012 is such a special year and a part of me is sorry to see it making its first preparations to leave us. But, there is time yet and more will come before that happens, and autumn could be quite an exciting period, at many levels. All is very well.]]>
