Berried treasure

There’s a pecking order among birds for berries, says Val

- Val Bourne

IT’S hard to believe it, but we’re already into longer days. By the end of January it will be light enough to garden until 5pm. It’s quieter in the garden just now, so I’ve been exploring the lanes close to home.

This year the hedges are full of berries, hips and haws, and that’s probably a good thing, because flocks of redwings began arriving in mid-autumn last year and that’s earlier than usual. The fieldfares followed on, with both escaping harsh weather in Scandinavia.

These birds are after food and there’s definitely a pecking order with berries. Holly berries seem to disappear into the beaks of birds first. If you don’t cut your festive sprigs just before December, the berries have often gone. The prickly English holly (Ilex aquifolium) is not friendly on your fingers. Aquila means eagle and the leaves have needle-like points. The male and female flowers are held on separate plants, and pollen has to pass between male and female via bees.