March may be the usual time of year for Daffodils to bloom, but unseasonable weather conditions have had a huge impact on one of the nation’s favourite plants and the Bents’ Field of Hope at Windy Bank Wood is no exception.
It was expected that the field of daffodils, which was planted last autumn to commemorate the centre’s fundraising work for Marie Curie Cancer Care (www.mariecurie.org.uk), would already be in full bloom, but March has passed and only a handful of flowers have found their way through.
But all is not lost. It is expected that all the daffodils will still make an appearance before Spring is over, but the late show is another indication of how the unseasonable weather conditions of recent years is affecting nature.
Says Matthew Bent, Managing Director of Bents Garden & Home: “It has been the coldest January for over two decades, which has pushed back the start of spring. But it’s starting to warm up now so we should be in for a fantastic late show and we are hoping our daffodils will still make a star appearance.”
After two years of damp summers followed by a cold, wet winter nature has started to respond. Another example of its impact on the environment is the late emergence of insects which, in turn deprives birds of food to feed their young.
Says Matthew: “It is important that we are aware of the changes that are taking place as we need to adapt the way we support nature in our own environments. The lack of insects demonstrates just how important it is to continue to feed the birds in the garden, not just in winter, but throughout the year.”
As the weather remains unpredictable it is important to help nature respond in the best possible way and Bents is keen to encourage its customers to make their gardens welcoming environments for British wildlife. Bents has an extensive range of products from bug, bat and bumble bee boxes, to butterfly and moth habitats, toad and frog homes to ladybird towers; all designed to help encourage wildlife into the garden.