Nature is busy earlier than normal in an unusually dry spell: is this climate change in real time? Our regular update from the Findhorn Hinterland Trust’s land manager, Kajedo Wanderer.
More than four weeks of sunshine – in the North of Scotland – what a way to go seamlessly from spring to summer. ‘Who needs to go to the Mediterranean?’ quipped a volunteer recently. Of course the beautiful sunny weather lifts the spirit, particularly if you are an outdoor person.
And, because there was no rain worth talking about during these weeks, we needed to spend quite a bit of time trying to keep our baby trees alive.
Land manager Kajedo Wanderer
Endless canisters of water were wheelbarrowed across the land to the hundreds of trees in small tubes scattered around the woodland. They don’t have strong roots yet and need support to survive this lack of rain in our sandy soil.
We also noticed things flowering earlier than usual – I guess a panic reaction to try and make seeds for the survival of the species.
There have also been more insects buzzing about, woken into activity early by the warmth and the temptation of all those nectar-producing flowering plants. The swifts and sand martins are flying in swarms above the fallen acres – happily harvesting the abundance of flying insects.
I can not remember such a prolonged dry period during my 10 years of looking after our wilder land. This is climate change in real time!
Gorse in bloom
Besides trying to keep the baby trees we planted alive we’ve been … cutting back gorse, of course. (Regular readers will be familiar with this line of work.) The gorse is still flowering and we are out there with loppers and handsaws trying to cut as much as possible before they seed themselves out on our species-rich grasslands, heathlands and wherever they invade the woodland.
The warm weather brings out the wee lizards, and the slow worms…
The nesting boxes are busy and we spotted a pair of crested tits, a rare sight in our parts.
And of course there is an increase in human footfall all over the land. I keep reminding dog-walking folk that it’s ‘fawn season’ – the roe deer are having their babies. While they may ignore our ‘save the squirrel’ signs, we don’t want to see their dog returning with Bambi in its jaws. (Yes, sadly I’ve seen that.)
Gorse flowers
Besides feeling the flora around us struggling with the prolonged period of drought, so unusual for Scotland, there is another challenge: the Scottish fire service has issued an ‘Extreme Fire Hazard’ warning across the country a few times these last weeks. Fortunately we have not had any fires anywhere close to us (yet) – but I am nervous about this. We have an ocean of gorse out there, which is highly flammable. Plus all the other dried up vegetation… A recipe for disaster. I don’t even want to think how many nesting birds and animals and tiny critters would be killed in a fire here.
Not to talk about the danger a large fire would represent to our settlement. So, while I enjoy being able to work in shorts and sometimes even without a shirt, it’s a bit of a mixed blessing.
Finally, our Green Burials. We had another funeral a few days ago (someone outside our community) and most of the folk who came made comments about the natural beauty of this place.
Since we have a finite number of spaces for graves, we have been exploring expanding our Green Burials into a beautiful area which is already partly grassland. For future generations…
Which brings me to the end of this ‘news of the land’.
‘Whatever you do to the earth and the sea – do it with consideration of the next seven generations.’
Wise counsel from our Native American friends.
If we, and all of our politicians could live by considering the consequences of our actions for the next seven generations, what a difference that would make to our beautiful planet, don’t you think ?
May our days be filled with light, and may it rain during the night!
Kajedo, May 2025
Editor’s note: A few days after this was written, there was a large fire in Culbin forest, just across the bay from Findhorn.
News from the Land – May 2025
Nature is busy earlier than normal in an unusually dry spell: is this climate change in real time? Our regular update from the Findhorn Hinterland Trust’s land manager, Kajedo Wanderer.
More than four weeks of sunshine – in the North of Scotland – what a way to go seamlessly from spring to summer. ‘Who needs to go to the Mediterranean?’ quipped a volunteer recently. Of course the beautiful sunny weather lifts the spirit, particularly if you are an outdoor person.
And, because there was no rain worth talking about during these weeks, we needed to spend quite a bit of time trying to keep our baby trees alive.
Land manager Kajedo Wanderer
Endless canisters of water were wheelbarrowed across the land to the hundreds of trees in small tubes scattered around the woodland. They don’t have strong roots yet and need support to survive this lack of rain in our sandy soil.
We also noticed things flowering earlier than usual – I guess a panic reaction to try and make seeds for the survival of the species.
There have also been more insects buzzing about, woken into activity early by the warmth and the temptation of all those nectar-producing flowering plants. The swifts and sand martins are flying in swarms above the fallen acres – happily harvesting the abundance of flying insects.
I can not remember such a prolonged dry period during my 10 years of looking after our wilder land. This is climate change in real time!
Gorse in bloom
Besides trying to keep the baby trees we planted alive we’ve been … cutting back gorse, of course. (Regular readers will be familiar with this line of work.) The gorse is still flowering and we are out there with loppers and handsaws trying to cut as much as possible before they seed themselves out on our species-rich grasslands, heathlands and wherever they invade the woodland.
The warm weather brings out the wee lizards, and the slow worms…
The nesting boxes are busy and we spotted a pair of crested tits, a rare sight in our parts.
And of course there is an increase in human footfall all over the land. I keep reminding dog-walking folk that it’s ‘fawn season’ – the roe deer are having their babies. While they may ignore our ‘save the squirrel’ signs, we don’t want to see their dog returning with Bambi in its jaws. (Yes, sadly I’ve seen that.)
Gorse flowers
Besides feeling the flora around us struggling with the prolonged period of drought, so unusual for Scotland, there is another challenge: the Scottish fire service has issued an ‘Extreme Fire Hazard’ warning across the country a few times these last weeks. Fortunately we have not had any fires anywhere close to us (yet) – but I am nervous about this. We have an ocean of gorse out there, which is highly flammable. Plus all the other dried up vegetation… A recipe for disaster. I don’t even want to think how many nesting birds and animals and tiny critters would be killed in a fire here.
Not to talk about the danger a large fire would represent to our settlement. So, while I enjoy being able to work in shorts and sometimes even without a shirt, it’s a bit of a mixed blessing.
Finally, our Green Burials. We had another funeral a few days ago (someone outside our community) and most of the folk who came made comments about the natural beauty of this place.
Since we have a finite number of spaces for graves, we have been exploring expanding our Green Burials into a beautiful area which is already partly grassland. For future generations…
Which brings me to the end of this ‘news of the land’.
‘Whatever you do to the earth and the sea – do it with consideration of the next seven generations.’
Wise counsel from our Native American friends.
If we, and all of our politicians could live by considering the consequences of our actions for the next seven generations, what a difference that would make to our beautiful planet, don’t you think ?
May our days be filled with light, and may it rain during the night!
Kajedo, May 2025
Editor’s note: A few days after this was written, there was a large fire in Culbin forest, just across the bay from Findhorn.