2018 was a very quiet year; Due to dystonia spasms which caused a few broken vertebrae, foot, ribs and torn oblique muscles sadly stopped me from changing my career from finance to horticulture / gardening as had been the plan for 2018 (started planning it in 2014!).
I didn’t manage many trips to the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh and was mainly stuck within a 600 meter radius of my house located in Corstorphine, Edinburgh West. Sadly the local green space is just too far out of my reach and with how many potholes in Edinburgh roads I couldn’t travel in a car for pain in the vertebrae.
Due to pain from Dystonia related injuries 2019 looks like it will be mainly garden only list.
2019 Edinburgh Garden Bird List
- Blackbird – Jan 1st – first bird of the year
- Blackcap – Dec 20th
- Blue Tit – Jan 1st
- Bullfinch – Feb 28th
- Carrion Crow – Jan 1st
- Chaffinch – Jan 4th
- Chiffchaff – Aug 9th
- Coal Tit – Jan 2nd
- Collared dove – May 16th
- Common Buzzards – Feb 21st – FO
- Dunnock – Jan 1st
- Feral Pigeon – Jan 5th
- Fieldfare – Jan 31st
- Goldfinch – April 12th
- Great Tit – Jan 4th
- Greenfinch – Jan 18th
- Grey Heron – Feb 11th – FO
- Herring Gull – May 12th
- House Sparrow – Jan 1st
- Jackdaw – Jan 21st
- Long-tailed Tit – Jan 6th
- Magpie – Jan 1st
- Redpoll – Feb 16th – first time ever, around 50 of them.
- Redwing – Jan 23rd
- Robin – Jan 1st
- Rook – Sept 16th – FO
- Siskin – May 12th
- Song Thrush – Dec 9th
- Sparrowhawk – Jan 4th
- Starling – Feb 3rd
- Swallow – July 31st – FO
- Swift – June 27th – FO
- Woodpigeon – Jan 1st
- Wren – Jan 4th
- 8 Species as of January 1st 2019.
- 9 Species as of January 2nd 2019.
- 13 Species as of January 4th 2019.
- 14 Species as of January 5th 2019.
- 15 Species as of January 6th 2019.
- 16 Species as of January 18th 2019.
- 17 Species as of January 21st 2019.
- 18 Species as of January 23rd 2019.
- 19 Species as of January 31st 2019.
- 20 Species as of February 3rd 2019.
- 21 Species as of February 11th 2019.
- 22 Species as of February 16th 2019.
- 23 Species as of February 21st 2019.
- 24 Species as of February 28th 2019.
- 25 Species as of April 12th 2019.
- 27 Species as of May 12th 2019.
- 28 Species as of May 16th 2019.
- 29 Species as of June 27th 2019.
- 30 Species as of July 31st 2019.
- 31 Species as of August 9th 2019.
- 32 Species as of September 16th 2019.
- 33 Species as of December 9th 2019.
- 34 Species as of December 20th 2019.
RSPB Big Garden Bird Watch 2019 results:
- Blackbird x 3
- Blue Tit x 3
- Coal tit x 1
- Collared Doves x
- Dunnock x 1
- Great tit x 1
- House Sparrow x 47
- Magpie x 2
- Robin x 1
- Woodpigeon x 7
Leith Meadow Pipits and Sand Martins.
Just wanted to mention 2 birds I’d never seen before, managed to see Meadow Pipit and Sand Martins on a walk between Ocean Terminal and Water of Leith just north of Edinburgh.
Someone or the council look to be planting a few of the grass verges with meadow seeds along the roads near Ocean Terminal and that’s where the meadow pipit was. The Sand Martins were flying over the water and the small meadows, I gather collecting insects which were in decent numbers for the very small bank of flowers.
2019 UK Feijoa Farm
This year I managed to start a very small UK Feijoa farm, as far as I know it’s the first of its kind in the UK. The plants have been very popular with birds especially, robins, dunnocks, blue, coal, great and long-tailed tits hopping through the plants.
Feijoas the tastiest fruit in the world.
If you are a fan of the feijoa fruit that have been described by Gardeners’ Question Time presenter Bob Flowerdew as “The tastiest fruit in the world” head over to Feijoas UK where you can buy feijoas when in season. They taste a lot better if you get them in season than the imported fruits. The imported fruits are picked too early so they don’t get damaged whilst being transported. When in season the feijoa fruit is amazing!
There are plans to increase the feijoa farm size and try and create a lot more wildlife friendly places as feijoas and wildlife are my passions.
