Oops! That was a mistake!

 Well, if I called the wrong number, why did you answer the phone? - James Thurber

A short series (hopefully) of intermittent mistakes I should not have made if I'd thought it through properly. Back in 2023, we journeyed on the Vale of Rheidol steam train in Mid-Wales. Part of the ticket price included a voucher (maybe £5 but I'm guessing) to spend in the gift shop. I bought a water bottle and it has seen a lot of use over the past two years or so.

Photo 1: Water Bottle after Cleaning in the Dishwasher

However, it was looking a little grubby and I thought it could do with a thorough cleaning and disinfection. The dishwasher was nearly full so, without giving enough serious thought as to the sort of plastic the bottle was made of, I filled up the last space with the bottle and cap. I might have still gotten away with it if I hadn't had another brainstorm and set the wash temperature to 70 ℃. Normally, all washes are done on the Eco setting (50 ℃) but I wanted to give the bottle a good disinfection as well as a clean.

The end result can be seen in Photo 1. The cap and drinking tube remained largely intact whereas the bottle itself deformed and shrunk. I don't have any of the original packaging so cannot be sure which plastics were used in its construction. However, based on the thermal behaviour of the bottle and cap, I would guess the bottle itself is polyethylene terephthalate (PET) whereas the cap/straw is polypropylene and/or polyethylene.

I have a new bottle now and will be sterilizing it with a solution of Milton in future!

More Citizen Science - Water Abstraction

Water, water every where, nor any drop to drink - The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (Samuel Taylor Coleridge)

Photo 1: Yazor Brook at Ledbury Road, Hereford (23rd Oct 2025)

Hereford's potable water supply is predominantly sourced by Welsh Water (Dwr Cymru) from the River Wye upstream of the city near the Welsh border. It is then piped to the nearby Broomy Hill Water Treatment Works (WTW) before distribution to the City's taps. Approximately 5-10% of properties in Herefordshire have their own water supply from boreholes, wells and springs.

During dry periods, farmers may need to irrigate their crops by pumping water from local streams, rivers, ponds and boreholes. The local football club, Hereford FC, until recently used expensive (and needlessly purified) tap water for pitch irrigation during dry periods; however, to reduce costs they had a borehole drilled and this provides most of their water needs. Unfortunately, during particularly dry periods, this can result in precariously low water levels in the local Yazor Brook (c.f. Photo 1 & Photo 2) - not good for the fish or the other aquatic life!

Photo 2: Yazor Brook at Ledbury Road, Hereford (12th Oct 2025)

There are limitations on how much water can be abstracted by landowners from the various water sources (rivers, boreholes, etc) but enforcement is weak to non-existent. You can make a good argument that facilities such as sports pitches, golf courses, community parks and residential gardens should be low priority compared to the farmers producing our food. And not many people would argue with that (hopefully). However, there have to be limits even for farmers because even farming cannot survive without help from nature.

One of my citizen science test sites (Yazor Brook, Three Elms Road) has a physical gauge board for measuring water level (see Photo 1 for an example). It also has an automated system for measuring river flow and river level and the results are posted on-line. While perusing the on-line data for my testing station, I noticed a series of regular spikes in the water level (Figure 1).

Figure 1: River Levels, Yazor Brook @ Three Elms (25/3/26 - 3/4/26)

The spikes in water levels were 72 hours apart, with maxima between 1 o'clock and 2 o'clock in the morning. This was definitely not a natural event. One possibility was an instrumental glitch in the measuring system but I discounted this because the phenomenon only took place every three days. The other two options were either an overnight discharge into the river or a daytime abstraction event that was halted overnight. After discussing this matter with a few other citizen scientists, the general agreement was that the spikes in river levels were the result of daytime abstraction followed by a cessation during the nighttime hours. I was informed that a borehole abstraction point was located less than 100 metres upstream of the measuring station and surrounded by arable fields.

Although the difference in water level from peak base to peak maxima was only about 2 centimetres, this change in water level is equivalent to a flow rate difference of about 20,000 litres/hour. Landowners are allowed to extract 20,000 litres/day without a permit. Higher abstraction rates require a permit and I suspect the farmer in this case does have the necessary permit.

We are currently in a dry period with water levels in the Yazor Brook in the 'normal' range due to the winter rains. Some water abstraction is not unreasonable without presenting any environmental/ecological issues. However, this situation needs careful monitoring.

Here is a more recent screen grab (Figure 2), taken on the 6th April 2026, of the Yazor Brook water levels. The brook level continues to fall and there have been two extra abstraction events; this time only 48 hours apart. Last year, water levels in early April were approximately 50% of the current level so things are not as dire as 2025. We could definitely do with some rain.

Figure 2: River Levels, Yazor Brook @ Three Elms (9/3/26 - 6/4/26)

New Warmest Day in Hereford (2026)

 Prediction is difficult, especially about the future - Neils Bohr / Mark Twain / Yogi Berra / Samuel Goldwyn

Only recently, I posted about the temperatures reaching 24 ℃ in Hereford on the 7th April 2026 - the warmest day of the year (2026) so far. That record lasted exactly one day as the mercury rose to 26 ℃ on the very next day (8th April 2026). Officially, the hottest place on the 8th April was the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew where the temperature reached 26.6 ℃.

Photo 1: Early Bluebells in the Back Garden (8th April 2026)

In the table below, I've summarised the dates on which the maximum daily temperature first reached 24 ℃ and 26 ℃ in our city garden in Hereford. For the accolade of being the earliest recording of 24 ℃, 2026 was in second place after 2021. However, for the new milestone of the earliest date to reach 26 ℃, 2026 has moved to the top of the pile, just ahead of 2020.

Year	Earliest Date for 24 oC	Earliest Date for 26 oC
2020	April 8th	April 11th
2021	March 31st	June 1st
2022	May 17th	June 15th
2023	May 15th	June 9th
2024	May 7th	May 9th
2025	April 11th	April 29th
2026	April 7th	April 8th

Whereas 2026 required just a single day for the highest recorded temperature to move from 24 ℃ to 26 ℃, it took two months to achieve this in 2021. British weather is so unpredictable which is one of the reasons we love it so much and cannot stop talking about it.

We are now in for a cold spell, apparently, as the temperatures return to normal. As I write this on the 9th April, today's maximum temperature was 12 ℃ cooler! Or just a bog-standard April day in the English Midlands.

New Warmest Day of the Year in Hereford (2026)

Optimism is the content of small men in high places - F Scott Fitgerald (The Crack-Up)

The UK recorded its warmest day of the year so far on April 7th. Mona on the Isle of Anglesey achieved a temperature of 24.6 ℃. Mona is 85-90 miles NW of Hereford as the crow flies. Mona is the home of the Druids whereas Hereford is our home marked in Figure 1 with a photo of Mary playing guitar. Coincidentally, Mary is out playing guitar with our local community band, Bandemonium, while I write this blog post.

Figure 1: Mona, Anglesey (black spot)

Today, our Davis Weather Station recorded a maximum temperature of 24 ℃ in the back garden; also the highest temperature of 2026 so far and beating the previous 2026 record of 21 ℃ on the 18th March.

I was curious to know whether April 7th was unusually early for the first recorded temperature in Hereford. Certainly, in recent times (and specifically the period 2020 - 2026 where I have reliable temperature data from the weather station) it is not uncommon to see such high temperatures this early in April (see Table below).

Year	Earliest Date for 24 oC
2020	April 8th
2021	March 31st
2022	May 17th
2023	May 15th
2024	May 7th
2025	April 11th
2026	April 7th

Indeed, this year is not even the earliest. That record falls to 2020 when a maximum temperature of 24 ℃ was reached a week earlier on March 31st. Based on the last seven years of temperature data, it appears that the 24 ℃ milestone either occurs in early April (or late March in 2020) or the second/third week of May. This seems to be a remarkably clear cut division that possibly has some climatic/weather origin. It would be nice if it could foretell whether this summer is going to be warm and sunny but, unfortunately, there are no indications that it does. That's a shame because I do love a good correlation!!

Homing Pigeons ??

 Why do fat chance and slim chance mean the same thing?

Video 1: Wood Pigeon Feeding on Mealworms

There is no shortage of wood pigeons in our neighbourhood which has left us wondering whether our garden will once again be, literally, a fertile breeding ground for these birds. Although wood pigeons are a bit of a nuisance, we are grateful that we do not see the alternative (i.e. feral pigeons) in the garden. In the centre of Hereford (about half a mile or 800 metres away) there are at least a hundred feral pigeons feeding on the scraps and detritus of its human population. The seagulls provide some competition for the food but are always outnumbered by the pigeons. Regrettably, some people deliberately put out food for the pigeons (often in the form of bread crumbs or pieces); bread, especially of the white variety, is not a healthy option for birds and just attracts more birds like vermin - along with their associated droppings! I blame Mary Poppins!!

Video 2: Feed the Birds from Mary Poppins

Getting back to the subject of wood pigeons nesting in the garden, we recently spotted a pair checking out the winter-flowering cherry tree (somewhat lacking in flowers this year) where an unsuccessful nest was built last year [note: video filmed through the window hence lower quality] ...

Video 3: Pair of Wood Pigeons at Last Year's Nest in the Winter-Flowering Cherry

Last year's wood pigeon nest (Photo 1) was certainly not the engineering marvel of some other UK birds ...

Photo 1: Last Year's Wood Pigeon Nest

... nor is it as cosy as those of the long-tailed tits that often fly over our garden ...

Video 4: Long-tailed Tit Nest (h/t John Walters)

Although the wood pigeon nest looks flimsy (even minimalistic), it must be reasonably robust since it may need to accommodate two large chicks until they fledge.

There may be some competition for the nest this year. Some collared doves ...

Photo 2: Collared Dove in the Winter-flowering Cherry (March 2026)

have also booked a viewing appointment for this des-res - its most desirable feature being its closeness to the bird feeder and its free all-you-can eat buffet! After a quick tour ...

Video 5: Collared Doves Inspecting Possible Nesting Site?

... they flew off to the nearby conifer tree and haven't put in an offer. Which is a little surprising as their nest-building skills are remarkably similar to those of the wood pigeon.

We'll probably have to wait for the cherry tree to leaf up and provide a bit more cover before a final decision is made. Meanwhile, alternative accommodation is still available at the Wisteria Lodge. 

Mousie Mousie

 Avoiding cliches is easier said than done

Mousie Mousie is a 1950's game that we used to play as children. It is still immensely popular with our young grandchildren (4 - 10 years old) and certainly raises the laughter levels in the housie housie! Our current game (Photo 1) is a 2010 version and has seen plenty of use.

Photo 1: 2010 Version of Mousie Mousie

If you've never played this game, here is a video explaining it all.

Video 1: Brief History and Rules of Mousie Mousie

Mentioning this game was just a way to segue into the main topic of this post which is the re-appearance of field mice (aka wood mice) into the garden. I was just about to set off on my bike to perform my citizen science duties at the Yazor Brook when a movement near the bird feeder caught my eye. I couldn't get too close for fear of frightening the little beastie so this photo (Photo 2) was taken from about 10 feet. 

Photo 2: Wood Mouse in the Garden (29th March 2026)

The mouse scuttled back under cover just a few seconds after taking the photograph. We last saw field mice in the garden in the summer of 2024 and I'm afraid the outcome then was not good. At least not for the young mice ...

Photo 3: One of Three Dead Field Mice Found in the Garden (September 2024)

That we see field mice, even in our urban garden, is perhaps not a surprise considering the presence of our bird feeder. It is one of the hazards of feeding our feathered friends in that some food will inevitably fall to the ground. Mind you, the ground feeding birds (e.g. wood pigeon, blackbird, wren robin, house sparrows, dunnock) are usually pretty good at mopping up the mess!

Further Signs of Spring

 The time of day when traffic is slowest is, for some reason, called rush hour?

Further signs that Spring has arrived; at least, in our back garden. The 2026 Spring (Vernal) Equinox arrived in Herefordshire (and the rest of the Northern Hemisphere!) on the 20th March at a quarter to three in the afternoon. The Common Chiff-Chaff is one of the first migrant birds to arrive in Britain and was first heard on the 17th of the month during our visit to Betty Dawes Wood. I also heard the chiff-chaff on the 20th while I was carrying out my citizen science duties on the Yazor Brook, about a mile from our garden (as the crow flies!). We have also seen our first butterflies of the year (Comma and Peacock) in the garden.

In the kitchen garden, the plum blossom has appeared; first noticed on the 23rd March (one week earlier than 2025) ...

Photo 1: Plum Blossom in the Fruit Garden (23rd March 2026)

... and I noticed the first asparagus spear today (27th) as I was doing some garden tidying up in the kitchen garden ...

Photo 2: First Asparagus Spear Emerges (27th March 2026)

I have logged the first appearance of asparagus spears above soil level for the past seven growing seasons (see Table below). The spread of 'first appearance' dates covers a period of 18 days and is dependent upon the soil temperature (see, for example, here). Other important factors include solar radiation (to help warm the soil), precipitation (not too much and not too little) and a dormant (cold) period over the winter months.

Year	Date of First Spear (Day of the Year)
2020	2nd April (93)
2021	31st March (90)
2022	14th April (104)
2023	10th April (100)
2024	25th March (85)
2025	30th March (89)
2026	27th March (86)

It is suggested that asparagus emerges from its dormancy when the soil temperature (at a depth of 10 - 20 cm) reaches about 10 ℃. Regrettably, I don't measure soil temperatures, only air temperatures. As a very rough guide, I find when the air temperature achieves 18-20 ℃ daily maximum over a sustained period (about 10 days), the first spear of asparagus appears at the end of that 10-day period. I really should start measuring soil temperatures, though. Next year, maybe?