A casualty of Storm Hector was the loss of our mature Medlar, Mespilus germanica. The large canopy was like a sail gusting in the full force of the 50mph wind that blew through the garden on 14th June. The root plate then exposed the dust dry soil, a consequence of low rainfall rates during May and into June. May saw 16mm rainfall and the June total to the 19th of the month was only 11mm compared to an expected average of 79mm for this seven week period. Then came the downpour through the night of the 19thJune; 34mm in total, dwarfing the total of 27mm of the previous 60 days. Torrential rain following such a dry spell flows off parched land and causes flooding as the drainage systems cannot cope. Nowadays the many hard surfaces that cover suburban gardens combined with sudden, torrential storms exacerbate this phenomenon. Once the Medlar was removed we graded and seeded the area. Grass seed sown during summer demands moisture to allow germination and fortunately the area we seeded has an automatic irrigation head nearby. The system has been operational providing a gentle mist of irrigation water but unfortunately it only covers half of the cultivated area. In this misted area the grass seed has germinated, however, the dry area is still barren. Despite the weather forecast promising continued warmth and sunshine, we can but hope for a night of light gentle rain to rectify the situation but not another torrential downpour!
Mespilus germanica 14 June
Grass seed germinating where irrigated