The garden is filled with one fragrance at the moment, that of Mock Orange. I have Philadelphus shrubs on the front and side garden and the one on the side garden fills the back garden with its gorgeous perfume. I could not be without one of these shrubs in my garden and the good news is that they come in a variety of sizes and can be pruned.

The tomatoes are really coming on now. This year I have gone back to my old favourite Harbinger. These I am training as cordons but I also am trying a new variety to me, the plum tomato Red Alert which is grown as a bush variety. Red alert is described in the seed catalogue as one of the best for flavour and very early. I will have to wait to test the flavour but they are living up to the early tag, the fruits are far more advanced than Harbinger.

The wildlife in the garden never ceases to create interest.

Firstly there is the frog mention in the previous diary entry. I walked into the kitchen to see him sitting there on the floor looking up at me. He had found his way over the porch, through the conservatory and into the kitchen. I am not sure he appreciated his little trip back to his cool home behind the garage amongst the compost bags.

Then there is the Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers. The Greater Spotted appears on the nut feeder throughout the year but we only used to have a visit from these little beauties every spring. They could be seen going round and round the Silver Birches pecking fir insects. Needless to say that once those Birches reached the end of their days the Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers stopped visiting. Or so I thought. I awoke early one morning this last week and went into the kitchen to get a drink.

Looking through the window to the bird seed feeder there was the usual queue of sparrows fighting for position but then a different shaped bird arrived. There was no doubt that it was a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. It seemed to be eating the seed which according to my books should not be, they only eat insects. Not only that, it was accompanied by two others who took their turn. Maybe they were finding insects but it did not seem that way. I would be interested to hear from anyone else who has had a similar experience.

Lastly there is the tale of Mrs Blackbird. I have been putting out dried fruit for the blackbirds for a long time and they always meet me in the garden to tell me the pot is empty. This season a female has been collecting a beak full and disappearing into the undergrowth to feed a fledgling, a verbal youngster at that. That youngster is now appearing on the pot but is not absolutely certain what to do. His or her mother is intelligent. She sits on the pot which is outside the shed and watches me go in to collect her fruit. I also keep the seed in there and so I leave the door open while I take a scoop full of seed to the feeder. That practice is having to stop. Now when I get back she is in the shed looking to help herself to the fruit. Very cute but there is a danger of her being shut in and in the heat of summer it could do her a lot of harm and keep her away from her fledglings for a few hours.

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• Worcestershire Source: Today's Sightings 13/06/2009 - Lesser Spotted Woodpecker in Throckmorton area early afternoon (Adrienne Sanders) Spotted Flycatcher in gardens adjacent to Cropthorne churchyard (Adrienne Sanders) Dipper and Lesser Spotted Woodpecker along Dowles Brook in the Wyre ...


• Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, Osprey, Warblers and more....! - A trip to RSPB Ynys-hir this morning proved to be a very rewarding one. Highlights of the day were an Osprey on the nesting platform, 2 Sedge and 1 Grasshopper Warbler near the break-water hide, 2+ Redstarts and 3 Pied Flycatchers in ...