The Natural History of Selborne

A flock of ravens about the hager for many days.

Pricked out more celeri in my garden, & Mr. Burbery’s.  Planted some cabbages from Dr Chandeler’s.  Timothy hides himself during this wintry weather.  The dry weather lasted just 3 weeks & 3 days; part of which was very sultry, & part very cold.

Planted out my annuals from Dan Wheeler.  Pricked out some celeri, good pants.  My crop of spinnage is just over: the produce from a pint of seed, sowed the first week in August, was prodigious.

Snails come out of hedges after their long confinement from the drought.  A swallow in Tanner’s chimney has hatched.  The fern on the forest is killed; but hardly touched by the frost on Selborne down, which is 400 feet higher than Wolmer.

The kidney-beans at Newton-house not touched by the late frost.  Bror. Thomas left us.

White frost, dark & cold; covered the kidney beans with straw last night.  My annuals, which were left open, much injured by the frost: the balsams, which touched the glass of the light, scorched.  Kidney-beans injured, & in some gardens killed.  Cucumbers secured by the hand-glasses but they do not grow.  The cold weather interrupts the house-martins in their building, & makes them leave their nests unfinished.  I have no martins at the end of my brew-house, as usual.

Farmer Spencer mows his cow-grass.

Clouds, hail, shower, gleams.  Sharp air, & fire in the parlor.  Showers about.  Garden-crops much retarded, & nothing can be planted.  Farmer Bridger sends me three real snipe’s eggs: they are in shape, & colour exactly like those of the lapwing, only one half less.  The colour of the eggs is a dull yellow, spotted with chocolate:  they are blunt at the great end, & taper much till they become sharp at the smaller.  The eggs, sent me for snipe’s eggs last year, seem to have been those of a fern-owl.

Male glow-worms, attracted by the light of the candles, come into the parlor.  The distant hills look very blue.  There was rain on Sunday on many sides of us, to the S. the S.E. & the N.W. at Alton & Odiham a fine shower, & at Emsworth, & at Newbury: & as near us as Kingsley.  No may chafers this year with us.

Summer-cabbages, & lettuce come in.  Roses red & white blow.  Began to tack the vines.  Thomas finds more rudiments of bloom than he expected.