Dr Phil Smith With high pressure dominating for all but the last week, May continued the dry, warm and sunny theme of February, March and April. Overall, the Met. Office tells us that the spring was the warmest ever recorded in the UK and the second driest in England. Rachael Parks measured only 42 mm...
Dr Phil Smith Arguably the most severe spring drought of modern times continued throughout April. Rachael Parks measured only 22 mm of rainfall in her Formby garden, this being about 40% of the expected amount. The Met Office tells us that the UK had the sunniest April on record and the third warmest since 1884;...
In my February notes I wondered whether the usual spring drought had started. I was right! The Met. Office tells us that March was extremely dry in the UK, many areas reporting less than 10 mm of rain. It was also the sunniest March in England since records began in 1910. Rachael Park’s Formby data...
Introduction The Sefton Coast sand-dune system is the largest expanse of this rare habitat in England and one of the richest for flora and fauna in Northwest Europe. Much of this diversity is threatened by Sea Buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides), an invasive spiny shrub that was introduced here in the 1890s. For decades, it was kept...