There has been a kestrel in the garden recently which is not a common sight in these parts. It was here in early December and is here again now – and probably was here in between – but we were away for a month.
Kestrel
Today and yesterday have been the first dry days since we got home and I have been doing some work in the garden. I notice that the Symphoricarpos x chenaultii (Pink Snowberry or Hybrid Coralberry) has quite a few stem galls on it that look similar to those often seen on Forsythia x intermedia. From what I can find, it is uncertain whether the Forsythia galls are crown galls caused by Agrobacterium tumefaciens or whether they are caused by a species of the fungus Phomopsis.
Snowberry Stem Gall
Later: Murdo confirms that this is the same as a specimen he showed at the autumn HBRG meeting – I couldn’t remember whether it was on this plant – but it was.
Plants of Skye, Raasay & The Small Isles 