Have you ever seen a red squirrel in the wild?

It’s a strange sort of question and you’ll see why I ask it later. For the vast majority of people in Britain, and almost all under the age of 40, the answer is more likely to be “What’s a red squirrel?” The reality being that for most people in this category their only association with squirrels is the grey they see in their gardens and on country walks.

Friday 21st January was Red Squirrel Appreciation Day. I’m lucky enough to make very regular visits to the north of Scotland where, as a salmon fisher, I am often in remote and beautiful locations I share with red squirrels and, increasingly rarely, salmon.

Red Squirrels are native to the UK and have lived here since the end of the last ice age, more than 10,000 years ago. Greys are from North America and were imported and released as a novelty species in UK parks and gardens from the 1870s. The two are not reproductively compatible. As a consequence the red population in Britain has plummeted from millions to approximately 287,000, mainly in small pockets in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and more widely in Scotland. The greys have largely replaced them.

This dramatic decline is caused by a number of factors. Greys are larger and stronger and out compete red squirrels for food and habitat. Another serious problem is that some of the greys carry the deadly squirrel pox virus that does not harm them but is fatal to reds. A number of areas in the UK have had their small populations of reds decimated by such outbreaks. It is thought that the majority of people in England have never had the joy of watching our native red squirrel in the wild and know only the grey.

As a little boy in my home town of Leamington Spa, my father was home on leave from his submarine. It would have been about 1950 and he wheeled me to the Jephson Gardens to see the red squirrels. I distinctly remember that experience.

Wouldn’t it be lovely to have our native reds back in our gardens. Watch this space!

Apart from red squirrels, another thing I am missing in my garden this winter is my usually healthy crop of Brussels sprouts and leeks. I’ve got a lot of both but the sprouts are all the size of marbles and the vast majority of leek have curled up due to leek moth. Mrs GG does take these recumbent leeks and uses them in casseroles and stews. The sprouts taste alright, but you need half a colander to make up a serving.

It’s time to start listing down what you plan to grow in your 2022 vegetable garden and buy up the seeds, onion sets etc. Many of you may know of Peter Seabrook, the Sun and former Pebble Mill gardening editor. Dear Peter passed away recently and my last conversation with him, earlier this month, included asking for his suggestion as to which early potato to grow that had some real taste.

Peter was his usual unequivocal self and told me there was only one variety worth growing – Jazzy. So, in memory of my dear old friend, who I have known for more than 30 years, I shall be growing them in my garden this season.

Happy Gardening and take care in the frost!