Lightning strike sets Fittleworth house roof on fire
"Residents are urged to continue to avoid the area to allow firefighters to work safely," the fire service added.
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The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
Flooding possible as thunderstorms hit England's south
The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for thunderstorms across the south of the UK. The warning, active from 12.52pm until 5pm on Wednesday, covers Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, and Kent. Slow-moving heavy showers are expected, with 20-25mm of rain likely in under an hour, and up to 30-40mm possible over one to two hours in some locations. This rainfall could lead to surface water flooding and potential lightning strikes. The current wet spell follows a dry spring and three heatwaves, which left four regions of England in drought.
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
Hosepipe ban: Botanist reveals which plants to save and which to sacrifice
With hosepipe bans in force across several English regions and more restrictions likely to follow, gardeners face some tough choices. When every drop counts, which plants deserve your precious water from the water butt, and which should you leave to fend for themselves? As someone who has researched how British gardeners need to adapt to respond to our changing climate, I can tell you that not all garden plants are created equal when it comes to water needs. Some plants will bounce back from a summer scorching, while others may never recover. Top plants to prioritise for watering 1. New woody plants Any woody plant installed in the last 12-18 months should be your absolute priority. These haven't yet developed the deep root systems needed to find moisture reserves and going without enough water the first year or so after planting could kill them. Water thoroughly and add a deep mulch of wood chips to help the soil hold water. For young trees you can install a watering bag around the trunk but you still need to top it up. 2. Hydrangeas Hydrangeas adopt a conservative strategy when it comes to drought. They shut their stomata (leaf pores) rapidly when they sense dry soil, and keep them closed until consistent moisture returns. They often drop their leaves too. This can mean many weeks without growth, after even a relatively short drought period. So if you want to keep them looking at their best, they need consistent watering. You can cut growth back to reduce water loss, and save the the plant at the cost of flowers. 3. Moisture loving trees Japanese maples (Acer palmatum), along with other moisture-loving trees like birch and beech, are prone to serious die-back during summer droughts. Their shallow root systems and large leaves make them particularly vulnerable to water stress. Water and mulch them. 4. Soft herbaceous plants Astilbe, dicentra, filipendula, heuchera, primula, trollius and many other soft herbaceous plants require good moisture levels and may not survive prolonged drought. 5. Shallow-rooted shrubs Rhododendrons and azaleas are shallow-rooted shrubs particularly susceptible to drought stress, especially the large-leaved evergreen species which are also prone to wind damage when stressed. 6. Clematis Many clematis varieties struggle with drought. Since they're often grown for their spectacular flowering displays, maintaining adequate moisture around the roots is crucial, especially for autumn-flowering varieties, or spring-flowering varieties which flower on the previous year's growth. A gravel mulch can help keep the roots cool and damp. However, clematis orientalis, terniflora, and evergreens such as C. cirrhosa can be surprisingly tolerant of a hot dry period. 7. Ripening vegetables If you're growing vegetables, prioritise crops approaching harvest and those that split when moisture returns after drought, such as carrots. Runner beans and courgettes need moist soil to keep cropping and potato yields are heavily influenced by water levels. 8. All the pots Anything in pots has limited access to soil moisture reserves and will need regular attention. Move containers to shadier spots if possible. Always use a pot saucer to hold water and prevent it draining away. Plants that can survive without extra water Research into plant water-stress shows that many common garden plants are surprisingly resilient. Forsythia adopts a risk-taking strategy. It keeps growing and photosynthesising even when soil moisture becomes limited, gambling that it can regrow after damage. This makes it remarkably drought-tolerant. It is also tolerant of heavy pruning which can save it in severe conditions. Mediterranean shrubs like lavender, rosemary, sage and thyme are naturally adapted to dry conditions. Their grey, hairy or waxy leaves are evolved to conserve moisture. Soil conditions are crucial though. If the plants are deep rooted they will draw water up, but if your soil is shallow or compacted they might well be less drought tolerant. Sedums, sempervivums and other succulents store water in their fleshy leaves and can survive extended dry periods. RHS research identifies Sedum spectabile as particularly reliable under stress. Ornamental grasses generally have efficient root systems and many species actually prefer drier conditions once established. Established shrubs including cistus, phlomis, buddleja, cotoneaster, berberis and viburnum have deep roots and proven track records for drought survival. The RHS report identifies these as garden stalwarts, with high stress resilience. Some trees, including eucalyptus, bay (Laurus nobilis) and holm oak are remarkably drought tolerant. Those to sacrifice Grass lawns are thirsty and can be left to go dormant. If you have a newly seeded or turfed lawn from this year, some limited watering may be justified. But in general, embrace the golden colour of water-stressed lawns. As long as you don't create too many bare patches from over-use, the green colour and growth will come back when it rains. Annual bedding plants like busy lizzies and begonias have shallow root systems and high water demands. However, they are only there for one season and are easily replaceable, so prioritise them for watering only if they're particularly important to your garden's summer display and you can spare the water. You could save some by potting them up and enjoying a display that needs less water. When you do water, research shows that technique is crucial. Water thoroughly but less frequently to encourage deep root growth. Focus water at the base of plants rather than on leaves, and water in early morning or evening to reduce evaporation. Consider 'split-root' watering for established shrubs – water one side of the plant thoroughly, then switch to the other side two to three weeks later. This keeps plants hydrated while chemical signals from the dry side's roots prevent excessive new growth that would increase water demands. This drought is a taste of Britain's gardening future. The plants struggling most in this year's drought are likely to become increasingly unsuitable for British gardens without intensive irrigation. Be willing to swap out plants that suffer in drought for new plants that are more tolerant. Refresh plantings to adapt to the new climate.
BBC News
3 hours ago
- BBC News
UK weather: Will we get another heatwave this summer?
The first half of summer gave us warmth, sunshine - and three over the last week things have changed drastically with heavy rain bringing some of the wettest weather of the season so most schools on summer holiday, the UK's highest temperatures are typically recorded during July and you may well be wondering whether sunshine and warmth will return and if another heatwave could be on the cards. What happened to the heat? High pressure has dominated our summer so brought prolonged dry spells and three separate heatwaves with temperatures peaking at 35.8C (96.4F) at Faversham (Kent) on 1 since then we have seen a big change in our weather jet stream has dipped southwards sending areas of low pressure towards our has generated enough rain to give flash flooding in some places - including parts of Northern Ireland and eastern England - but not nearly enough to allow hosepipe bans to be lifted. Some places have had thunderstorms and there was even a tornado in County changes like this are common in meteorology - one type of weather can last for several weeks before changing to something totally different. Will there be another heatwave this summer? For the rest of this week and into the weekend, we will find ourselves between high pressure and low pressure, with neither particularly strongly in means less rain, more dry weather and some sunshine - although a few showers will also feature. This will give mostly westerly winds - rarely a source of heat for the will rise a little, generally reaching 18-24C (64-75F) but perhaps peaking at 28C (82F) in south-east England on values are a little above the seasonal average but certainly do not come close to a heatwave. What chance of an August heatwave? Long-term outlooks from BBC Weather - and also from the Met Office, external - suggest that August is likely to start on a rather breezy note with westerly winds and some rain, particularly in the north of the UK. Drier conditions are more likely further south and on the exact wind direction temperatures may be around, just below or just above the seasonal norm.A few computer model runs do hint at some heat developing in the south but at the moment this looks quite unlikely. There are some signs that high pressure may start to take more control as we head deeper into August, with more chance of dry and settled it sticks around for long enough - and if southerly or easterly winds develop - some very warm or hot weather could return. However, long-range forecasting is always prone to uncertainty and different computer models provide different ideas of exactly what might be coming our is worth saying that dry, hot weather is far from guaranteed in August. In fact it tends to be the wettest of the summer months, with the UK typically recording more rainfall overall than in June or the rest of summer plays out you can keep up to date with your local forecast by downloading the BBC Weather app.
