The United Kingdom is facing very hot and dry weather. This weather is difficult for gardeners and wild animals. Many plants are struggling to grow because there is not enough rain. Some insects are also changing their behavior because of the heat.
John Peel has a vegetable plot in Oxfordshire. He has worked there for eight years. The heat makes it very hard to keep his plants healthy. The soil is too dry, so the vegetables do not grow well. For example, his tomatoes are smaller than usual this year. Growing tomatoes is much more difficult now.
Emma is another gardener. She has two allotments near Bristol. She says that watering the plants is very hard work. She must water them constantly so they do not die. However, Emma has some good news. She successfully grew watermelons on her plot near Bristol. Some plants like the heat.
The heat also affects insects and animals. Flea beetles are very active now, so they eat many vegetable crops. Badgers are also having problems. They eat earthworms, but the ground is too hard to dig. Because of this, badgers might eat carrots and potatoes from gardens instead. Small animals like slugs and snails are hiding deep in the soil to find moisture.
When it finally rains, the air has a special smell called petrichor. The rain helps a little, but experts say the situation is serious. It will take many weeks of rain to fix the water supplies. The weather is changing, and both people and animals must learn to live with these new conditions.