Not all the ugly bugs are having a ball!

To be or not to be (a bug), that is the question. I firmly disagree with using pesticides and I try to accept that every bug in my garden has a purpose, other than destroying my plants! However I do try to minimise the damage they can inflict. The carnage caused by slugs and snails never ceases to amaze me. Look what they did to my Dwarf Beans.

I am constantly chucking them over the fence (not Victoria’s of course). Despite the saying, moving at a snail’s pace, they seem to be pretty nifty at finding their way back. This isn’t entirely a surprise. In 2010 Mrs Ruth Brooks won Amateur Scientist of the Year. She collected up snails in her garden and painted a spot of nail polish on their backs. She enlisted neighbours to do the same, each using a different colour of polish. They took the snails to some nearby wasteland and, lo and behold, the majority were found to have returned to the same garden they had been taken from. She concluded that snails have a strong homing instinct for distances up to 90 feet, but suggested to be on the safe side go for 300!

When I squidge the greenfly attacking my roses, I really do end up with green fingers, but it’s a pretty effective method of control in a smaller garden like mine. Whitefly are trickier as they tend to scatter as soon as you approach them, only to flutter back 5 minutes later. So far this year I’ve been pretty successful at foiling the attempts of lily beetles to decimate my lilies. You might remember the devastation they caused last year – click here for a reminder if you’re not of a nervous disposition. Anyway, I saw a tip on FaceBook which I half expected would turn out to be rubbish – there are so many weird and wonderful cure-alls to be found on there. However this one does seem to be working, even though it makes me sneeze! I’ve been sprinkling pepper over the leaves and on the soil beneath, and while the lily plants don’t mind, the beetles have been conspicuous by their absence. Of course you do have to reapply the pepper after it’s rained. Time will tell whether this is a genuine remedy or a fluke – I’ll keep you posted.

Another nemesis is the rose sawfly. Remember the damage they did to Captain Tom last year? If not, read all about it here. This year they’ve decided to target the Lady of Shalott and to date have bypassed Tom. I’ve had my beady eyes on them though, and picked them off before they had the chance to lay any eggs (I hope). Unlike lily beetles, which I have to say are clever at avoiding capture, the sawflies seem to be half asleep and easy to pluck off. Initially I tried popping them in a yogurt carton. I took them round to the front of my house and tossed them down the road (in the opposite direction to Victoria’s). The hope was they would find an alternative rose to annihilate. However, within the hour they were back, so I’m afraid it was curtains for them.

I’ve also tried to be proactive in prevention of broccoli destruction by cabbage white caterpillars – I’m still scarred by my experience 3 years ago. Now I know this looks a little Heath Robinson but don’t knock it, it seems to be doing the trick, barring a few holes munched by snails.

You’d think my amorous pigeon pair would be running out of lust by now, but no, all they appear to want in life, is to nest among my wisteria. Unable to do so on account of the netting, they homed in on the outdoor wall heater, just underneath the wisteria. I tried draping pigeon spikes over the heater and adding a windmill for good measure. As soon as my back was turned, there they were again, happily setting up home. I’ve now stuffed a garden chair cover behind it. Surely that will do the trick!

My favourite flowers at this time of year are sweet peas and fortunately my seedlings have done well, escaping any bug attacks. There’s an imposter among them though. I noticed that one of the seedlings looked very different to the rest. It turned out to be a type of vetch. Vetch is a member of the pea family and its seed does look very like a sweet pea seed. It must have found its way into the packet undetected – it’s not fooling anyone though!