In an act that might be described as one of the purest optimism, I’m reintroducing a bunch of new caterpillars to our swan plant of death.
Yes, it’s optimistic, but it’s also essential, as in this case, the caterpillars are the excess from my daughter’s swan plants which are sadly overloaded. Honestly, it’s no wonder insect populations are on the decline as they seem to require a great deal of micromanagement.
I bought a small plant yesterday, loaded it with the lucky (“lucky”) chosen individuals, and brought it up to the house today. So far everything is looking very positive.
I went and checked on them just before with a torch in the dark, and so far so good. We shall see what tomorrow brings.
I realise I forgot to feed back after going after the wasp nests last weekend. Both nests were small and hadn’t grown for several months. I doused them with fly spray before cutting them down with secateurs, I didn’t get stung at all but I suspect they were empty and abandoned. They are certainly very impressive looking structures, to give them their due.
