Unwelcome Visitors

The sight of pretty, fluttering butterflies caught my eye yesterday, then I realised that the dancing wings were white - the dreaded Cabbage White - well dreaded to all who grow brassicas and especially dreaded to me as I've lost all cabbage type crops over the past two seasons to these pretty pests.

But not this year! I've invested in several types of frame and some butterfly proof netting. I'm going to rate the various support frameworks for ease of construction, ease of access (for weeding and harvesting) and effectiveness.

I've incorporated three types of support: cane net supports from Plant Supports - easy to use website and excellent ordering and delivery process; a metal frame construction; and plastic hoop supports from our local garden centre.













The easiest to assemble was a tie between the cane net support (above left at front of picture) and the hoops (right). Simply push into the ground and, in the case of the cane supports, add bamboo canes of the length required.

The metal cage support (above left at back of picture) was marginally more awkward to assemble though more rigid/sturdy than the others and more flexible in height. The netting proved difficult to apply in all instances; especially if you are trying to do this on your own; I'd recommend a second pair of hands.

So much for structure, lets's see how they fair on access (for me) and effectiveness (keeping out the Cabbage White) as the season progresses.

Other unwelcome visitors to the garden are the wasps; they have built a nest in the outside eaves of the little blue playhouse where we store our garden games and cushions...time to contact the local pest control man.

Along with all the joys of gardening come the challenges!

Nectar for the Butterfly

It has been a beautiful September day today - sunshine, warm air and a lovely breeze - good gardening weather. I started the day with a walk down the lane to the postbox and back, which woke me up nicely...birdsong, a peaceful start to the day.

I was about to start tidying one of the borders by the circles when I noticed the Sedum Spectabile 'Brilliant' covered in bees, wasps and butterflies all savouring the nectar. So I had to get my camera and try and capture the moment and postpone the gardening. The butterfly in the photograph is a Red Admiral, quite common by all accounts, but nontheless beautiful. The second butterfly was a Comma,smaller than the Red Admiral and less flashy - there must have been at least five or six of these on the plant.

Later in the day I saw more clusters of butterflies on the Verbena Bonariensis, this time they were neither Red Admirals nor Commas but Painted Ladies.

In the evening light a fourth type of butterfly was spotted. Smaller than the others and with distinctive pale bluespots along the lower edges of its wings - a Small Tortoiseshell.

I have planted lots of nectar-rich plants in our garden in the hope of attracting as many insects, butterflies and birds as possible, so I am very happy to see these varieties of butterfly in the garden.

The search to identify these butterflies led me to a very helpful website - www.ukbutterflies.co.uk - and one I'll be using more often. It has even helped me to identify the type of Cabbage White that is devastating my broccoli for the second year running - so not all butterflies are welcome here!