Biological Pest Control The Pros and Cons

This morning I have finished reading the Introduction of Naomi Klein’s This Changes Everything, a call to arms to everyone on the planet to prevent climate change becoming a human-extinction event. A week ago, the Guardian published an article suggesting that using the narrative of war for environmental purposes may not be a good idea. The author thought that it may be deepening the divisions between us, making it harder to get our message across. It didn’t suggest any alternative wordings, except:

I have resigned from my job, in the hope of a happier life, and the looming period of self-imposed austerity has brought out my Inner Womble

We’ve had the Hydroponicum for over a year now. It has kept us supplied with salads and stir-fry veg, and I’ve grown one or two more experimental crops as well. Not everything I have tried has been successful. My spinach bolted (I’m not sure why, and I haven’t tried again yet). Alliums don’t seem to like germinating in the hydroponic seedling tray, and coriander downright refused. Coriander seedlings will grow hydroponically, though, so I may try allium transplants at some point.

Header image: Chimpanzee Ham with Trainers. Image credit: NASA

Three minutes of loveliness

Header image: The prototype space greenhouse developed by the TIME SCALE project showed that it is possible to recycle nutrients and water to grow food. Image credit – Karoliussen

The garden and I have become strangers this year. It wasn’t supposed to play out like this. In the original plan, I was going to work hard during the spring and have the summer to play in the garden. But feast or famine is the freelancer’s curse, and I found myself constantly in demand.

I wrote last month about my lack of gardening mojo, and it hasn’t come back. I don’t blame it, the weather has been dismal! Barely a whiff of sunshine. The news that a dry February is a harbinger of drought later this year sealed the deal for me; I’m not going to attempt a vegetable garden this year. I’ve planted the two beds of potatoes that I had chitting, and my pepper seedlings are coming along, but that’s it for annual vegetables. I’m turning over the other empty beds to flowers for the bees and other wildlife.

Gardening is one of the most popular pastimes; everyone knows we are supposed to enjoy our garden but do we enjoy gardening or at times does it just feel like hard work? Is it similar to the Joy of Sex or 50 Shades of grey-green?

Ants can be an unsightly nuisance and inspire concern. However they do not directly damage plants but are more a sign that you have another pest problem.

Mother’s day in the UK is fast approaching. If you have a habit of forgetting until the last minute, you can always rely on a bunch of flowers to save the day. But, rather than just a standard bunch of daffodils from the petrol station, what else would make your mother really happy and inspired to bake you more cakes?

Fountain in Oxford Botanic gardens.