It seems the weather is all or nothing these days. First it was dry and now it is wet, who knows what’s coming next. This year’s warm weather is lovely though. So, I am not going to dwell on autumn and, you know, that season that follows that begins with a ‘W’. We should be well into harvest time now, a time to celebrate our successes in garden and allotment. Perhaps even the opportunity to step back, draw a breath after the rush that always seems to fill the early growing season, and relax and enjoy late summer’s warm embrace.
But we gardeners are not the only ones celebrating and enjoying our crops and garden gems. The wildlife likes them too! I am the first to say that we need to do all that we can to support the wildlife. After all, as we are regularly told, our ultimate survival is dependent on theirs.
Increasingly, our furry and feathered friends, alongside those that crawl and creep, see our gardens and allotments as a place to dine. I suppose to them gardens and allotments are the equivalent of supermarket shelves stacked with good things and what’s more, they’re free!
Now, I accept some losses, but controlled sharing is not in nature’s vocabulary. So, we need to balance things up. However, if like us you do not want to cause harm or use pesticides, mechanical barriers are the answer, and if you go down to the allotments today (just like the Teddy Bears) you’ll see every kind of barrier: from solid wire netting clad fences, all sorts of nets to fleece and enviromesh which also keeps the bugs at bay. It’s not pretty but it IS effective; no animals are hurt in the process, and we get our share of the produce and blooms that we work so hard to produce.
Over the years it seems we have to protect ever more crops or losses would increase year by year. I wonder, is it the additional stresses from climate change or just learned behaviour, perhaps it is both. Does anybody know?