Bob was impresssed by the amount of insect life in the South Circular garden. If you've ever walked by it (coming from Clanbrassil Street, it's on the right-hand side before the turn for Dolphin's Barn/Cork Street) you'll have noticed that it is very overgrown, with the grass beside the railings well over a metre high. This is because a large plot at the front of the garden has been left wild to create a habitat for insects like bees, butterflies and ladybirds.
The vegetable plots are behind the tall grass, but you can't really see them from the road. One of the vegetable plots has been left fallow. Here is a photo of the fallow plot, with poppies and dog daisies growing in it, next to a plot with mustard (the yellow flowers).
This policy of having cultivated and wild/fallow plots side by side seems to be working. There were two Small Whites fluttering round the garden the whole time. Can you spot two of their cunningly disguised offspring on this brassica?
(Clue: They're on a small leaf right in the middle.)
Of course, the only problem with this hippy-dippy, insects-are-our-friends policy is that the caterpillars will have eaten the plant to bits by the time they're ready to pupate. You can see the damage in the above photo. Bob suggested that the most practical approach is to have one or two plants, or a little section of your garden that you don't mind losing to caterpillars, and just move them there when you find them.
There will be an item on butterflies, including an interview with Bob Aldwell, on next week's Earth, Wind and Spire.
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