Friend to wildlife?

I think of myself as rather a nice person, I suppose.  I had a dog (sadly now deceased) who lived off the fat of the land.  I'm kind to old ladies and children alike.  I even care about the dignity of teddy bears.  (The sewing machine is still away which is why there have been no  Bobo updates.)

And I encourage wildlife.  Freddie the Frog is living quite happily in my garden.  Barry the Blackbird and Roger the Robin are regular visitors and lots of other birds drop in for a snack or a drink.  I planted a lavender hedge and have beautiful butterflies visiting.

But sometimes I think I am just too nice.  I left some kale and some cabbages in the garden - well, if I'm honest I will say they were past their best and I had turned my attention to beans instead.



And what happened?  This did.  Those lacy looking looking specimens are kale once the cabbage white caterpillars had done their worst.  They've just left the ribs of each leaf and my collection of caterpillars would have been the envy of any lepidopterist barmy enough to treasure Pieris brassicae, and Pieris rapae.  (Large white and small white if you were wondering - both are prime ravagers of vegetable patches.)

Well that's it.  I will be planting my winter vegetables in the next week or two so I've bought a spray to see them off.  It's labelled organic and I mean business.

What really annoys me though is, where were Barry Blackbird and Roger Robin when the green hordes were munching their way through my garden?  Base ingratitude I call it.