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It's the height of summer. Usually there are loads of insects buzzing around, especially flies. Right now, in the corner of West London, there are none.
They're still spraying poxy Roundup on the fields here. Had to go indoors and shut the windows couple of days ago. And they wonder why their relatives are falling ill.
Where are all the insects? on 19:34 - Jul 23 by Sonofpugwash
They're still spraying poxy Roundup on the fields here. Had to go indoors and shut the windows couple of days ago. And they wonder why their relatives are falling ill.
Where are all the insects? on 01:39 - Jul 24 by Boston
We occasionally have problems with slugs around my way, this issue has somewhat dissipated since I gave Mrs Boston a bullet proof vest last Christmas.
[Post edited 24 Jul 2:30]
Ducks love slugs so please don't shoot them all.The new crop of Mallards are in my pond and are gleefully chowing them down in the surrounding grass Mind you they do prefer bread especially budget white.Despite the Roundup we still get hares,foxes,Red Kites,Hawks of various types and s friendly otter called Harry(obviously).No frog spawn this year though. The cattle are very jittery,something in the air.You'd be welladvised to stay out of their province at the moment as they've got young 'uns.Big bastards with bloody great horns.
Noticed loads more Flying ants the last couple of days. Getting a bit annoying tbh. Swatted a very lame fly this morning. Gave it ample opportunity to fly back out. Refused. Ok, Die then.
"Someone despises me. That's their problem." Marcus Aurelius
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Where are all the insects? on 13:21 - Jul 29 with 1943 views
Where are all the insects? on 12:35 - Jul 29 by SheffieldHoop
Noticed loads more Flying ants the last couple of days. Getting a bit annoying tbh. Swatted a very lame fly this morning. Gave it ample opportunity to fly back out. Refused. Ok, Die then.
I can confirm that wasps are alive and kicking in the botanical gardenias of Leigh on sea. I was cleaning off the fox shit from my lupins when one stung me on the elbow at 5.30am this morning.
I let out a bloodlust shriek that made my cat maurice jump in the air like sid vicious pogoing at the marquee.
No flying ants have crossed the rubicon to leigh on sea as of yet.
Don't touch that dial for furthet updates.. i might get attacked by a botfly cleaning up after maurice after he shat himself in the garden watching me jig around the garden in pain like a Pagan dancing around a Maypole in mating season.
[Post edited 30 Jul 9:02]
The Duke Of New York. A-Number One.
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Where are all the insects? on 08:40 - Jul 30 with 1801 views
Where are all the insects? on 10:32 - Jul 24 by Sonofpugwash
Ducks love slugs so please don't shoot them all.The new crop of Mallards are in my pond and are gleefully chowing them down in the surrounding grass Mind you they do prefer bread especially budget white.Despite the Roundup we still get hares,foxes,Red Kites,Hawks of various types and s friendly otter called Harry(obviously).No frog spawn this year though. The cattle are very jittery,something in the air.You'd be welladvised to stay out of their province at the moment as they've got young 'uns.Big bastards with bloody great horns.
[Post edited 24 Jul 11:10]
what a cracking post. lovely. proper country life. Beauteous.
The Duke Of New York. A-Number One.
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Where are all the insects? on 08:47 - Jul 30 with 1783 views
Hardly any bees this summer in West Sussex. Last summer we found a large bumble bee nest in a shady area. Bees all over everything. Then one day there were none. Investigated and discovered a big crater where the bees nest had been. Badgers! Sometimes nature is brutal. But that's how it should be without man sticking his oar in.
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Where are all the insects? on 09:07 - Jul 30 with 1729 views
Well we're trying to do our bit, we've got a small front lawn so we thought we'd throw some wildflower seeds down and make it a no-mow area, will see how we get on.
one thing we're not short of here is ants, millions of 'em.
i'm like red adair out there with me Nippon powder. I come back into the house from the garden Tony Montana style, head to toe covered in white powder .
[Post edited 30 Jul 9:33]
The Duke Of New York. A-Number One.
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Where are all the insects? on 10:20 - Jul 30 with 1600 views
The willow herb bushes we have all over the fields are in full bloom but completely devoid of bees and butterflies - should be buzzing with them(if butterflies buzz of course)My "nextdoor" neighbour has given up on her beehives,shame because the honey was rather delicious.Farmers ploughing the fields attracting seagulls,even their numbers are down it seems,maybe preferring to nick bags of chips off the tourists at the seaside beyond the mountains. I blame Brexit.
Where are all the insects? on 11:14 - Jul 30 by Sonofpugwash
The willow herb bushes we have all over the fields are in full bloom but completely devoid of bees and butterflies - should be buzzing with them(if butterflies buzz of course)My "nextdoor" neighbour has given up on her beehives,shame because the honey was rather delicious.Farmers ploughing the fields attracting seagulls,even their numbers are down it seems,maybe preferring to nick bags of chips off the tourists at the seaside beyond the mountains. I blame Brexit.
Seen a few butterflies the last few days. Definitely more variety, as a kid I only ever saw cabbage whites!
f uck me with sally bercows patent pending multi speed dildo, i'bve een stung Again twice on the same day. bang on the ear lobe. throbbing and swollen.
I look like one of those women from those amazonian rainforest that Sting kept photographing himself with in the '80's. ffs.
[Post edited 30 Jul 12:35]
The Duke Of New York. A-Number One.
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Where are all the insects? on 13:13 - Jul 30 with 1420 views
Where are all the insects? on 12:35 - Jul 30 by Discodroids
f uck me with sally bercows patent pending multi speed dildo, i'bve een stung Again twice on the same day. bang on the ear lobe. throbbing and swollen.
I look like one of those women from those amazonian rainforest that Sting kept photographing himself with in the '80's. ffs.
We have a street light to left of our house and usually it is the place to go if your a moth or spider. This year nothing at all.
I'm going to dig a wildlife pond in my front garden at the end of August, just to do my bit.
"I'm going to dig a wildlife pond in my front garden at the end of August, just to do my bit".
Nice one You will actually find that a lot of insects come to it just to drink.
I have had one for a few years but - good news alert - the advice on how deep to make it has changed since I created mine and it's believed that ponds don't need to be any deeper than 30cm. There's some great advice here: https://freshwaterhabitats.org.uk/advice-resources/garden-pond-advice-hub/
One damp loving plant I would recommend growing if you have the right conditions is meadowsweet. The smell of it is divine, like marzipan. It's quite a tall plant but easy to manage, you just cut it back after it's flowered.
You'll doubtless end up with loads of soil from the pond's construction and you could use that to create a - roll on the drums - beetle bank. That's another story entirely, though...
"Things had started becoming increasingly desperate at Loftus Road but QPR have been handed a massive lifeline and the place has absolutely erupted. it's carnage. It's bedlam. It's 1-1."
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Where are all the insects? on 13:56 - Jul 30 with 1332 views
It literally takes 20 minutes (15 minutes observing, 5 minutes to enter the results on the website).
My count was a paltry two peacocks, one red admiral and a gatekeeper. Poor considering my garden is rammed wildflowers, trees and bushes. Mind you, I did once see a green hairstreak in my garden and that's the only one I have ever seen, in spite of umpteen visits to Europe's butterfly hotspots.
I checked the Big Butterfly Count map to see if anyone had done one in Loftus Road. Nearly but not quite, someone had submitted results for Wormholt Park.
"Things had started becoming increasingly desperate at Loftus Road but QPR have been handed a massive lifeline and the place has absolutely erupted. it's carnage. It's bedlam. It's 1-1."
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Where are all the insects? on 13:58 - Jul 30 with 1325 views
Where are all the insects? on 12:35 - Jul 30 by Discodroids
f uck me with sally bercows patent pending multi speed dildo, i'bve een stung Again twice on the same day. bang on the ear lobe. throbbing and swollen.
I look like one of those women from those amazonian rainforest that Sting kept photographing himself with in the '80's. ffs.
[Post edited 30 Jul 12:35]
Sorry to hear that. I planted a native bramble in my garden, for the flowers - some say they are *the* best for bees bar none - and for the fruit. The easiest way to grow your own fruit, I reckon, you just plant the thing, cut it right down, water it when you plant it, then just leave it. OK, they are very prickly and grow very fast, but man alive, the amount of fruit, all with no watering or complex care. I use the fruit to make my own blackberry liqueur, or creme de mure, as the French call it. You can add it to white wine to make a kir, in place of the normal cassis.
I mention all this because a lesson I learned a couple of years ago is that when picking the blackberries, it is advisable to shake the branch you are targeting because wasps also adore the fruit and can get cross if disturbed. I got stung when I tried to pick a berry next to one a wasp was feasting on. Grrr.
While I am here: - Saxondale is superb, I have both series. Wicked stuff!
- Maurice is the best name I have heard for a cat since my mate's neighbour's cat. It was an elderly, cantankerous beast which would hold up traffic by slowly waddling along the road where it lived. He gave no quarter, did Uncle Bertie
"Things had started becoming increasingly desperate at Loftus Road but QPR have been handed a massive lifeline and the place has absolutely erupted. it's carnage. It's bedlam. It's 1-1."
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Where are all the insects? on 14:26 - Jul 30 with 1276 views
Where are all the insects? on 09:07 - Jul 30 by TheChef
Well we're trying to do our bit, we've got a small front lawn so we thought we'd throw some wildflower seeds down and make it a no-mow area, will see how we get on.
Good on you for doing that. I have done that in my back garden. One thing which can really help the wildflowers get established is the (annual) wildflower yellow rattle. That might have been in your seed mix anyway.
Yellow rattle is known as "the meadow maker" because it parasites plants, especially grasses, thinning out the grasses, which otherwise tend to grow so vigorously that they crowd out the wildflowers. Yellow rattle needs half bare earth, half grass and is best sown in the autumn, before November, because it needs prolonged cold to germinate. Thin out the grass a bit, wet the ground, apply the seeds, press them down - no need to cover them with earth. Done.
Good luck with it, however you proceed!
"Things had started becoming increasingly desperate at Loftus Road but QPR have been handed a massive lifeline and the place has absolutely erupted. it's carnage. It's bedlam. It's 1-1."
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You will actually find that a lot of insects come to it just to drink. 
