It has been raining for a whole week, and I have been studying, so no allotment really, but I popped in tonight to water the tomatoes in the greenhouse.
I was in a hurry and went straight to the water butt; while I was waiting for the trickle of water to fill the can, I had a look behind the shed where I keep the rat trap as I do out of habit... to my amazament, there was something in it: a little blackbird. I had to look twice as my brain did not process that straight away. Anyway, I opened the cage and it was gone in no time, so I am pretty sure it was all right.
Quite how he managed to jump into the cage through the wire funnel at the entrance of the first chamber, and then jump on the flap that leads to the second chamber I cannot figure out, nor can I think of another reason why it went through all that rigmarole that is not curiosity - I have now left the cage open just in case...
On another note, you should have seen the amount and size of slugs on the plot today. I am sorry to say I am going to give up and start using pellets, albeit organic: the ferric phosphate ones. I do not particularly like the idea, and I will use them sparingly and in addition to other organic methods, but I have spent £60 in nematodes already - supposing it is any better to release in nature a parasite in big quantities than it is to use a chemical - and my investigations did not give me any reasons to think they are especially dangerous to any other form of wildlife than the target.
If you know of any fact-based reasons not to use them, please let me know, but I would like to eat some of my brassicas this year...
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