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The number of common plants that will poison a dog! Daffodil, bluebell, nettle; ragworts and foxgloves, of course; and apples and cherries and box; hollies and horse chestnut; rosebay willow herb. Privet.

There's definitely a perverse witchy pleasure in learning off all the plants that will kill an animal; but I've been depressed too, because my garden is my small haven and I let it run over with the dearest weeds. I love my ragworts. Big, floppy-haired mops that are covered with caterpillars and then moths - there's a particular species that feeds on the ragworts, and thats how they become poisonous moths. The poison they eat from the plant stays in their bodies, and if birds do not pay attention to their red-winged "stay away", they'll get a sore tummy.

My husband and I have compromised; I've dug up many of the ragwort and re-bedded them in hanging baskets, but some are still there and we're supervising doglet closely when outside. The internet says most animals are repelled by its smell, and won't eat it unless dried. He seems to be past the puppy stage of "try out everything with my mouth" too.

But the privet. We have a privet hedge, and I'm already quite desperate to rip it out and replace it with native hedging; but that'll take time to grow, and I'm looking uneasily at the financial investment as we rent here. But I'm trying to justify it on the basis that - even if we do move, the hedges will still give pleasure to our sparrows.

(no subject)

I am also toying with getting an actual plastic sign for the wildspot near my house, and making a poster showing people what all the wild flowers that grow there are with pictures.

I'm worried it would be a bit passive aggressive tho;

basically, over the lockdown, I wrote to the council on 5 separate occasions asking them not to cut it because it was bringing me happiness. Needless to say, one call from my neighbour and they were straight over. I ended up having more than one chat with the strimmers in the street, and negotiated them down to cutting back the 50% against my neighbour's wall but leaving the 50% against mine. 

Then, a month later, one of the councillors came over to Have A Chat and ask why I wouldn't let them cut it back. Apparently it used to be a path? but like, for it to be useable as a path it would need to be flattened and have steps installed. The council clearly don't want to do that, they just want to kill shit because having things "tidy" scratches some kind of ecocidal itch, and harm my bees and sparrows.

I'm currently constructing a bin from scrap wood to place there, so people will drop litter in the bin instead. After that, a seed-exchange box & I'm hoping then a sign as well will make it a bit of a "destination", you know? A little "feature".

Big broadleaf docks and grasses which rustle, buttercups and ground-growing ragwort, and scatterings of herb robert, and the sense of all being right with the world as oddly coloured spiders weave in and out.