PARIS

Time for us to follow the French and ban pesticides from cities, including private gardens. Paris has been pesticide free since 2019. My garden is pesticide free and full of food plants for insects, bees and birds. I have a large area of raspberries and I expected the birds to beat me to the harvest – but it is largely bird free although there are plentiful insects. Yes I have seen the odd bee and butterfly but they too have been disappointing in their general absence. I guess that whilst in a rural village the other 80 or so houses in my sunurban road have only token flowers, and 80-90% mow their lawns with enthusiam every 2 weeks. Next door neighbour even sprayed an escaped wallflower that managed to flower close the wall of her house! I will admit to using slug pellets occasionally when planting out young plants from the greenhouse, but once established they are on their own! Butwhere are the birds – the bird feed in the feeder went rotten and the seeds started sprouting?