Monday 25 April 2011

The problem of weevils

I have the blood of a hundred weevils on my hands; they are chomping the plum and pear tree leaves, and must needs be squashed. The lesser of the two weevils are dark grey, and the others shine an iridescent copper. Yet who would have thought the old pests to have had so much blood in them? Green blood at that, from all the chlorophyll they've ingested. What, will these hands ne'er be clean? Here's the smell of the blood still.

I have also been trying to take some close-up photos of plants and flowers, which is not easy in a changeable wind. I took a blurry photo of a dandelion clock, then when I was setting myself again, along came a gust and away went my subject. But here is one I'm quite pleased with.

2 comments:

  1. Seems a shame that weevils have to die. Should they be squashed so that humans can eat plums and pears?

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  2. Steve, either you must be a Jain monk, which would be laudable, or you have a somewhat over-romantic view of nature and our food production system. If the weevils live, the fruit (they're in the apples too) do not thrive, money and energy getting them to this stage is wasted, and we buy fruit + food miles from other sources who squash/spray/otherwise exterminate weevils. I have just finished Annie Dillard's "Pilgrim at Tinker Creek", which might provide you with food for thought.

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