Over the last two weeks I have been watching goldfinches picking the seeds out of the heads of my lavender flowers, and the pleasure of watching them outweighed the need to cut the flowers heads down once they had finished flowering. Plus, when I walked up the garden the smell of lavender was wonderful, having been released by the birds breaking open the flowers to get to the seeds. It is possible to cut the flowers back at a later date, and still have bushy plants and plenty of flowers next year, and such a shame to deny the goldfinches of a meal that they so enjoy by doing it now. After all, the garden should be enjoyed by all, and that includes the wildlife which we encourage into our gardens by planting flowers and shurbs for their benefit, and which bring so much pleasure to us and to them.
