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Up to town today, and while waiting for the number 12 bendy bus, 12-year-old and I examine the trunk of a lime tree overhanging the stop. There's a whole ecosystem in just a few square feet of bark.Most prominent are the white waxy remains of horse

A recent comment to a blog entry got me thinking about vine weevils. I haven't seen many in my garden for a few years. I wonder if this is the result of my zero-tolerance approach. Along with lily beetles, this is about the only creature I

30 minutesCarefully remove the tiny bulbils growing from the leaf axils of the plant.Treat the bulbils as if they were large seeds. Plant several in a pot of multi-purpose compost, spacing them 2.5cm apart.Cover with a layer of compost and water using

.Wooden wine crate1.2m length of 15cm x 2cm untreated timber25mm galvanised nails1m length of hosepipeJig saw, drill and hammer25mm drill bitall year roundA couple of hoursStart by making the tunnel for the hedgehog house. Cut the timber into four 30cm lengths

, ladybirds, lacewings and bees.Untreated timberHollow canes such as bambooPieces of branch or other woodWood saw2.5cm nails and hammerDrill and wood drill bitScrewdriver and self-tapping screwall year round2 hoursMake a simple box using scraps of untreated

in mucus, and is about 1cm wide by 6cm long, although when extended it can be up to 30cm long. It lives on earthworms, covering them in digestive juices to dissolve them before sucking them up. The larvae of ground beetles prey on flatworms. Researchers

during the day making collection easy. Sink shallow cups of beer or milk in borders, setting them slightly above soil level - you don't want ground beetles falling in as they are a natural predator of slugs. Keep your garden tidy, slugs love to hide under

.To top it all there's very little raspberry beetle damage - those horrible little browny maggoty things that sneak out of the top end of the fruit. I can't seem to pick the fruit fast enough and the entire family is going around with bright red stains

in it's own slug-trap cup. We had a scoring system which scored plus points for slugs and snails caught, and negative points for each ground beetle or other beneficial insect caught. Guinness was the resounding winner. I'm pleased to say that it works

, and perhaps the exotic, invasive harlequins have met their match with our harsh winter weather. I wonder how the citrus longhorn beetle has fared this winter. Luckily we don’t have those in the window frames, or I would be worried!I'd love to know if your