Ha ! you looked anyway and now you're shuddering at the thought of it sitting on your shoulder desperately trying to make it's way into your ear to burrow and nest and whisper !!
But whatever you do, do not kill it. Here is one of the gardeners seldom seen allies, the ground beetle larva. There are more than 2500 species of ground beetle and they will prey on : slugs, snails, cutworms, cabbage root maggots and most other soil dwelling pests. A single larvae may eat up to fifty caterpillars, how many did you catch this year ? Adults can live up to three years and are a voracious predator .... a bit like me. Well when it comes to chocolate that is.
So how can I get one I hear you cry. Well I'm spoken for but these ground beetles love perennial beds which provide cover, also ground cover planting is a great encouragement and stone pathways give some pretty nifty hiding places. So a friend indeed is a friend we need and I damn nearly squashed him when clearing out the earlies bed !! Phew, it's murder in the garden these days !
