Finally found the huge fat caterpillar that has been ravaging my new rocket and leaving frass everywhere -- I hope that was the only one, but am not confident. It has put paid to my intention to harvest rocket for my salad today, at any rate.
Something has also eaten the tops off one end of my kale seedlings after I left them outdoors overnight, but I think that may be snails. The very old stump of kale that I harvested the dried seed-pods from to sow this batch resolutely refused to die after being left indoors unwatered for a week or so in the heat in order to dry out the compost so I could empty the pot, and started putting out new feathery leaves, so I have relented, put it back outside, and started watering it again. After the recent downpours it appears to be flourishing! The variety was, I believe, Uncle Bert's Purple Kale, but since this was originally a self-seeded survivor dug out of the border ("rescued") it is clearly extremely vigorous. Just what I like in my 'heritage' plants :-)
Something has also eaten the tops off one end of my kale seedlings after I left them outdoors overnight, but I think that may be snails. The very old stump of kale that I harvested the dried seed-pods from to sow this batch resolutely refused to die after being left indoors unwatered for a week or so in the heat in order to dry out the compost so I could empty the pot, and started putting out new feathery leaves, so I have relented, put it back outside, and started watering it again. After the recent downpours it appears to be flourishing! The variety was, I believe, Uncle Bert's Purple Kale, but since this was originally a self-seeded survivor dug out of the border ("rescued") it is clearly extremely vigorous. Just what I like in my 'heritage' plants :-)