Birds and aphids

While not strictly part of my kitchen garden, I do have a couple of rose bushes growing in my garden. Unfortunately these are currently infested with aphids, which may at some point become a threat to the edible plants I am growing.

I have had some mixed success in controlling these with a white oil spray that an uncle gave me, but I don't really like to use chemical sprays. After all, the whole point of growing your own food is to avoid the chemical cocktail that comes with shop bought produce.

I've decided to give the aphids free reign of my rose bushes, because I figure that while they're feeding on that, they're staying away from the plants that I like to eat.

However, yesterday I found I had a new ally in the control of these pests - the Red Wattlebird. While sitting in my room, I noticed one of these birds fly into one of the rose bushes, and I was able to watch it closely through the window. To my great surprise, the bird was feeding on the aphids.

The Wattlebird is a large Australian honeyeater that feeds on nectar and insects, so I guess it must find the aphids a sweet treat. In addition to keeping the aphids in check, the Wattlebird would help to pollinate some plants as it feeds on the nectar from the flowers in my garden.

So the Red Wattlebird is now a welcome sight in my garden, as long as it stays away from the fruit that will be appearing over the next few months!

(Photo of Red Wattlebird courtesy of Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Wattlebird)