Nature for Absolute Beginners: Weeds

Last spring I decided I was going to let all the plants in my garden grow wild, just to see what happened. I was surprised and pleased to find that many of the plants I had always considered to be weeds are actually very beautiful indeed and excellent sources of nectar for the pollinators in my garden. I feel that we need to celebrate weeds rather than eradicate them! Not all gardeners will agree... Here is a selection of weeds that are growing in my part of the Chilterns in Oxfordshire, UK, many of them in my own garden. This article was published in the Henley Standard on May  28, 2021. Above is a bumblebee feasting on some Common Knapweed.

right: Red Dead Nettle in the rain