Beneficial Insect Success!

I started an experiment last Fall that I am very happy with. I have been experimenting with a permaculture concept- a combination of green mulching and interplanting with flowering plants that attracts beneficial insects. In the past I have either weeded diligently or mulched heavily with some kind of prebagged mulch or hay to suppress all the weeds.

I have changed my mind about "weeds" and realize that most of them are probably good for one reason or another. Either they attract beneficial insects, or they bring nutrients up from the deeper soil that will be released back into the garden when they decompose. This year I decided to only weed out grasses (which have shallow root systems that compete for nutrients with your garden pants) or things I really did not want, like burrs.

Watching Wasps

This morning I noticed that my roses were covered in wasps. I don't know what they were doing there. Looking for bugs? I know wasps are great predators of many pesky bugs and beneficial to the garden. It didn't look like they were getting any bugs and it didn't look like they were getting nectar either. Then I noticed that one of them was licking dewdrops off the rose leaves!