Nettles!

Yes we have nettles in our garden and I could say that this is deliberate to help butterflies etc. but obviously they are there by accident and are just ignored. They are at the bottom of the garden and almost in the adjoining field, so they are not a problem.

However . . .
 
. . . nettles were a big problem last week! From the house we had in West Sussex we set off to walk to the sea. Which was fine, as it wasn't too far and it was a good day for walking. But we were walking on the roads and they were narrow and there was little in the way of verges and quite a few cars came that way.
 
So, when it came to getting back, we decided to try a footpath that was marked on the map and signposted. This was quite pleasant for a good part of the way. Then we began to notice that the path had been overgrown, but someone had had a good go at clearing it. Then the clearance suddenly stopped, the path disappeared in the undergrowth and we found ourselves ploughing through plant life of all kinds - including brambles and nettles. As we had shorts, tee shirts and sandals on, this was not a pleasant experience. We had gone too far to go back, so we just ploughed on, like explorers in a jungle. We got to the end at last, but we had been scratched and nettled very badly.
 
With this experience in mind, I have joined the Big Pathwatch.
 
This is a campaign by the Ramblers Association with the aim of protecting and improving the footpath network in England and Wales.  They are hoping to have every footpath walked and reported on - one OS map km square at a time. I have my first square chosen and registered. It centres round our village and so I just have to walk the paths and report on their condition. I do not envy the person who chooses the square with the path we walked last week, but I would very much like it to be reported.