Goose and Tree stories

Today we fed some very hungry ducks  and two hungry geese, who came right to the edge of the pond to get food. They seem pretty friendly. The gulls were keen too!

We also put our Christmas tree out into the garden today. 

That wasn't the plan - we were going to harden it off before putting it out - but it was scattering bugs on the floor! Carly noticed it, and then when we had a good look we saw that the central stem of the tree and the thicker branches were alive with bugs, about a centimetre or so across  and looking like a cross between a small spider and a beetle. Carly said they are aphids, and looking online I think she is right. Anyway, they were dropping off the tree and slowly making their way into the room and there were dozens and dozens of them.

We took the tree outside. That was no small job seeing as it was well watered so it was sitting in heavy wet earth. Then we stripped all the ornaments off and hoovered inside the house. And hoovered a bit more. 

Poor little tree, it's looking a bit lonely out there now. I don't think I'd get a real tree again though. Plastic trees don't have aphids.