The story of the last three weeks has been weeds. I recently had a minor windfall and splashed out on some field guides. The biggest eye-opener has been An Illustrated Guide to Common Weeds of New Zealand. I think most keen naturalists have a special affection for native flora and fauna, and I am no exception. But for me the biggest thrill I get is just knowing what's around, what I'm seeing every day. And the truth is that what I see is more often exotic than not. It is weeds. A lot of them have terrific names: Scarlet Pimpernel, Catchfly, Bittersweet, Nightshade, Prickly Lettuce, Willowherb, Forget-me-not, Monkeyflower. Smacks Creek has a lot of recently torn up ground where exotics have been torn out it looks like. The bare space is filling lushly with weeds, getting leafier and prettier as summer starts to heat and hum.