Bit grubby mum

The boy has perked up in recent days, he goes through these ups and downs in his aging years and losing his sight didn't help. He has coped with this most of the time but he doesn't know about soot. John planted some horseradish plants a few months ago which have come through as hoped except the slugs have found the leaves and like the taste. John remembered something from his distant gardening years and threw soot around the plants thinking it might deter the pesky slug. Time will tell but in the meantime the horseradish bed is on the route of the boy's daily wander and he walked right through it all, twice.

I have tried to wash it off and all things considered he is a patient cat, but soot isn't easy to remove and not sure what to do. Now the loose stuff is off I can't see it's a problem, certainly not to him anyway.

If I manage an extra it shows the twig barricade John has placed around the sooty bed.