> I sympathize - lousy rabbits. I never knew if it was the
rabbits or deer
> that ate mine when they managed to survive all the way to the
blooming
> point.
I live IN THE COUNTRY, so have all the pesky critters (except
woodchucks, which don't live down here, and skunks, which are
supposed to but who haven't shown up in the 30 years we have been
here).
Anyway, we're not bothered too much by them. There is nearly
3,000 acres of forest bordering us on 3 sides, and a sparsely
settled "development" a 1/4 mile away on the other, so it's
mostly forest, too. I guess the critters have plenty to eat and
drink, tho I have had deer and fox drinking out of my small
garden pool during dry spells, like the one we're going through
now.
We have friends, though, who live close to town and have had many
of the problems you all are describing. They solved the problem
with an "invisible fence" and a sizeable dog outside for good
portions of the day and evening -- enough that the pests were
sure to meet up with it at some time or another.
Deer ARE trainable. ;-)
My little no-neck French bulldog just chases after the squirrels,
then can't figure out where they vanish to since she has a hard
time looking up.
Jim Lewis - jklewis@nettally.com - Tallahassee, FL - Only where
people have learned to appreciate and cherish the landscape and
its living cover will they treat it with the care and respect it
should have - Paul Bigelow Sears.
Don't get a dog for purposes of discouraging deer though, here deer are even
hunted using dogs and although they will stay away when the dog is actually
right out there if the dog is in the house, even though frantically barking,
they will eat your plants with impunity, and run once the dog is let out.
They quickly learn a barking dog inside isn't going to get them before they
can eat whatever they're closest to....
-----Original Message-----
From: Gardens & Gardening [mailto:GARDENS@LSV.UKY.EDU] On Behalf Of Jim
Lewis
Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 2004 3:55 PM
To: GARDENS@LSV.UKY.EDU
Subject: 4-legged Garden pests (was: Re: Gardening mystery)
> I sympathize - lousy rabbits. I never knew if it was the
rabbits or deer
> that ate mine when they managed to survive all the way to the
blooming
> point.
I live IN THE COUNTRY, so have all the pesky critters (except
woodchucks, which don't live down here, and skunks, which are
supposed to but who haven't shown up in the 30 years we have been
here).
Anyway, we're not bothered too much by them. There is nearly
3,000 acres of forest bordering us on 3 sides, and a sparsely
settled "development" a 1/4 mile away on the other, so it's
mostly forest, too. I guess the critters have plenty to eat and
drink, tho I have had deer and fox drinking out of my small
garden pool during dry spells, like the one we're going through
now.
We have friends, though, who live close to town and have had many
of the problems you all are describing. They solved the problem
with an "invisible fence" and a sizeable dog outside for good
portions of the day and evening -- enough that the pests were
sure to meet up with it at some time or another.
Deer ARE trainable. ;-)
My little no-neck French bulldog just chases after the squirrels,
then can't figure out where they vanish to since she has a hard
time looking up.
Jim Lewis - jklewis@nettally.com - Tallahassee, FL - Only where
people have learned to appreciate and cherish the landscape and
its living cover will they treat it with the care and respect it
should have - Paul Bigelow Sears.
