OT: Fences send the wrong message.....

There have been quite a few mysterious findings in the yard this spring and summer...exploratory excavations, strange scat, yellow jackets starting a new nest. I did have to dust the raised strawberry bed with Sevin to discourage the yellow jackets...

This morning, I went out earlier than usual to have coffee by the pond. Just starting to get light. Walking slowly so's not to spill my coffee. Got about ten feet from the pear tree when I saw something white moving beneath the tree....OH! Those are white stripes! Went back to garage, turned on the outside light and made some noise so the skunk high-tailed it to go under the shed. Now, my experience and logic tell me that the critters who squeeze in between the gate and the fence don't feel obliged to squeeze back out if they can find their favorite snacks here. So I'll just leave the gates open to let them know they are free to leave. Might do something to get rid of grubs next year, but they haven't been a big bother. There is a feral cat that knows where the rabbits are in the neighbor's yard.

My friends are starting to send me frogs to put in the pond, but they won't stay. Don't know where they hide, but got some nice, thick shrubs around the pond where I've seen the big bullfrog go. I'm sure a heron will stop in sometime; don't mind if one takes one or two koi.

Reply to
Norminn
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I doubt that your frogs are just leaving-- They are likely feeding the skunk, or a raccoon, or an owl.. . . .

My 'pond'- a 4x8' peanut shaped thing that has given me more enjoyment than most anything else I ever built- keeps a resident population of frogs at about 10-20. Last year the king of the pond was a giant bullfrog who 'moved on' to somewhere this spring. But there are a dozen 'just lost their tails' tiny bullfrogs ready to take his/her place. And the usual 8-10 green frogs-- The toads and tree frogs stopped in this spring, laid eggs, and all those tadpoles have morphed and left the pond already.

I never put any Koi in mine, but a dozen rosy reds are now a couple dozen 'green reds'. They seem to produce faster than birds and frogs can eat them-- but the red ones are better targets, so I end up with more greens.

Jim

Reply to
Jim Elbrecht

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