Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Tuesday's Tip

don't bother planting a vegetable garden unless you're gonna do something about the deer.

seriously.
it will end up looking like this...

the scraggly things on the left used to be tomatoes.  the scraggly things on the right used to be bell peppers. the leafy, yet fruitless, things in the middle are eggplant.  apparently, deer are not big fans of eggplant.  they'll eat the blooms but not the fruit.  i had one little ripening eggplant and this is how i found it...

teeth marks! little baby deer teeth marks on my little baby eggplant.  ridiculous.  
this is just one of the culprits...

yeah, yeah, he's cute and all.  but he's not the only one.  he is only one in a larger party of deer - all varying in size (to which all the poop in my yard can attest).  apparently, they thought it would be a good idea to eat all of our produce and then leave the remains of said meal scattered throughout our yard.  graciously, i've not saved you a picture of that.  

now that there are no veggies to eat (and since they've eaten all the promising buds off all of grandma's mums - she was not a happy camper), they've since moved on to eat all the fallen acorns and hickory nuts -giving the squirrels some much needed competition.  don't even get me started on the squirrels.

chuck and i are working on a strategy for better protecting next year's garden.  but, to those of you who are eagerly awaiting the first day of deer season, i say "happy hunting."  


3 comments:

  1. Here's a tip Dave received from a local gardener: Walmart bags tied on the perimeter of your garden. Evidently, the sound they make while moving scare the deer...and Dave also peed a perimeter around the garden every few days. They don't like the smell of humans! :)

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  2. you are so funny! I second the peeing comment from above! My aunt used to make my uncle pee in the yard :) You have men - put 'em to work!

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  3. i've heard that doesn't always work. not that my "men" wouldn't mind the job... we've saved cut hair and sprinkled that around, too - but it didn't work in the past. hmm...

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