OT April Chit Chat

[Howie]

What a clever design. All I've ever seen us the cone shaped one. The are offering it with three devices for one price. I love Amazon, and have a small list to order on payday.

[Lazarus]

Only registered and activated users can see links., Click Here To Register...

This is the squirrel proof feeder I have used for years. Works perfectly. When a big bird or squirrel tries to get food the feeder closes. I tried to copy the picture but maybe this link will show you the feeder.

[Howie]

Nuthatch, you beat me to it!

[stillstANNding]

Yes, Nuthatch, squirrels can and do climb smooth metal posts.
ANN

[nuthatch]

Wow, a woodchuck! I don't think we have those here. Never seen one, so I don't even know what they look like. I had never seen a muskrat either, until I moved to Wisconsin. Speaking of animals, I would love to see an armadillo or a platypus some day!


How much wood does a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? Sorry, couldn't resist.

[Lazarus]

Lazarus, the gardening sounds wonderful! You can grow things that we cannot grow here, like raspberries. We're too far inland from the coast and they don't do well in dry heat. We used to grow olallieberries, and I so looked forward to having fresh berries every July. For the last ten years, we have gotten a very hot snap just as the berries were near ripening and they just dried up. Climate change? Most commercial berries farms are in costal areas where the season is longer and even still, the rows and rows of berries are grown under shade cloth "tunnels".

Do you have gophers there? Rabbits? Deer? What do you do about the hungry masses?
I don't think you have those nasty destructive little ground squirrels that give us so much trouble. They have even been seen climbing up my young fruit trees to eat the new leaves off! Even though we have hog wire cages around the trees to keep deer out, they burrow under any barrier you put up, coming up inside. We finally found out that they don't like bird netting because their toe nails get caught up in it, so we lay wads of netting on the ground around the base of the tree extending out several feet, out so that they can't jump over it (yes, they are smart little buggers and can jump over things!).

We used to use traps, but they figured those out very quickly and must have told their kin, because they won't come near the traps now. We won't use poisons. My husband keeps a pellet gun handy, but misses more often than not. Flairs down their holes work if you can find and seal up their multiple exits, which is near impossible. My cat catches one occasionally. Snakes, hawks, owls . . . where are they when ya need them?

Some services offer gopher & ground squirrel control. A neighbor hired one, who came out and walked his property, sealing up all holes he found. Then he pumped propane into a hole and ignited it! Sounded like WW3! He did that over and over for hours. I was near insane! NOT GOING THERE!!! He still has plenty of ground squirrels!

As I type this, hubby is outside tying bird netting on top of the framed hog wire surrounding the garden area, that he just planted. He is upset that one of the little monsters climbed through the hog wire before he got the netting up and mowed off all the little lettuce plants in the half hour he was in the house to eat lunch! They must be watching his every move!
The battle continues!

Our nemesis is the family of woodchucks....they will eat the pea plants as soon as they spot them! We put until hav-a-heart traps and then move them far away! They can really destroy a whole field. The farmer and the critters---sounds like a book title.

[Frog42]

I wonder if squirrels could climb a smooth metal post?

We once had one like that. They did somehow anyway. Put grease on the post so they couldn't climb it but once it wore off they were at it again. They're both destructive and clever.

[nuthatch]

Virginia, we have a squirrel proof bird feeder like this. Only registered and activated users can see links., Click Here To Register... This site offers several squirrel proof feeders.

Ours works at keeping out squirrels very well. It is mounted on the side of a 8 foot wood post. We also have one of the cheap wood feeders from Wal Mart, that you lift up the roof to fill. It is mounted on the top of the same post. The squirrels couldn't get the seeds out of the squirrel proof feeder, but if they climbed on up to the top feeder, it was feast time! They could even remove the wood roof and climb into the thing!

We fixed that problem by making a plexiglass platform that encircles the post just below the lower feeder. It sticks out at least a foot all the way around the post. Squirrels can climb the wood post only so far, but then hit the "glass ceiling" and can't get around it. The larger birds can stand on the platform to eat, instead of trying to squeeze their big bodies into the small perch area of the lower feeder. No squirrels can get up to the feeders.

We buy a seed mix that has all different kinds of seed and dried fruit in it. Different kinds of birds love to pick out the type of seed they like and often throw out what they don't like. The platform keeps a lot of it from hitting the ground, so there is not as much waste. What does hit the ground is eaten by quail, morning doves, ring neck pigeons and the magpies (my favorites!).

I wonder if squirrels could climb a smooth metal post? Watching birds at the feeder is relaxing and enjoyable.

I've been hearing owls (more than one) hooting at night lately. The neighbor has an owl box on a 12 foot pole in his yard. It's visible from my bathroom window, but I've seen no activity there. I don't think we'll see any because the neighbors put their kid's trampoline nearby. No self respecting owl would stand for that near her nest!

[Virginia]

It will soon be time for Peg to come on and start us off for May. Hope she has not had 8 inches of snow.

Sleep well everyone!

[Virginia]

Glad to see there are others who are not squirrel fans. I do not like them. I had a bird feeder on my deck, no way to hang it so I had it on my banister which was quite nice because I could see it from the chair I sit in to watch T.V. Well, I tried and tried, but could not get the squirrels to leave it alone. I would put feed in it and they would come and eat it and scatter it all on the deck and mess the deck up. I finally got rid of the feeder because only the squirrels were benefiting. Believe me once they find a place like that they tell all their friends and family and they all come and gather.

I had a couple of cardinals which I loved watching, but it did not last because of the squirrels. They are in the same family as rodents which again are about my least favorite things.

I live in a heavily populated area, but I still have seen some deer. When I use to live in my house which was just outside the city limits I saw a lot of them.

Nuthatch, sounds like you still have your whole population of critters.

[Howie]

Bullwinkle and Rocky would be so heartbroken, especially Rocky.

[agate]

I'm that way about raccoons too--dear little faces and furry little bodies may be cute but handsome is as handsome does. Every time I look at one of the many squirrels outside here, it's CHEWING something, and I know they chew electrical wires and are responsible for power outages at times.

As for raccoons, their winsome little faces don't charm me but I have neighbors who feed them and think they're perfectly adorable. They're told not to feed them but they go ahead anyway, feeling sorry for the poor little things.

Poor little things, my eye. These raccoons are fat and sassy. The squirrels seem to be doing quite well too.

[Frog42]

Most people think squirrels are adorable but I'm not one of them. They'll eat just about anything and find a way to get around most traps.

Just because they're furry is not reason enough for me to find something that destructive cute!

[nuthatch]

Lazarus, the gardening sounds wonderful! You can grow things that we cannot grow here, like raspberries. We're too far inland from the coast and they don't do well in dry heat. We used to grow olallieberries, and I so looked forward to having fresh berries every July. For the last ten years, we have gotten a very hot snap just as the berries were near ripening and they just dried up. Climate change? Most commercial berries farms are in costal areas where the season is longer and even still, the rows and rows of berries are grown under shade cloth "tunnels".

Do you have gophers there? Rabbits? Deer? What do you do about the hungry masses?
I don't think you have those nasty destructive little ground squirrels that give us so much trouble. They have even been seen climbing up my young fruit trees to eat the new leaves off! Even though we have hog wire cages around the trees to keep deer out, they burrow under any barrier you put up, coming up inside. We finally found out that they don't like bird netting because their toe nails get caught up in it, so we lay wads of netting on the ground around the base of the tree extending out several feet, out so that they can't jump over it (yes, they are smart little buggers and can jump over things!).

We used to use traps, but they figured those out very quickly and must have told their kin, because they won't come near the traps now. We won't use poisons. My husband keeps a pellet gun handy, but misses more often than not. Flairs down their holes work if you can find and seal up their multiple exits, which is near impossible. My cat catches one occasionally. Snakes, hawks, owls . . . where are they when ya need them?

Some services offer gopher & ground squirrel control. A neighbor hired one, who came out and walked his property, sealing up all holes he found. Then he pumped propane into a hole and ignited it! Sounded like WW3! He did that over and over for hours. I was near insane! NOT GOING THERE!!! He still has plenty of ground squirrels!

As I type this, hubby is outside tying bird netting on top of the framed hog wire surrounding the garden area, that he just planted. He is upset that one of the little monsters climbed through the hog wire before he got the netting up and mowed off all the little lettuce plants in the half hour he was in the house to eat lunch! They must be watching his every move!
The battle continues!

[Lazarus]

well April is going out with a "winter storm warning, up to 8 inches of snow forecasted for our area Sunday into Monday, with high winds",, lets see if this happens,,

Oh no!
Yesterday was my first farmers' market. It shot up to 82°. That was a shock. Today it is in the 50's. Strange spring weather patterns make it tough to farm. But our drought of 2 years is gone.

It was nice to see old customer/friends at the market. People were happy to be thinking of planting gardens. I had dug up some beautiful raspberry plants. Looked great. (type-Caroline). Makes a large berry with great flavor. I sold some rhubarb plants and a couple of fig trees. I grow wild strawberry  plants which looked great. These plants do not spread and they produce great tasting little berries constantly from May until November.

Nature can be simply wonderful or wonderfully terrifying!!