This morning as I was out walking, I could hear quite the racket going on back by the front door. Begrudgingly, I headed back that way to investigate noise since I had left the door unlocked. Not many folks are coming to the Bayou but it was better for me to see who was knocking. So, I shortened my hike time and walked up behind the greenhouse. From here, there is a full view of the front door and no one was there. What I heard was a battle between five squirrels! The rascals had raided the birdseed but were not willing to share. The greedy, little things had started squabbling among themselves and the fuss took itself into the arbor that surrounds the french doors. The "knocking" was literally their hard heads boinking on the glass window panes as they fought. My goodness! They did not even notice that I was in their midst for a few moments. I clapped my hand loudly and all five scampered away...three up the oak tree, one up the black gum tree and one insisted on racing all the way down the hill to the pier. (Silly squirrel) Well, that job was done! Now back to my hike.
The path led me back down behind the greenhouse but under that black gum tree. The once terrified squirrel was now feeling rather feisty as it was sitting high up in the safety of the tree. That rascal started barking at me! He obviously did not appreciate having his bar brawl broken up. Oh, what am I going to do with these tree-climbing, birdseed-thieving, glorified rats! I can only imagine the damage they are going to do to the garden.
While I love the critters that inhabit the Bayou, Creek and wooded area around here, I have to admit that occasionally I get a tad irritated at some of them. Just last week, I observed the squirrels munching the peaches. Three of them would slip into the garden, each grab a peach and scoot up the nearby Black Gum Tree. There, they would gnaw the peach and toss down the pit. Five nights ago, it was different critters in the same tree. The coons riddled the peach crop. It would not be so bad if they helped themselves to a few and then were so kind as to leave a few for us, but...NOOOO....they have to taste-test each and every peach on the tree. What they do not eat, they simply bit and dropped. One night and about half of the peaches were lost. Son and I went out the next day and picked the remaining fruit even though they were not quite ripe. Better to get what we could before those were ruined. Peach jam can be very forgiving when it come to ripeness.
Three nights later, the same thing happened to the plums. Two trees of fruit were eliminated by the same process. Bite and drop seems to be the norm for coons. We got six plums. Those were thrown in the pot with some of those green peaches. Jam is good.
Now I have had it with raccoons! I am so over their thieving ways. Between those and the birds stealing the Boysenberries, it is amazing that we have any fruit whatsoever. Then...yesterday morning....while I sat drinking my coffee. I noticed a wiggle outside the window in the tomato patch. A Redheaded Woodpecker was hammering away at my nice red tomato! Geez! I grabbed a bucket, picked every tomato that was remotely changing color and brought them inside. There, bird! Take that! I made gallons of tomato sauce today. Tomorrow will be the same as I shall pick more in the morning. It is hard to believe that this pretty bird would stoop so low as to be a tomato thief! Then again....he does have sneaky eyes....just look at him! Thief!!!
It seems as if the critters are thinking my gardens are there for their pleasure. I would not mind so much if they lent a helping hand...errr...paw, talon, claw or whatever...but for them just to take is totally uncalled for. Pops always used to say that we just had to plant more the next year to make up for what the critters (and unscrupulous people) stole from his fields. I never remember him becoming upset over the thefts. Maybe I just need a bigger garden.....or high fences.....or a pack of large watchdogs...or maybe I should just count my blessings and forget about it.
