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Sunday, August 9, 2009

Bunnies and Owls


First let me say that I love bunnies. They are soft furry little creatures with adorable brown eyes. I love them like Lennie loved them. Also, I must admit there is a slingshot, the type normally referred to as a "wrist rocket", ready on the arm of the garden bench. I haven't been able to kill any of the little hoppers, but after being whacked smartly once or twice they do respect me more. The plant(?) in the photo was at one time a hosta, Krossa Regal. It was a lovely vase-shaped frosty blue plant - a stunner. It became rabbit salad. I can't show you pictures of a large number of expen$ive dwarf hostas I have/had because there is nothing left to photograph. One of the plantsmen I purchase these horticultural gems from lives in a wooded rural location. I asked him how he dealt with rabbits. "The dog and owl boxes!" He gave me the specs: 2' x 2' x 3' tall, mounted high in a tree away from the house. First, the dog; Bud, our Pug dog who helps me garden, generally ignores the rabbits. I have long suspected they are on a first name basis. I have more hope for the owls. We have a couple of Barred Owls that occasionally pass through. To encourage them I built the most owlish birdhouse I could come up with. It is constructed of recycled 3/4" redwood and turned out unexpectedly heavy. Unexpectedly? It took all my engineery expertise, ropes and pulleys, cables and cams, ladders and levers, plus an old come-a-long, to get it mounted high in a large bur oak tree. To the surprise and amazement of onlookers, I did not injury myself or the old Pug who was assisting me.
I've done my part, now it's up to the owls.


West Virginia? This is what I'm trying to encourage. The call is special, especially heard right outside the bedroom window at 3 o'clock in the morning . They are here occasionally, probably nesting somewhere in Oakwood. I want them based HERE, with bunny blood dripping from their talons.

4 comments:

Margadant said...

Don't retire the wrist rocket just yet.

Gunnar Berg said...

I suspect I'll be contacting the Acme Shurgard Fencing Company,Inc. As you know, fencing my garden would be a real test.

Old Nevermore said...

There's a big chestnut tree at the corner of my Idaho place, under which is a pretty good pile of owl pellets. Mostly the remains of neighborhood squirrels.

Neat to look up there of a sunny afternoon to see a white barn owl sitting up there in the shade of those big leaves, looking back down at you.

Hearing her hunt late at night is a bit chilling, but we all have jobs to do.

You will be really blessed if you can get an owl to take up residence in that box.

The rabbits? They will be fucked.

Kelly said...

I like bunnies as much as the next guy, but then I don't have to deal with them...too many coyotes where I live. But squirrels?? Rats with cute tails....pointless waste of space on the earth.. (They must either reproduce faster than the coyotes can keep them down, or they run faster than the coyotes.)