Our flower and vegetable gardens have taken quite a beating this year. I usually expect to lose some things due to rain, or due to lack of rain. I expect aphids and japanese beetles to decimate my roses before I can get them under control. I expect other insects to attack my vegetables. I try to garden without chemicals, including organic chemicals, so I have a pretty realistic expectation of losing some things, but at least I know I’m keeping our soil clean.
This year though, we have a new and much larger garden pest. We’ve had an abundance of wildlife who think our gardens are theirs. The chipmunks are brazen, the groundhog lounges about among the vegetables and only begrudgingly wobbles off when we’re just a few feet away. And the deer! Oh my goodness! I’ve been startled by one resting in the terrace just below the vegetables. Husband and I have enjoyed watching one wander across our front garden beds as we enjoy a cup of tea on the front porch. But now they’re walking up and eating my roses. The nerve!
And another one has brought her two tiny babies over for a snack in the far flower garden.
I’m torn between enjoying the sight of these four legged visitors and wanting to put up high fencing to protect some of our favorite vegetables and flowers. I wonder if they feel the same way about us. We put our homes and yards and gardens in their backyards. We lay roads across their paths, and we block access to their favorite watering holes. If they could, would the animals try and put up fences to keep us corralled? I think I’ll ponder that over a bit. And in the meanwhile, I’ll just find some easy and more natural deterrents (soap, hair clippings, taking my dogs out around the gardens I want the deer to stay clear from…) and let them have their way about the rest of our space. But really, why is she eating my roses?!