It's bedtime for my garden beds. Today was the last mild day in the forecast, so I needed to finish (well, almost) getting the garden ready for winter. And I literally (well, almost) put the beds to bed.
Back in April, I blogged about the pesky squirrels who'd spent the autumn burying their nuts in my gardens and then digging them up in the spring after I'd already planted some of the beds. I had to use bird netting to protect the plants. As a result of the squirrels being unable to retrieve their nuts, I was constantly pulling up miniature walnut trees trying to hide in the lettuces and spinach all summer.
So I'd been trying to think of a way to prevent the squirrels from doing this again. Putting bird netting over the soil worried me. I was afraid that the little critters would get their tiny feet caught in the netting and have a terrible time of it. I thought about screening (the kind you would buy to replace the screens in your windows and doors), but that might get expensive. So would lattice boards . . . and then where would I store them in the summer?
Always looking for solutions that don't break the bank, I remembered all the old bedsheets I'd stored in a downstairs closet, the ones I use to protect the floors when I paint furniture. Hmmm . . . big enough to cover the beds, thin enough to allow rain and snow to get into the soil, easy to store, and maybe, just maybe, strong enough to thwart the squirrels' plans. Armed with the sheets, thumbtacks, and a staple gun, I got to work.
I am aware that there could be a flaw in this plan, which would really suck, because I put a lot of time into this preventive measure. If you think my plan won't work, please let me know why. It's not too late to change the sheets.
Meanwhile, I am in love with my sleeping garden beds, safely tucked in for the winter.
No comments:
Post a Comment