Unutterably Silly So what are you doing RIGHT NOW?

[Libby Cone]

Originally Posted by griffonwing

Ooooh, I feel sorry for the first dog to mark his territory... Bzzzzztt!!

It reminds me of the gonorrhea cure in Grass' 'The Tin Drum'!

When people plant edible plants(like the plum tree; though I usually plant herbs), do you feel as if you're cheating if you pick some right away, instead of new growth that has occurred since planting?

[vivaldirules]

My experience with squirrels is that, although they are smart and will learn, they are persistent and probably don't care much about being hit now and then from a water pistol or sling shot. They'll certainly be wary afterwards, but once they think you're not there, they'll happily go munch on whatever you don't want them to. To be effective, it either needs to be a true barrier or else fatal. Otherwise, I think it's just ineffective and momentary torture (although I'd love to splat a few squirrels with a water pistol now and then).

[Slite]

Originally Posted by vivaldirules

My experience with squirrels is that, although they are smart and will learn, they are persistent and probably don't care much about being hit now and then from a water pistol or sling shot. They'll certainly be wary afterwards, but once they think you're not there, they'll happily go munch on whatever you don't want them to. To be effective, it either needs to be a true barrier or else fatal. Otherwise, I think it's just ineffective and momentary torture (although I'd love to splat a few squirrels with a water pistol now and then).

Depending on what kind of slingshot we are talking about, it can be VERY fatal to a squirrel.

[Sweetpea]

No squirrels here, only mice. And they don't eat our apples and pears and grapes and blackberries and strawberries and raspberries. And the plum will be planted this year.

Oh, and we have cats that eat the mice.

[montsnmags]

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

No squirrels here, only mice. And they don't eat our apples and pears and grapes and blackberries and strawberries and raspberries. And the plum will be planted this year.

Oh, and we have cats that eat the mice.

We have fruit bats and possums for the fruit. We had what we think were native rats, but the big carpet python I previously showed photos of (and which had suspicious bulges along its length) seems to have got them (though something's hanging around under the pool gazebo, eating palm fruit and crapping from the gazebo's rafters.

The scrub turkeys are the worst if they decide on your yard, and they're everywhere around here (I could go out the front now and probably find two in the garden), and not the brightest animals in the world (nothing dissuades them). They'll walk backwards, scratching your entire yard's mulch (and on their way scratch up any plant) from your place to someone else's, even across the road, if they get it in mind to build a nesting mound, which are about 1.5m high and 4m across. Mostly though, they just scratch it up looking for food, which isn't so bad if you don't mind going out every other day to sweep and put the mulch back. They're not well-loved, though being natives they are immune to (legal) persecution of any sort.

Cheers,
Marc

[Slite]

Originally Posted by montsnmags

We have fruit bats and possums for the fruit. We had what we think were native rats, but the big carpet python I previously showed photos of (and which had suspicious bulges along its length) seems to have got them (though something's hanging around under the pool gazebo, eating palm fruit and crapping from the gazebo's rafters.

The scrub turkeys are the worst if they decide on your yard, and they're everywhere around here (I could go out the front now and probably find two in the garden), and not the brightest animals in the world (nothing dissuades them). They'll walk backwards, scratching your entire yard's mulch (and on their way scratch up any plant) from your place to someone else's, even across the road, if they get it in mind to build a nesting mound, which are about 1.5m high and 4m across. Mostly though, they just scratch it up looking for food, which isn't so bad if you don't mind going out every other day to sweep and put the mulch back. They're not well-loved, though being natives they are immune to (legal) persecution of any sort.

Cheers,
Marc

Had no idea what a scrub turkey was, so I had to google it.. But damn, those are some butt-ugly birds!

[montsnmags]

Originally Posted by Slite

Had no idea what a scrub turkey was, so I had to google it.. But damn, those are some butt-ugly birds!

Their yellow wattles (or as we like to call them, the neck-scrotums) are currently swelling with horniness (a google image search will show what I mean). They've got their numbers up again, as the foxes seem to have been mostly eradicated by National Parks. We could be in for a big season of little chicks running everywhere this year.

Cheers,
Marc

[Greg Anos]

Originally Posted by vivaldirules

My experience with squirrels is that, although they are smart and will learn, they are persistent and probably don't care much about being hit now and then from a water pistol or sling shot. They'll certainly be wary afterwards, but once they think you're not there, they'll happily go munch on whatever you don't want them to. To be effective, it either needs to be a true barrier or else fatal. Otherwise, I think it's just ineffective and momentary torture (although I'd love to splat a few squirrels with a water pistol now and then).

Reminds me of John Wayne and Jack Elam in Rio Lobo.

Jack Elam fires shotgun at a distance in a gun battle. No effect.

Wayne - "That splattergun's useless."

Elam - "You don't mind my shootin' it. It makes me feel better..."

I'm too urbanised to use anything really effective. (Collateral damage, you know.) At least it'll hide when I come out....

[griffonwing]

This will take care of those pesky squirrels, even when you're away.

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by montsnmags

We have fruit bats

Our bats eat nasty bugs....

And I need that gun (but with something other than paint...)

[GeoffC]

me thinks a gattling would be handy ....

[Patricia]

Originally Posted by vivaldirules

My experience with squirrels is that, although they are smart and will learn, they are persistent and probably don't care much about being hit now and then from a water pistol or sling shot. They'll certainly be wary afterwards, but once they think you're not there, they'll happily go munch on whatever you don't want them to. To be effective, it either needs to be a true barrier or else fatal. Otherwise, I think it's just ineffective and momentary torture (although I'd love to splat a few squirrels with a water pistol now and then).

Well, if it's ineffective, there's no point. (I'm not interested in futile torture.) It's just a pity that squirrels are so destructive. Last year they dug up all my bulbs, took one bite of each, then left the rest. And the bulbs died.
I would happily provide them with a mound of acorns if they would just leave the plants alone. But they just won't co-operate.

[Slite]

Originally Posted by Patricia

Well, if it's ineffective, there's no point. (I'm not interested in futile torture.) It's just a pity that squirrels are so destructive. Last year they dug up all my bulbs, took one bite of each, then left the rest. And the bulbs died.
I would happily provide them with a mound of acorns if they would just leave the plants alone. But they just won't co-operate.

Not interested in futile torture? What do you do for fun on a Friday night then?

We don't have a squirrel problem though, not so many trees on our lawn, and no plants to talk about either. And since we put up our fence (for the dogs really) we no longer have any problem with neither deer nor wild boars. Our neighbours which doesn't have fences have serious problems with the wild boars going over their plants like motorised hoes (No Marc, the garden tool, not the other kind) . Not to mention that the deer are eating all their trees bare.

[GeoffC]

deer we occasionally have a problem with but no squirrels ....

[griffonwing]

Originally Posted by GeoffC

deer we occasionally have a problem with but no squirrels ....

The only problem I have with deer is not finding enough to my freezer during hunting season