Michael Jones

First there were two green tomatoes lying side-by-side on the ground. I assumed it was the work of the scissor-toothed ground squirrels although I had my doubts. The modus operandi of these obnoxious mammalian pests is usually the telltale incisored nibbling on the actual vegetable they have chosen to attack. Strawberries, although not a vegetable have suffered the worst of their indiscretions. They nibble about half a perfectly ripened berry before I get the chance to pick it for my own use, leaving the other half attached to the plant, perfectly inedible.

These tomatoes on the other hand were untarnished by any signs of varmint mutilation. Hmmmm.

A couple of days later I noticed some of the tomato vines had been stripped of their leaves: My first thought was “tomato hornworms!” and I spent several minutes looking in vain, and fortunately, found not a single one of those fearsome looking worms. Of course the lack of hornworm habitation didn’t explain what had been eating the tomato foliage in the first place, although in the back of my mind my suspicions were subtly being led in the direction of large hoofed animals. Hmmmm again.

My suspicions were confirmed the following morning when I found several deer tracks prominently displayed near the tomatoes. The trampled plants and number of green tomatoes lying on the ground confirmed my worst fear: whitetail infestation. I quickly picked all of the almost ripe tomatoes to keep them out of harm’s way in anticipation of the return of the deer because we all know deer keep returning until the job is done. They are dedicated in that regard.

Next they would find my sweet corn, then the carrots and beets. I covered the tomatoes with bird netting as a control measure and after finding a half eaten pumpkin I’m considering extending the netting to the squash and pumpkins.

For some reason, fortunately, they have left the corn alone but I know it is only a matter of time before they start rooting up the rows of carrots. It’s either an early carrot harvest or more of the annoying netting.

I love to garden but it gets frustrating sharing what you grow with the wildlife. Strawberries for the ground squirrels. Blackberries and raspberries for the birds. Just about anything for the deer. The potato beetles, cabbage worms, aphids on the Brussels sprouts all specialize, taking their toll of casualties while feeding voracious appetites. It’s always something.

Something the Guerrilla Gardener is just going to half to accept is the communal sharing of the garden with nature’s predators.

It’s war out there on the gardening front-line folks and the varmints are winning. Maybe I should just plant extras of everything, declare a truce and invite the invading hordes in for dinner. Hey, maybe they’re a bunch of nice guys once you get to know them. Chomp!

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