Time spent in the garden is always good.  Today was fabulous–there was a slight breeze at seven this morning and the birds were very hungry.  The cardinal couple are still on their honeymoon–he feeds her choice tidbits from the feeder while she sits on the clematis vine.  I think I’ll call them “Rhett” and “Scarlett”.   They seem to really  enjoy the walnut bits and raisins I added to the birdseed I bought.

The robins have been very busy as well.   One followed me around the yard as I was cleaning up dried leaves from chives.  She grabbed a mouthful, and hopped around for bit.  She would fly off then return with that same mouthful of leaves.  This continued for nearly an hour.   She will certainly have a fragrant nest once she finds a place to build it.

All the beets, carrots, and beans are up.  Thanks to the hardware cloth we added to the bottom two feet of the fence around the perimeter of the yard, I still have plants to water!  Usually, I would just have chewed-off stumps by now.   attached the hardware cloth with large nail-in staples, making sure to go down into a groove we made in the ground to discourage going under it.  It wasn’t cheap, and took an afternoon. It’s still cheaper than replacing the plants we’ve lost.  When I  think of the three foot tall Delphiniums and ‘Stargazer’ lillies mowed off for a bunny brunch last year, I want to cry.

Our neighbor asked me the  best way to keep rabbits out of his unfenced yard, other than the obvious fence.  A dog is an option,  but not for everyone. Since rabbits don’t have saliva glands, you can add some hot sauce to a little insecticidal soap and spray it on the rabbit’s favorite plants.  You have to re-apply after it rains (don’t water the leaves) after awhile, the rabbits will find greener pastures as the saying goes.

Time to go plant my second crop of beans and carrots.  The paper says that the hardware store has all chicken wire and hardware cloth on sale.  So you can rabbit-proof your garden.