Buried Treasures

Within the garden beds in these two photographs there lie buried 85 dormant daffodil, iris, and hyacinth bulbs of various kinds.  About half of them were planted in September and the rest were planted in the last two days.  The photographs will serve as markers to remind me where the treasures are buried and, when the bulbs are in full bloom next spring, as before/after comparisons.  


These bulbs were selected for their colors, fragrant quality and, most importantly, their Deer Resistant characteristics.  (In the few months since we moved here, we already have had several deer-related stories to tell, but they will have to wait for another post.)  I hope that this claim by the nursery where I ordered the bulbs turns out to be true.  I will be devastated if these bulbs, when they finally bloom, end up as fresh spring salad for the neighborhood deer families.  


However, before they have a chance to bloom, they have to first survive the looting by rooting of the squirrels and chipmunks.  The squirrels here are bigger than those in Florida; I think these here are called 'Fox Squirrels'. They are big and fearless and they have a nose for buried bulbs!  I caught one digging at where I just finished planting the first batch of bulbs as soon as my back was turned.  He stood his ground without flinching when I tried to shoo him away; I had to wave a big branch at him before he turned around and scrambled up the tree.  I sought advice from the nursery and was referred to an on-line article called "How to Keep Spring Bulbs Safe from Hungry Squirrels", http://www.greenthumbarticles.com/article/How-to-keep-Spring-Bulbs-Safe-From-Hungry-Squirrels-a887.html.  There are several suggestions but most of them sound too complicated.  I liked the suggestion about using odors that might be offensive to rodents. You see, I have already been using a peppermint-scented deer repellent spray, called Deer Out, on my Hostas which had been decimated by deer before we moved in. The scent works on the principle of association; the deers associate the scent with something which probably didn't taste very good and learn to avoid going near it.  I thought this might work with squirrels as well.  But as there is nothing above ground that they can sink their teeth into at this moment, they probably won't be deterred by the taste of Deer Out.  However, the scent might serve as a mask to keep them from smelling out the tasty stuff lying beneath the ground. 


I am happy to report that so far the spray seems to have worked and my bulbs are lying safely underground dreaming about the coming of spring. That is my hope anyway and I'll be sure to report back in a few months' time to see if these buried treasures have been looted in the interim without my even knowing it.