This is one of the "Bishop's Children" dahlias that I grew from seed many years ago. For some reason, this particular plant is producing much redder flowers than the others, which tend toward orange. Maybe because it's in brighter sun. I'm intrigued by that stripe on one of its petals -- an interesting genetic aberration.
I spent most of yesterday reading. I'm about two thirds of the way through "Juice," which I am really enjoying. It's one of those rare books that I get so absorbed in that I'm not conscious of how much progress I'm making or how many pages I've turned. Someone compared it to "Mad Max" and it's very much like that -- a survival and family saga set in a post-apocalyptic Australia. Let me just say, if the future is going to be anything like this, I'm glad I'm living now.
I got a text from Mrs. Kravitz in which she pointed out that we have rats in the garden and we need to do something about them. She's right. We have to take some kind of action. Maybe we can call a nature-friendly exterminator, if there is such a thing. As I mentioned before, we've stopped feeding the birds suet and I think we'll stop the bird food entirely for a while. She suggested putting down peppermint. I'll look into it.
She also suggested trimming the lower leaves of shrubs "so the rats have nowhere to hide," but that's just not feasible in our garden, which is full of ground cover and low-growing plants. I may need some professional advice on how best to handle that. But I recognize we can't let these animals stay -- it's not fair to the neighbors. Dammit, foxes, do your jobs! Cats, where are you?!
Speaking of foxes, I was lying in bed last night (sleepless, for some reason) and kept hearing racing engines. This often happens late at night and I've always suspected that motorbike riders race on the streets around here late at night, perhaps on Finchley Road. Well, last night I got out of bed and took a walk to see if I could tell where all the noise was coming from. Of course by the time I got outside, it had stopped and a couple of police cars went past with lights flashing -- I suspect they broke up whatever party was going on. But out on my nocturnal ramble I came across several scrawny-looking foxes nosing around in people's garbage. This is why they're not hungry enough to catch a rat in my garden.
I also found yet another discarded fiddle-leaf fig tree, set out with the trash on the corner at the top of our street. Of course I adopted it. It needs some TLC but it's in better shape than the last one, which didn't make it.
I'm missing my slide-rescuing project. Here's one of my favorites, an accidental double-exposure that created an interesting effect. It was taken in Bermuda in the mid-'50s. Look at that huge lobster! I'll go in search of more slides once we're back from our trip.
Of course the foxes will always go for the easiest option when it comes to food, and rats are defnitely NOT easy to catch. Cats won't go near them if they know what's good for them. Cutting back undergrowth would also mean no hiding places for other small animals, such as hedgehogs. It's difficult to do the right thing there! Peppermints? Never heard that as a cure against rats, but who knows!
ReplyDeleteThe double-exposed photograph is intriguing. By the way, I have now looked at every picture in all three of your rescued slides albums. I enjoyed them very much, especially the "detective" work in connecting the same people to various events.
Your response is right, get a professional in. The putting down of poison is dangerous for all the other creatures in the garden but then if a fox eats a poisoned rat, would it affect the fox? It is hard isn't it?
ReplyDeleteUrban foxes like any other animal take the easy route for food, too many people feed them, they have bigger litters which all survive, they spread and start to cause issues, I love foxes, they should be in the wild, not feeding from dustbins. As for rats, for years we tried to keep the out of our garden, they come from next door, who refuses to let anyone find their nest, they were close to our house, sadly the only way to reduce numbers is with poison, used in a special box which hedgehogs can't get into, even now after 15 years we still see rats at the bottom of our garden. Rats and foxes are normal in our modern world, you need to call in the experts.
ReplyDeleteThat is the serendipity of growing Bishop's children from seed! Great fun.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if you could use a computer programme to isolate the images from the double exposure?
What is the saying about you're never more than a few feet from a rat wherever you are?
Mrs Kravitz needs to understand that rats do not even recognise property boundaries. In West Hampstead, the entire district is their ratty kingdom and that includes Mrs Kravitz's property. To suggest that the source of the rats is your garden is absurd and for her to suggest that you make changes to your garden because of rats is equally ridiculous. Why don't you bounce back at her with some suggestions about her garden?
ReplyDeleteThe double (triple?) exposure is interesting. I at first thought it was one of those wedding album special effects. The stripe in the dahlia is stunning. Maybe you can develop a hybrid. It’s astounding that, with all the predators in your garden, the rats have survived. Yes, you do need to get rid of them, but Mrs. Kravitz needs to keep her nose (eyes) out of your garden.
ReplyDeleteLobster man has an interesting hair style.
ReplyDeleteAre you doing something to encourage rats now? No? It is nature functioning, as it does.
You are going to be one of those old men with the camera phone on and raising you fist at car drivers racing in local streets.