Our last dahlia has finally flowered, so despite this year's dahlia-hell spring of slugs, snails and chilly temperatures, I can now claim a 100 percent success rate. And this one has several more good-sized buds so I think we'll see more flowers over the next month or so, before it finally gets too cold.
And I've got to share one more picture of our hollyhock, which just keeps putting out flowers -- because we've got to enjoy it while we can, right?
One thing we are not enjoying is the aroma of our living room. On Monday I came home from work and noticed a distinct animal tang in the air. It smelled like a fox had somehow gotten into the house and, ahem, marked its territory. I sniffed all around the room -- the carpets, the door frame, the shoes by the door, the couch, the dog bed, the dog herself -- and I couldn't find the source of the odor. Fortunately it's one of those things that diminishes as you live with it, so after a while we didn't notice it any more.
But then last night, when I walked into the room after work, I was hit with it all over again. I decided it had to be the dog bed, which often lies out in the garden all day and which a fox (or cat?) may have marked when our heads were turned. I loaded it into the washer, hoping that would solve the problem.
It did not. Dave and I finally decided it must be the yucca's new pot. That pot sat by the back fence for months, empty, before we put the tree in it. We're thinking a fox or cat marked it, and we just didn't notice because it was so dry. But now it's holding a new plant and it has been watered, and that glorious pungent fox aroma is leaching out.
I wiped it down, hoping that might help, and I may be deceiving myself but I think it has. Hopefully in time the pong will subside.
I must say I never anticipated this particular risk in storing empty flowerpots outside.
I must say I never anticipated this particular risk in storing empty flowerpots outside.
A message from me and one of the neighborhood trash piles!
Oh yuk! To have that smell suddenly inside. I'm glad you found the source and will be careful myself with pots from my garden. I don't have indoor plants but do sometimes store empty pots in the back porch and they may have been peed on my possums.
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's not the greatest! Fortunately I think it's subsiding with time. (Or maybe I'm getting used to it!)
DeleteHow awful. I never would have thought of that with a flower pot either. I worried an animal had died in your walls. Your photos are always so artful. I love that shot of the dahlia. Those trash piles would make me nuts.
ReplyDeleteIt's not a dead smell. More like a cat spraying.
DeleteYuk, hope you got the source. I wonder what next for foxes in urban areas, will they take over empty buildings?
ReplyDeleteYour hollyhock is adorable, How are the leaves holding up? I gave up on them because here the leaves just become frazzled, eaten (?) and they look pretty messy after the inital bloom.
The leaves have become a bit thin and tattered as the season goes on, but I'm just glad we got flowers! Usually hollyhocks don't do well for us at all.
DeleteI seem to remember in one of your garden films a fox peeing on a terracotta pot.
ReplyDeleteYES! You have a really good memory! That was a different pot, but I guess I should have assumed if it pees on one it probably pees on them all.
DeleteHa! Thanks for the confirmation! (And commiserations on the smell.)
DeleteIf your neighbourhood has piles of rubbish as illustrated there will be a related rat problem.
ReplyDeletePlease tell that to Camden Council! The way they manage rubbish is...well...rubbish!
DeleteDo you think the stench might be from Dave's socks?
ReplyDeleteI would blame Olga before Dave, in order to maintain a happy marriage. :)
DeleteSent to "Spam"! I only said, "Do you think the stench might be from Dave's socks?" It was just a joke - no need to be so hypersensitive! I apologise - okay?
ReplyDeleteBlame Blogger for hypersensitivity!
DeleteThose elusive aromas! Around here I usually track them to next door, one side or the other, after eliminating every possibility and doing more cleaning than I wanted, just in case.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I've done some unnecessary cleaning too, but I guess that's not necessarily a bad thing.
DeleteYou're kind of a Scent Detective; I would never have suspected a pot.
ReplyDeleteSnoopy Sniffer! (Remember those commercials?)
DeleteDefinitely enjoy those flowers for as long as you can!
ReplyDeleteI am surprised that people can just dump trash like that! Good grief ... seems like a rodent attractant or, perhaps, other animals!
It's definitely a risk for vermin. I don't know why people in flats above shops aren't given bins like the rest of us. Instead they put their garbage directly on the sidewalk, unprotected, and it sits there for days and nights and gets torn open by animals. It's disgusting.
DeleteI hate it when there's a smell & you can't pinpoint it. My nose gets full of the smell so then I can't tell where the odor is coming from. Ugh. Hopefully cleaning off the pot does the trick.
ReplyDeleteYeah, we've had that problem too -- our noses get less sensitive the longer we're exposed to the smell.
DeleteThis time, I hope that you give me a chance. I promise not to mention Dave's smelly socks again. It's so lonely in Spam Jail.
ReplyDeleteI set you free!
DeleteWell, just think- if you were a female fox you would have been so delighted. Or maybe that's not how it works.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I have no idea what they're communicating -- maybe just their presence? Or their availability?
DeleteGlad you hunted down the source of the smell. Hope it is gone for good.
ReplyDeleteMy zinnias are still blooming and they are so pretty and colorful. I love that hollyhock photo with all of the flowers in the background!
I really need to plant zinnias again. They never disappoint.
DeleteWell that's a pisser! Hopefully wiping down the pot solves the problem or it might be a bit embarrassing having guests over.
ReplyDeleteFortunately we don't plan that any time soon!
Deletewhen we bought this house it had a distinct unpleasant odor, not from cigarette smoke. we would air it out when we'd get here (we were coming on weekends or only half the week). even when we moved permanently it would still manifest itself sometimes. didn't get rid of it completely until we had the ductwork for the AC/heater replaced.
ReplyDeleteMaybe something died in your ducts? (Ugh)
DeleteOh my gosh. Something like that would have never occurred to me. Can you buy Nil Odor there? I'm not sure if it would work for fox urine, but maybe it is worth a try. Its original purpose is to neutralize odor from colostomy bags.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of Nil Odor (and I hope I never need it). Even plain ol' water seemed to help a little. I might try mild dish soap.
DeleteThat dahlia is gorgeous. What a perfect bloom. Too bad about that pot. I would never have thought of that possibility either. Big cities seem to be full of trash piles. It's one of those never-ending problems.
ReplyDeleteOur area borough particularly bad about letting it sit out unprotected on the street.
DeleteSome usual things of living, like storing things outside , don't always work.
ReplyDeleteIt seemed like such a simple solution!
DeleteYour garden is lovely with color. Having many flowers bloom in Autumn is rare. I've heard when a hollyhock is happy in a particular spot it will multiply. Having a stand of hollyhocks would be spectacular.
ReplyDeleteThe odor from the pot surprises me too. I would never have thought this could occur. Good that it is reducing and will soon be eliminated.
I would love to see that hollyhock re-seed itself. So far we haven't had luck with that!
DeleteIt looks like I must have gone to the spam file!
ReplyDeleteI found you!
DeleteI can't remember.... is that pot clay? If so, the odor might be too imbedded. The pot might have to go back outside. Urine is a stench that can be difficult to get rid of.
ReplyDeleteIt IS clay. I'm hoping it just naturally fades as the urine breaks down, but who knows.
DeleteDahlias are such a beautiful blossoms. I grew them once, didn't lift the bulbs (lazy) and that was that. Why is there such a culture of littering? Do apartments not have dumpsters available to use?
ReplyDeleteYeah, I tried letting one overwinter in the garden and it died. Those bulbs have to be lifted!
DeleteI very much dislike unexplained smells or noises; I'm like a terrier until I can track it down.
ReplyDeleteMe too! Fortunately I usually don't have a very strong sense of smell.
DeleteThat's really interesting about the marking. I sure hope wiping down the yucca gets rid of the yucky smell. I'm glad it wasn't the dog bed. Love your dahlias -- so beautiful.
ReplyDelete