Tuesday, August 12, 2008

tomatoes in disguise



In yet another backyard beautification disaster I've chosen function over form. This is my ongoing experiment in squirrel deterrence, which kind of seems to be working.
I covered a few plants in cheap, mesh laundry bags which gather at the bottom.
The ones that aren't covered have broken stems and only the tiniest of tomatoes before they disappear completely.
The covered ones do have a few larger tomatoes that get a chance at ripening on the vine.
So I'm going to go with it and cover the rest.
I need to remember to pull the cord at the bottom, though. This morning I found a squirrel inside one of the mesh bags, going after the biggest fruit I presume.
He found his way in but couldn't get out and freaked the closer I got.
I pulled up the mesh bag (from an arm's length plus some), and he shot out like a cartoon character, leaving a cloud of smoke and a tomato.
He made it to the roof, turned and began a string of squirrel expletives at me.

Adding to the wildness of my postage stamp was this scene from a few days ago:



I'm pretty sure this is a peregrine falcon that landed in the back yard. It's flapping caused me to look up and notice it's very big self.
Google told me it is the fastest animal in the world and it sometimes nests in some very urban environments.
Did I mention I live in the city of Chicago?
He/She hung out for a while, long enough for a few fuzzy pictures, then hopped into the bushes.

4 comments:

Diane said...

That is amazing for sure

It seems I remember their wing span is something like five feet.

Nice you were able to get pictures

Diane

Mr. McGregor's Daughter said...

Ha! And I thought stupid squirrel tricks were limited to the suburbs. Next year grow peppers, the squirrels don't like them. Great shot of the hawk/falcon/bird of prey thingy. How cool to have one pose for you.

BTW - I can't believe I haven't encountered your blog before. I am trying to get all the Chicagoland garden bloggers together for a meetup. If you are interested, please leave your email in a comment on my blog. I will promptly delete it (but not before writing it down), and contact you. We have yet to set a date or place.

Anonymous said...

What awesome pics of the peregrine falcon. It's gorgeous! (I thought it was a statue when I just glanced at the pic).

Just something to think about though... How are the pollinators going to get into your mesh bags to pollinate your tomatoes and turn the flowers into fruit for you? (Or are you just going to give up on that and be satisfied with the fruit you have ripening)? Just wanted to make sure you had considered that.

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