We planted small trees in March 2020, right before we headed north to escape Arizona’s rising covid numbers. In October when we returned the trees looked great and had probably grown at least a foot. Now some stupid hairy varmint is trying to destroy those trees! They are eating the bark from the trunks at and below ground level!! So far the critters have not girdled any of the trees and we applied tar to the scars left behind by the toothy varmints. All we can do now is hope! We are also going to wrap the trunks with pieces of PVC pipe the Cowboy will split and then tape back together around the trees. And hope we catch the varmint–and it won’t be to relocate it!
Nothing new is going on–we’ve been making cabinets, painting cabinets, etc. The lower cabinets are built and the Cowboy is working on the drawers. I’ve been applying polyurethane to what seems like an endless supply of drawer fronts and cabinet doors.
Sunday evening we were invited to an afternoon gathering outside at the home of our newest residents, Mo and Donnie. They live on the same street as Dan, Louanne, Linda and Janice. The sun was warm but the wind was awful–you had to not only hang onto your plate, you had to hang onto the chips on your plate!
Still think covid is a hoax? Still think it’s just the flu? Think again! Someone near and dear to me, 59 years old, healthy, and takes no medications has been in the hospital for one week today struggling to breath. With every breath he has been wondering if he will ever get over this, will he have lasting effects. I can thankfully say that today he seems to have turned a corner–his oxygen has been decreased and his oxygen saturation levels are staying up near where they should be. It’s been one rough, emotional week folks, it’s not the flu.
We have a bunch of quail hanging out in our yard–we love seeing these birds and hearing them talk to each other. The Cowboy isn’t in favor of feeding the birds–birdseed attracts rats and the rats attract the snakes. Two critters we don’t need!
Restoration Cowboy Style 
Dave feels the same way about feeding the birds nearby…grrrr. He’s right of course, but I love to attract as many birds as I can. He wins this one because I definitely don’t want “other critters” to come for the seed and the birds. I’m satisfied just luring the hummingbirds for now.
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Oh no, now Mike will know he is “right!” 😁
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Frustrating dealing with critters. Here it is gophers, moles, and deer. And crows. Who leave dead gukky bird pards in the bird bath after dining on the little ones. I bought some sonic repellant stakes to help with the ground critters that people around her swear by. I’ll let you know. Although who knows what is getting your trees. So sorry about your friend but glad he is getting better. As I mentioned on Facebook we are still waiting for our first vaccine, but that is because our county has such low numbers we are not a priority. A mixed blessing I guess. Take care. I can comment again since we are home from our little trip.
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Yes, let me know about the repellant stakes! I travel to Phoenix for my second dose on Wednesday.
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Hope the young fellow recovers completely! Many years ahead! I think you will always have animals trying to eat your trees, since there’s nothing else around thats green to eat!
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That’s the problem this year, nothing is green and those little trees look mighty tasty. Had to re-cage the bigger trees as the jackrabbits were eating the lower branches!
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Are those all male’s hanging out? Maybe the females are hiding until breeding! We have them in Green Valley, and when the chicks are born it’s fun to watch them, as run in too each other! It doesn’t take much to amuse us! Take care, Rawn&Joann&PeanutJoy
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I don’t know–male or female–they are just dang cute and the noises they make are adorable!
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Critters Critters everywhere. Just wish they’d leave your trees alone. The quail are really cute. We have a pair of doves nesting on Jim’s boat. He’s such a softie he is letting them stay. Hope the babies hatch.
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Jim is a nicer than the Cowboy 😁 who won’t let the cactus wren nest in his backhoe! Yes, this place needs trees, those two lone pecan trees out front aren’t enough!
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After putting the PCV Pipe around the Trees add 12 volt Electric Fencing around it. You won’t need to watch for them.
Wind has picked up here as well.
Be Safe and Enjoy!
It’s about time.
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It would have to be an awfully tight electric fence as we think these are gophers dining on our trees.
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So sorry to hear about your friend. Hope he continues to turn the corner even further. I have no doubt this is a VERY serious virus. I don’t want to be a statistic! It’s amazing to think there are still people who aren’t taking it seriously.
The quail are so cute and such fun to watch. Our neighbor throws seed on to the hill out back every morning. It is so funny to watch the quail pour over the top like shoppers when the door open for shopping on Black Friday. I do believe the quail watch the house and know their movements. They make the drive over the top before the neighbors even come out. Luckily, there is a wall between the yards and the hill. So far we haven’t seen any unwanted critters. We have a bug person who does spray every month which seems to be working. We did worry about the seed attracting the undesirable but they’ve been throwing it for years. Besides the quail, we have tons of doves, other bird varieties, and four resident ground squirrels that also work hard on gathering the seed.
Can’t wait to see these cabinets you keep mentioning all hung.
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We are discussing throwing out a bit of seed in the evenings–would be better than having a bird feeder constantly dropping seeds to the ground for the critters to find. I love your description of the quail pouring over the top of the wall!
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Hope your friend continues to improve. Can’t believe anyone still believes it’s a hoax – to what end?? Our quail males are making their loud “chi-ca-go” calls across our property so mating season must be starting – they crack me up! So far we’ve only had birds and bunnies and lizards feasting around our feeders, but I know the risk of others is still real 😦 Like Pam, I can’t wait to see those completed cabinets!!
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We love watching the antics of the quail and the noises they emit make us laugh out loud!
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