Hungry Squirrel

I felt like taking a break yesterday so I spent some time in the garden after work. I have discovered that I can cut stems from impatiens, stick them back into the soil, and start many, many new plants. I just need to keep the soil moist so that the new cuttings have a chance to root. I've been slowly expanding the number and coverage of impatien plants that I have in this way.

While I was working on this, I noticed that a large female squirrel was watching me from off the wall. She clung to the wall like spiderman and stared at me. I said hello and kept working. Sensing that I was harmless, she worked her way down the wall and began to rummage in my garden for tasty things to eat. She began her feast by eating all of the juicy, young tips off of my pumpkin plants. Munch-munch-munch! She made those pumpkin plants looks so tasty, that I began to wonder if I should be eating them myself. A little concerned that I was staring quite so much, she snapped another fresh shoot off and scampered off to the stairway to eat there instead. I peeked at her from behind a tomato plant.

Soon, she was back. Noting that my supply of pumpkin plants was dwindling, she scaled the building wall. She explored my balconey, hopeful for a bag of garbage to puncture and rummage through, and then she explored the balconey upstairs mine. Chased off by my angry neighbor, she finally scampered away into the forested area. It was just in time too. A local cat and my neighbor's dog must have caught scent of the little critter, for they both came over to examine the damage the squirrel had left behind.

I got up and looked over the pumpkin plants. "Hm," I thought, "Mum won't like this..."