Problems, Pests And The Madman

Problems, problems, problems. We can never escape problems. Or, pests, to be more precise. We came back from our first road trip in a while happy and full of hugs.

So, when I saw the madman waving his arms around and uttering words I can’t repeat here, I was baffled. What could change his good mood so quickly? The peas – or the absence of them (and, you know about the madman and his peas.) Of course, he first suspected The Three Musketeers, even though he had an agreement with them.

Immediate Action

We went into action and immediately put up the deer deterrent systems that seemed to work for us last year. Yes, I know we are late; we are late with everything this year – that’s the kind of year it’s been. First, we strung nylon fishing line in random patterns between trees and posts. We hung CDs from fence posts and branches. And, then there’s the garlic. The madman uses two different commercial garlic-based deterrents – one in clip form and one in a canister.

The smile returned until he spotted the real culprit – a woodchuck who happened to be on his hind legs examining the garden. The madman truly panics when he sees a woodchuck, only because of the damage this critter can do to his garden in an afternoon.

Panic

Panic set in until I calmed him down. We did need a plan – KNOW YOUR EMEMY. Contrary to the popular tongue twister, the woodchuck (Marmota monax) is not a chucker of trees. His name comes from the Algonquin name “wuchak”. Here in Connecticut, the woodchuck is the largest member of the squirrel or Sciuridae family. The madman says it’s hard to think of this monster as a squirrel, but he shouldn’t be surprised as he hates squirrels, too. All these problems! Believe it or not, the woodchuck can climb trees. But it is most known for its burrowing activity. And, why not?

It has a body designed for burrowing. Short powerful legs. Sharped curved claws. Fur covered ears with flaps to keep dirt out when burrowing. And burrow they do – creating a complex of tunnels and chambers 5 feet deep and up to 80 feet long.

Need For A Burrow

The woodchuck needs a massive underground tunnel system for sleeping, protection, a place to raise a family and hibernation. It is a true hibernator. Its body temperature drops from 99˚ to 40˚ during the cold winter months. At the same time, the heart rate can drop from 100 bpm to only 4 bpm. The woodchuck’s hibernation is what causes the madman’s problem.

As a true hibernator, the woodchuck doesn’t leave the den all winter (no, not even on Groundhog Day!). So, he relies on the body fat he has built up over the summer. And he gets that fat by eating an awful lot.

Run-ins

In our history of gardening in Farmington, we have had run-ins with woodchucks over the years. Some ending badly for us, some ending badly for the woodchuck. The madman remembers his first garden. After paying to have the area rototilled, we spent a weekend putting in purchased transplants of all kinds of vegetables. We talked about the wonderful harvests we would have. Life was good when we went to work on Monday. But, when we returned home, everything was gone. We had our first woodchuck. Since we were both away from home during the work week, we hired a professional to handle the problem.

Over the years, we have tried a variety of methods to keep woodchucks at bay. We’ve used fences and coyote urine. But we have found that the thing that works best is a live trap. Now, we have two large live traps, but they work best when placed near the den.

Hunting Begins

So, we began looking for the den. Since woodchucks are burrowers, not excavators, they look for easy-to-dig ground. The side of our house has worked well for them in the past, so that’s where we started. Nothing.

We checked our numerous garden areas and the edge of forest. Again, nothing. Then the search extended out to the edges of our property. Generally, woodchucks will stay within 50-100 feet of their den. Still nothing. We haven’t even seen a well-marked travel path.

So, we have placed traps in areas where we have seen the woodchuck. We have also doubled up on the garlic clips in the garden since they hate strong smells. We’ll keep scouting and baiting the traps. Looks like we’ll be busy for a while.

A Second Problem

But, in our scouting activity, the madman did notice Poison Ivy, another of our problems. I bet you all know what this stuff is. Surprise, it is not invasive. Invasive plants, by definition, are non-native, and Poison Ivy is a native plant. As such, it is listed as a noxious weed – nothing more, nothing less.

Poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) is easily recognized by its leaves consisting of three pointy leaflets. The madman remembers from his Boy Scout days, “leaves of three, leave it be.” But, he also says there’s no leaving it be in his yard.

Tricky And Persistent

T. radicans is a tricky and persistent plant. It changes its leaves from shiny red in the spring to green in the summer to yellow or dull red in the fall. It’s a vigorous grower, adapting to shade or sun. In full sun, it can be a bush, but in the woods, it will trail along the ground until it finds a tree. Then it heads up the trunk toward the sun, sprouting hold fast adventitious roots as it climbs.

Individual plants can grow 20 feet in a season. The madman says this makes it as aggressive as some of the invasive problems like Oriental Bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus). Since it can spread by underground rhizomes or by seeds, Poison Ivy can quickly become a problem.

Urushiol

The real problem of this plant is urushiol, an extremely potent irritating oil that is present in every part of the plant. The madman had one good outbreak of Poison Ivy Dermatitis, and that was enough for him. He refuses to talk about it, but he just says that if you plan to remove large patches of Poison Ivy, be extra careful. The University of Georgia Extension has a nice publication on controlling Poison Ivy.

Good Qualities

But, except for woodchucks, everything has some good qualities. Poison Ivy is no exception. The delicate yellowish green flowers are rich in nectar, providing a draw for native pollinators. Bears and raccoons often snack on Poison Ivy leaves. But, for The Three Musketeers, and other White-tailed Deer, Poison Ivy is a valuable food source. Even the birds rely on Poison Ivy for its berries which last into the winter.

Poison Ivy is also good at erosion control and is even used along the dikes in Holland. Recently, a new use has been found for this plant in conservation areas. Wildlife biologists have discovered that a clearly marked thicket of Poison Ivy will keep even the most curious human away from critical nesting areas.

All well and good, but the madman still remembers that awful rash. I’ll try to soothe him with the thought that we garden for the wildlife, so a bit of Poison Ivy where we don’t tread is okay. I’ll add a glass of lemonade to sweeten the talk.