WiseAcre Gardens

Rumor has it that Spring is making an appearance on Long Island this week-end and temps are supposed to be 50+ F for days on end. The temptation is too much for me to resist so I’m headed south to soak up some ‘heat’. Soon as I post this I’m out the door.

With the ground here still frozen the grass on the other side of the fence (Adirondack Mountains) is definitely greener. I’ll take me about 3 hours to drive through the mountains and I expect a noticeable change in the climate as I approach Albany. By the time I hit NYC I’ll be at least 3 hardiness happiness zones higher.

It’s too bad some residents are stuck here. Not that I feel sorry for them, I just want to get rid of these pests. These photos were taken on the last day of February. Since then the snow has pretty much melted.

I saw these deer in a neighbor’s driveway as I drove by.

Tryouts for a chorus line. They’re out of step but young and learning. Too bad they learn I put out a nice salad bar in the garden.

Who knows when I’ll return? I’ll be gone at least a week. With a days drive on both ends of the trip I hate to stay less than a week. I’ll be back by the 19th at the latest.

After making the sacrificial snowman yesterday I decided to leave my wildlife repellant home and see if I could actually catch a photo of some of the local wildlife.

It didn’t take long before I found fresh tracks. I had disturbed a couple of deer and heard them move off through the woods. They usually don’t run far when the dog isn’t with me so I stood silent for a while then moved off slowly in the direction I last heard them.

We spotted each other at the same time. One froze while the other bolted.

We weren’t more than 100 feet apart. Both of us stood motionless for a few minutes before I raised the camera. When the deer didn’t flee with that motion I decided to make the first real move. Breaking eye contact I side stepped and froze, side stepped and froze in an attempt to circle around. Finally getting around to the front I made eye contact again. It was a stand off now.

Knowing I wasn’t going to get any closer I waved and sent the deer on it’s way. I was now close to the river so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to take a couple more photos of the ice jam. The rain had started to come down heavier and gave the scene a foggy look.

It was time to head home. I was getting soaked through by the rain and photographing anything was getting nearly impossible with it getting on the lens.

On the way I spotted another Porcupine. This one didn’t seem to know if it wanted in or out of the tree hollow. Blending into the tree I almost missed it. It figures – I spend days trying to find one and after I did another just pops out.

I was nearly home when I had a feeling of being watched. I stopped and looked around but saw only trees. Sensing a presence I again waited motionless.

I wasn’t alone. Curiosity got the better part of a squirrel and I caught a flicker of motion as it sneaked a peek at me. We played peek-a-boo for a while. I’d move off and wait a while then return and hold still. After a bit it would sneak another peek but I never could get close enough for a good photo.

When I got home Pookey was still mad at me for leaving her behind.

The Morley 8 showed up on one side of the road while on the other side another 6 deer were out to browse. I wasn’t really surprised to see 14 deer at one time since my personal record is 53 – no kidding. Now you can understand why deer resistant plants are highly recommended around here.

I don’t know why but this winter the deer have avoided my yard. With the deep snow cover it’s not what I expected. But I’m sure as soon as things begin to sprout they’ll be by.

The daylilies are their favorite early spring snack. I’ve given up on daylilies except for a few around the house foundation. Unfortunately the deer don’t mind and will stare through the windows if I tap on them and give me a look for disturbing their meal. I swear they actually ring the doorbell and ask for handouts.

I hate it when they give me those doe eyes.

A deer chorus line.

This wasn’t what I had planned to post today. I took a hike to the river and got a slew of photos I was going to post. But when I got back I found the deer out and they tolerated me enought to get some decent shots. Maybe later or at least tomorrow I’ll post the icy river shots.

As usual when I think I’ve gotten a decent shot I’ve linked the photos to a larger size (1024 x 768) so you can get a closer look and/or use the image as desktop wallpaper.