I was driving up our road yesterday noontime when I saw a doe standing in the middle of the road. As I slowed down a tiny, very young fawn came scrambling out of the brush on the left side of the road. Mama leapt into the brush and the field on the right, but baby could not quickly get up the bank. Either instinct or good training made her instantly fold herself up as small as possible in the drainage ditch by the side of the road. She did not move a muscle, even when I quietly and slowly got out of the car to take this photo. I used the zoom and did not get too close; she remained absolutely immobile. I drove on a little further and stopped the car again, waiting and hoping that Mama would come back to take the little one away, and I could get another photo. No such luck. I parked the car at our house and walked back, not very far, but mother and child had gone. It is not often one gets a look at such a new fawn. It was a special moment.
A warning. I would never have touched this fawn because a friend who is an expert on such things told me that if the fawn had the smell of a human on it, the mother would abandon it and it would be vulnerable to predators. We do have a lot of coyotes in our area.
Broccoli - decimated
Yesterday I was sitting by the window with Holly the cat on my lap. Suddenly she stiffened. She sat up. She was on alert. I looked out the window to see what caused her to come to attention. And there, hopping down the drive was an Eastern hare. Our neighbor had reported sighting the hare the other day. I ran out screaming. The cat fell asleep. Henry set out the Havahart trap.
This morning I looked out the window at the new Front Garden and saw that a number of the broccoli plants had been eaten. The hare had struck again. The trap was empty. I did spray with Liquid Fence Rabbit deterrent, but it hasn’t had a chance to work. The rain keeps falling. The only other advice is fences. The Front Garden was never intended to have a fence because I never thought pests would come so near. I’m putting on my thinking cap. All suggestions welcome.
Applejack
In the meantime I will concentrate on the positives. In spite of the cold and rain, the roses are blooming. Applejack, a Griffith Buck hardy rose, has been blooming to greet visitors at the End of the Road for about 25 years.
Applejack
The roses are drooping with the weight of the rain, but they are beautiful and fragrant. This year I decided to plant more Buck hybrids.
Hawkeye Belle
I planted Hawkeye Belle, an apricot pink, on the new Rose Bank. The bush is still so small that the blossoms are drooping to the ground, but I think this is going to be a beautiful bush. At least the rabbit doesn’t like roses.
Murray McMurray Delivery
The post office called at 7:30 am to say the chicks are in! When I arrived I could hear such a chick racket I thought there must be a number of people whose chick delivery had arrived. But, no. The racket was caused by 43 chicks alone. Chicks can travel through the mail because they do not need food or water for 48 hours after they hatch.
Our brooder box
We expected the chicks this week so we prepared over the weekend. We use this square meter crate as our brooder box. When we left Beijing in 1990 my work unit paid for the delivery of a half cubic meter box that I could fill with all my souvenirs and purchases. Packing the box had to be done in the presence of a customs official, but when he saw that we only bought the painted tinware I loved, children’s books, a gong, and typical winter coats, he left in disgust. We packed no Ming Dynasty furniture or ceramics. Ever since then the crate itself has served nobly as the brooding box. Chicks needs to be kept at 95 degrees their first week of life.
The hatchery will not send fewer than 25 chicks at a time through the mail. The chicks act as their own packing material, buffering each other from the vicissitudes of travel. The chicks do not need to be all the same variety. Since three friends joined me in this order – to make up more than 25 chicks – the box holds Buff Orpingtons, Silver Laced Wyandottes, Americaunas, Barred Rocks, Dominiques and New Hampshire Reds.
At 8 pm we went out to tuck the chicks in for the night. They are all spread out, which means they are warm enough. The heat lamp, and regular incandescent light bulb supply sufficient warmth when the box is partially covered with an old bedspread. We could see that they are eating and drinking well. Not a single fatality on their journey to Heath, and they have gotten through their first day here in good form.
Rose of Prairie Rose’s Garden in Central Illinois. Rose has won Nan Ondra’s book, The Perennial Care Manual, and 2 dozen CowPots! Congratulations! When I get Rose’s mailing address I’ll send them right out.
Now, since this is my Second Blogoversary, Storey and CowPots are offering a second chance to win in a drawing. This time the book is Right Rose, Right Place: 359 Perfect Choices for Beds, Borders, Hedges and Screens, Containers, Fences, Trellises, and More by Peter Schneider who has 1200 types of roses of his own and has written extensively about roses. There will also be another 2 dozen CowPots made of composted cow manure that will make seed starting especially nutritious this spring. Just leave a comment this week and I’ll have another drawing next Saturday, December 12. Who will be the second winner?
First Snowfall 12-6
The snow had been falling on and off all day yesterday, but it didn’t look like it was really going to stick – until late last evening. This morning we woke to 4 sparkling inches of snow, so I think this qualifies as our first snowfall. The plows were out last night as we prepared for bed, and out again this morning so the roads were clear for church goers. A beautiful way to celebrate the Feast of St. Nicholas. To see who else might be having snow as winter proceeds check out Nancy Bond at Soliloquoy as she hosts The First Snowfall Project.
Henry went out to feed the chickens and saw a mess surrounding the compost bin. He peeked in.
There was our local porcupine! He had pulled out enough compost to climb in through the bottom to sun himself on top of the pile, protected from any wind by the sides of the bin. I can’t believe this small pile was generating any real heat, but at least it isn’t cold ground. Do you think he has taken up permanent residence there? How valuable is porcupine manure? Do you think he has been around long enough to earn a name?
I want to explain one thing. You can see paper plates tumbling out of the bin. I got these biodegradable sugar cane plates for Thanksgiving dessert. There is a limit to how many dirty dishes my kitchen can handle at once!
The first wildness was our local porcupine sunning himself (I don’t really know if he is a he or she) in front of the henhouse this morning. I nearly stepped on him on my way to feed the chickens because I was so busy looking at a wild hardy kiwi vine on the adjacent shed and wondered how I was ever going to prune and tame it. Fortunately the movement of the porcupine, including getting all his quills in fighting order, woke me out of reverie in time. I thought he would amble off, but no. He ambled up onto the step of the henhouse, where perhaps the stone was even warmer than the wet grass.
I ran in to get the camera and ran back to find the porcupine with his nose, and maybe his teeth, nudging the door. I learned recently that porcupines like to eat wood and the hen house is so old that it might taste like sponge cake – or at least have that texture. I finally had to give up waiting. I did have other things to do besides talk to a silent porcupine. The hens got their breakfast at lunch time, but they had not yet totally emptied their feeder, or waterer.
Then it was off to town, Shelburne Falls, for a little shopping. I needed candles. We always need lots of candles at Christmastime, so my first stop was at Mole Hollow candles right next to Salmon Falls. We had at least 2 inches of rain Wednesday night and the Deerfield River was in full flood. The Falls dam was partially let down and the Falls themselves were wild. Fortunately, I never go anywhere without my camera.
This is an unusal sight at this time of the year when the river should be quiet, and icy, but this odd mild season is driving us all wild.
And time is rushing wildly. Readers have only til midnight tonight to leave a comment and have their name put in a drawing for Nan Ondra’s great new book, The Perennial Care Manual, and 2 dozen CowPots for seed starting. The drawing is tomorrow morning.
It was wild on the field in Ashburnam when our grandson, Ryan, and his team, the undefeated North Middlesex Wranglers, played for the state Pop Warner championship title.
And they won! The Wranglers are State Champs. Next weekend they go to the regional playoffs. Ryan has a pretty good grip on that amazing trophy. Great team and a great game. Ryan’s mom went wild cheering – and can barely speak today! Yay Wranglers! Good luck next weekend.
This porcupine has been lurking around the End of the Road for some time now. Our neighbor is careful when she walks her dog, and the UPS man stopped his truck to watch the porcupine, while the porcupine sat on a tree stump by the side of the road and watched him.
Porcupines are the second largest North American rodent. They can have 30,000 or more 3 inch quills which detach easily from their body, and easily into any attacker, or curious dog. Though they go in easily, porcupine quills are difficult and painful to remove because they are barbed. They cannot throw their quills, but Don’t Touch! Even if you should get that close to this slow moving animal.
Fall is prime breeding season, but we have only seen this solitary porcupine. They are supposed to spend a lot of time in trees, but we have only seen porcupines on the ground, in the field, in the Sunken Garden, and this morning, underneath the Cottage Ornee. This has me nervous because porcupines like to eat green branches, twigs, and bark – and they just like to chew wood. The Cottage is made of wood! They like canoe paddles, too.
The city is left behind. I’m home and the first trip out to visit friends we see a porcupine in front of the house eating an apple falled from our old apple tree.
Bok choi
We had a delicious lunch of homemade tomato juice (with a few additions) carrot and parsnip soup, little chicken salad sandwiches and tiny fruit tarts. One of the best things about having a wonderful lunch at this house is having a tour of the vegetable garden before we leave. I took away a bag of bok choi, and 
Tuscan kale and wild kale.
I admired the last of the artichoke foliage. Can you believe there is a gardener skilled enough to grow artichokes on a high Massachusetts hill? A bag was filled with leeks too. This will be Heavenly Soup and Bread Week at our house. Thank you Mary Kay and Earl.
Then it was back home. The porcupine was back too, but I don’t think he found the weeds and roses as tasty as the apples.
Life at the End of the Road, Wildlife | Pat June 17, 2010 | 
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