Garden contraries

“Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?”

It grows very well, thank you, until the “CONTRARIES” move in. Carrots and beets were formed, beans hung heavy on the vines, corn was tasseled, tomatoes were turning red, blossom balls on top and bulbs on the bottom told of onions and garlic ready to harvest. Everything seemed to be doing well, and we looked forward to the good eating that would be ours.

One day I walked out for garlic to season a dish. The flowered top was quivering. As I watched the entire plant grew shorter until it disappeared into a hole. Looking further, almost all my garlic was gone, and the onions as well. The whole row had been tunneled.

Plants withered and died when roots were severed. Carrots and beets had healthy looking green tops. It was only when I dug them that I saw only about an inch remained, the root had been nibbled off.

Cantaloupe were ripening and we were enjoying them until the day I found holes in the stem ends, mice, voles or whatever had eaten what they wanted, then soiled and spoiled the rest.

Potatoes did little better. There were few potatoes in the hills when we dug them – but the next spring potato plants popped up all over the cow pasture.

Little yellow birds harvested the cherries. Blackbirds spoiled the corn by pecking at the ears from the top down, spoiling what they didn’t eat.

Worst of all are hordes and clouds of starlings who would swoop in to peck, eat, and destroy whatever they find in the fruit trees beginning with plums, going on to the figs, peaches, pears, apples, grapes, and starting on the persimmons which are only saved because they are still too firm and hard for them, so we picked them and brought them in.

Luckily these problems don’t all happen every year, but they are disheartening when the varmints do their greedy guzzling, eating and spoiling more than they leave.