Duh, What's Up Doc?

There are some perennials you can always depend on, no matter what. Too much water. No problem. Too little water. Don't sweat it. Long, hot summer days. They love 'em. Unfortunately, there's just not a lot one can do to keep the rabbits away once they've set their tiny little minds on something to destroy. One year it might be all the Moss Rose. Another year, a newly planted Yarrow. (They always eat the blooms off my Coral Bells, but I've come to expect that.) But they've never gone near my Black-Eyed Susans. Never!

Until this year. Argh!!!!

These first two pictures were taken in the summer of 2003. Stunning color and so cheery when so many of the other plants were too tired to bloom.


















This one was taken last week. The rabbits have eaten almost all the plants as they came up earlier this summer and what they didn't devour, they still managed to eat the lower stems (and I've even seen them pull the plant down so they can eat the whole thing, stem & flower).




















In addition to the rabbits, the Asters have taken over quite a large portion of that bed and, while they're pretty once they start blooming, I'd much rather have lush bed full of Black-Eyed Susans.

I'll let the rabbits have their fun this year, but next spring I'm going to have to put up a chicken wire fence to keep them out. I hate to do that since it won't look very nice, but it can't look much worse than the flowers do now.

Hmm, maybe I should just get that BB gun I kept threatening to buy earlier this spring.