Urban bears
We were surprised first by a 2-yr old bear ambling down our front path to the door. Had he/she smelled dinner cooking, we thought? She/he trampled the sedum bed on the way towards our street.
And here's the whole group: the three yearlings playing on the big oak below the house, then all four looking for remnants of garbage, removed by my gardening companion this morning. They had scattered garbage down the slope last week, probably from the next door apartment, according to our HomeExchange guest.
Urban bears get big on their garbage/junk food urban diets, and this group looked well-fed and glossy.
In their ramblings, they've knocked down some of my raised bed walls (a week or so ago, according to our HomeExchange guest) and tipped over a sourwood, too. Hmm. We witnessed another shrub branch take-down this afternoon as we watched. It's a dynamic landscape, after all.
That must be hard to swallow from afar. I mean the cubs are cute, but too bad for the sourwood and the raised beds. How are things Quebec? When do you return to NC? Hurry or you'll miss Spring!
ReplyDeleteI'm deliberating between 3 trees for a prominent spot, behind and up a few feet from a curvy low retaining wall that defines my little front yard. Nearly full sun, and I can irrigate easily during establishment.
Black gum, Sourwood, or Yellowwood? All three have lots of pros and maybe tiny cons. I already have a blackgum, thriving but no berries and that's why I'd want one, seems no way to guarantee a female. Sourwood I understand can suffer from fall webworm which is around some on my pecans. And Nurseries Caroliniana claims it's better as an understory tree, which this spot is not really. Yellowwood I'm less familiar with, super tempting features, but would it thrive?
Might just depend on what I can find!
Cheers,
Amy
We returned to Asheville on Thursday, so these were in-person sightings! Rather amazing to have snow this morning here, after the warmth of yesterday....
DeleteI think I'd tend towards another black gum, for all-season interest. Sourwoods are beautiful, but fall webworm really can be an issue, both in the wild and in gardens. Yellowwood is rare (a restricted range) and the only one I've ever seen was in the botanical garden where I used to work. I don't remember anything notable about it (it was in the arboretum part of the garden).
Good luck!