Easter Bunny Surprise

As I was clearing away leaves and straw from around my miraculously growing rhubarb, trying to decide if I should replant it today or wait for a week or two, imagine my surprise when I found this! (Click on the picture for a larger view.)

Yes, that's a rabbit's nest, directly next to one of my rhubarb plants. Below is another picture, showing one of the bunny's butts as it tried to burrow down further after being revealed.

I've decided to leave them where they are. Now that I've disturbed the nest, there is a chance that the mother won't come back. However, I did some googling, and discovered that baby rabbits leave the nest when they are only 5 inches long, and these are very close to that. Also, the Great Horned Owl still spends time in the arborvitae next to the garden, so I might have built-in pest control.

To ensure a bunny-proof garden, I put in my new rabbit fences this weekend. I used 36" x 25' window screening, folded in half, and stapled to 1"x1" pointed posts. It didn't turn out quite as elegantly as I had envisioned - it's more saggy than I thought because it's really hard to pull the screening tight - but it will do. It's also less annoying (and less ugly) than chicken fencing. As long as the rabbits stay out, I'm happy.

I got my roots and greens planted, too. Here it is before the rabbit fence went up.

I used the square foot method on this bed - each square has a lettuce, beet or carrot, with scallions along the string lines. In the two triangular corners I spaced in rhubarb chard, then broadcast mache (corn salad) around the chard.

If the weather continues to be beautiful this coming weekend (70's and sunny in the middle of April - unbelievable), I hope to finish cleaning out the garden beds, get the initial weeding done, and put out some of the garden ornaments.

Comments

[cricketann]

Poor bunnies about to become owl food...or Dexter food. What are you going to do so you don't have to witness of Dexter bloodbath?

[Talbin]

So far, Dexter doesn't know they're there. Hopefully it stays that way until they can hippity hop on their own.

[Greengirl]

Wow, Tracy! I am so envious of your beautiful back yard - so organized and so well designed!

[Talbin]

Thanks, Jaime. It took about 3 years of "discussion" with hubby to convince him that remodelling the garden area was a good idea. Before we re-did the garden, it was beds dug into weedy patches. Since our deck and porch looked this way, I thought it would be nice to have a better view. Of course, once spouse was convinced and it was done, he thinks it's great (especially since his job is to observe from porch or deck).

[Sissy Ziech]

How did the bunny screen work, Tracy? Did the bunnies survive? My twelve year old got a big kick out of your photos of them!! She thinks it's unfair for us to want them out of the garden!
Kids!!