The Rockpile: Spiders, Ants, Chickens

What do you want?

Long ago, I had a hickory nut tree cut. I could not afford to have the stump removed. So, it sat, not unattractive at all, cut just above the ground. Eventually, grass grew over the stump. The tree was hollow in the middle, destroyed by ants and then healed over after we killed the ants. Grass growing over the tree stump obscured the danger in the hollow tree and eventually obscuring the hollow places and rotting tree trees stump holes.

In order to keep me and others safe, I moved huge rocks, given to me from my elderly neighbor's yard by her daughter. Yes, I moved those stones myself up a hill and around a corner to my house.

People refer to this as a rock garden. I think of a rock garden as having plantings. Do you? It is not really a pile of rocks, It just looks like it because some are sinking as the roots are decaying. It was a nice even, rounded mound of rocks.

I believe there are hornet under the rocks, but they leave me alone. I just don't know anyone brave enough to kill hornets. Hornets do live under rocks? Right?

jewels in the rocks

The other day, at around noon I found a spider web with dew making the web shine like many diamonds. I left them alone. The spider web I found last week going from the clothes line to the wisteria hit me right in the face. I could hear a ripping sound. That was weird. Have you found jewels on spider webs?

fire ants

 

As I straightened up, I glanced to the right. Fire ants! Those I will kill. The mound is over a foot long.

 

view from the side porch

 

I took this picture because of the hens. They are just digging up the yard for their own pleasure and food. They are very busy. Most of the junk in the yard is gone now.

 

The rocks don't show as sharply as they would if I gotten all the stuff that was destroyed with a weed eater from the top of the rocks.

 

Let's look closer.

 

 





 

Are you still here?

 

Thelma has been bathing. See the dirt? She took turns digging and  and bathing. Finally, after all this, there was a hole in the yard!

 

I am ignoring you. See my behind?

 

I love her fuzzy/feathery behind! I cannot believe the guy that clipped all his hens feathered behinds in order to get clean eggs. Poor hens. The picture looks funny, but her legs were in motion as she scratched furiously.

 

 

They have managed to destroy a large area.

 

 

This summer, I had an experiment going on that was never completed. So, there were foot tall grasses of all sorts here. I asked exbf to weed eat it, finally, deciding the experiment will be saved for next year. He never edges anything down to a level. He digs up the dirt and leaves areas bare. He has done this for over six years, so I doubt he will ever stop. . . .sigh. So, the chickens take advantage of the visible dirt and just rip up the whole area and beyond. When they started, there were only about three inches of dirt showing by the rocks!

 

 Your turn

Do your hens just dig until they have caused so much destruction? Got any fuzzy butt chickens? Thelma has always had the most beautiful feathers on her behind.