Do You have a Garden Companion?

[digitS']

Mine is most commonly this little guy:


Larry Thompson

The Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)

Steve

edited to add the photo copyright information - University of Georgia, Discover Life!

 

[jojo54]

Lulu, my part-time house chicken helps out in the garden. She keeps me company and chatters and encourages me to keep weeding and finding her bugs and worms.

Her she is "helping my DH".

Here is my blog thread about her helping in the garden.

http://mountaingardengleanings.blogspot.com/2010/11/gardening-with-lulu.html

 

[digitS']

You and LuLu are quite a pair, JoJo! I noticed your current blog post is on LuLu during the winter .

Very nice photo's ! The Valentine's Day pictures that accompany the poem are really lovely.

I was thinking that gardeners are likely to have pets that keep them company in the garden. Me being out there with my stockdog has now become a long-ago experience :/. She was very protective of the garden and did a stellar job, day and night, of keeping the deer out of it.

These days, I have the wildlife - and, altho' I appreciate the songbirds, the hawks and owls are especially well thought of and I will even hesitate to go out when a big Red Tail has come over from the tall pines nearby to circle the garden. I guess that isn't quite a "companion" but more of a partner in the enterprise. (Maybe the quail can be considered "neighbors" tending to be pests .) The Red Tails are certainly more welcome than the bunnies .

The song sparrows, like your LuLu, spend quite a bit of time down on the ground. They show up as pairs and are busy with their agendas. I think we are often out there together kind of oblivious of each others activities - unless the male begins to sing. And, I'm using my hearing aids .

Steve

 

[ninnymary]

I know this thread is under the "gardening with animals" so I'm assuming you mean animals. No, I don't have any animals that are my gardening companions. Our pet chickens are in the run and seldom are let out since my garden is not fenced.

Occasionally, I do have my husband out spredding compost, chopping trees, moving big plants, are doing something to the coop. Of course, he is always grumbling about my expensive "hobbies".

Does he count as my gardening companion?

Mary

 

[journey11]

My chickens aren't good helpers at all. They are currently on lockdown because they keep flying over their fence and fraternizing with the neighbor's rooster. Gotta get some electric run on the fence to keep them in and away from the garden.

I guess my bees would be my best animal garden companion then. :bee

And my 3.5-yr-old daughter would be my best human garden companion. She is really taking an interest in it now that she's a little bigger. I let her plant some summer squash last year (wherever she felt like it, ha) and she was really tickled when it grew and produced.

 

[digitS']

I don't know why a husband wouldn't count, Mary. Still, I might take a 3 year-old as a better alternative .

As far as grumbling & complaining; here is a complainer: The Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)



I had a pair of these nesting in the bush between 2 of my gardens one year. Gracious! The bird experts often use the term "skulking" with Catbirds. So, these guys "skulk" in the undergrowth and grumble and complain - and it is never ending!

Steve
this picture is from wikipedia . . . i don't know if that needs to be cited or not

 

[thistlebloom]

All of our dogs have always been good company in the garden, some more polite than others.
The cats of course come running when they see you on hands and knees weeding or planting since they are such gluttons for attention, and they know they can get a little lovin at least before I tire of them laying in front of me on the weeds I'm trying to pull.
We had a pet crow that would help "pull" weeds if you wiggled it for him.
But the two guys pictured here are probably my best garden buddies. They know to stay off the beds and try to help by herding the cats away so I can concentrate on those pesky weeds!

Sadly, my pal Mosley ( on the left ) was killed by coyotes Dec. 23.
So now it's just Gator that will be riding in the wheelbarrow and guarding me from too much cat attention.

 

[vfem]

We have some territorial Bluebirds here, and 1 couple who use housed on the pole out by my grape vine... so I see them everyday when I'm out gardening. They just sit and watch me so fearless! (Even attack my cat if she gets to close)

 

[hoodat]

I've had a black phoebe in my garden for many years. It shows no fear of me at all and often swoops right down to catch insects disturbed when I work in the garden. I presume it isn't the same bird since I doubt they live for 10 years but I never see more than one at a time.

 

[journey11]

I don't know why a husband wouldn't count, Mary. Still, I might take a 3 year-old as a better alternative .

Yes indeed! My 3-yr-old complains far less than the hubby. I make him run the tiller for me, then after that, it's my business.

Sorry to hear you lost your buddy Thistlebloom. They are cute dogs. I didn't know a coyote would kill another dog. :/ I lost my 13 yr old chow mix the week before Christmas too. That was HARD.