Sweet Dreams

    Do groundhogs hibernate?  I certainly hope so.  

As I cleanup my summer garden getting it prepped and ready for some winter gardening, but mostly getting it ready for spring, I look back on my summer harvest.  My potatoes did well, but could have been better if I had planted them earlier.  My green peppers started out promising but seemed to stall mid-way through summer.  I had a fair amount of tomatoes, but not nearly what I should have after planting thirty-six tomato plants.  My cherry tomatoes went wild, and seeing as how I am the only one who eats tomatoes in this family, I couldn’t keep up with them.  My heirlooms suffered terribly in the heat and the ones that did well were usually left half eaten on the ground by my garden thief.   My newly planted squash and zucchini were devoured by the next morning, and since I am a glutton for punishment, I tried three more times, earning the same results…kind of like the definition of insanity.  Eggplant must also be high on his favorite list because that was chewed up also.  I tried cantaloupe for the first time this year, and was so excited when I saw that lovely green fruit stating to get a nice size to it, unfortunately, I found the melons in the grass, dragged there by the tell tale teeth marks on the rind. 

     So again I ask, do groundhogs hibernate? 

If so, I plan on making his winter slumber as miserably as he made my summer garden.   As he lay curled up, in his den under my garden shed, just starting to dream of what delicious vegetables will be awaiting him in the spring, I will make every effort to disturb his deep winter’s nap.  I think a couple good blows from the air-horn should get his attention, and if it doesn’t, stay tuned for Round II – Me vs groundhog….this time it’s personal.