Why the planter isn't weeded yet

This handsome boy has decided that the Madrigal acreage suits him fine. In the last couple of weeks his antlers have doubled in length and he has made himself quite at home in our planter. Initially I was going to weed it this spring when I discovered there were very few columbines growing. Then I realized that I didn't have any lilies in there either... and then even the cannas were gone.

In this shot he is trying to determine how to reach the roses on top of this weeping cherry and out of his range. In fact, they are the only roses that have managed to survive his amorous attentions.

Last weekend my cousin visited and I never got to this front planter, which looks quite terrible and I now realize is not because of the wet spring we had or the moles that occasionally try to invade our property or some sad little vole and its family munching on my bulbs. No, this is the young fellow who has been stomping down the wood hyacinths, eating the tops off the flowers, gobbling up the ground cover and leaving only the wild buttercups which I wish he would eat. And that was what I was going to weed tonight after work... finally... until there he was again. Asleep. You can see him on the lower right hand side of the planter, enjoying the shade from the Japanese maple.

We have watched this young stag grow from a very gangling boy into a little stream-lined model, but he is still small for the deer we normally find in this area. Obviously he is happy here - makes the rounds of the front acreage where we have grapes, plums, apples, pears, cherries, lots of maples, and lots of this particular type of clover that this deer seems to love. He also appears to be eating ants! I am not sure if they are the little ones or the carpenter ants (I hope we don't have them close to the house), but he was definitely licking up something on the patio last week in this picture.

He is looking much heavier and healthier this week. Oh, he also decided it was very nice of me to put fresh water in the birdbath every day. I couldn't imagine it was evaporating by half everyday, and I was right. It was our handsome friend.

I do love living on this property and every time we see another wild animal from the window or out in the yard - watching us watch them - it makes me feel like we are good earth caretakers. Maybe I can somehow make up for my past ignorance about what it really takes to protect the environment.