Take THAT! You Wascally Wabbits...

Last weekend, I realized that my blueberry bushes seemed less leafy than they had been. I identified the culprit as a Mr. Bunny McBunnersons. I've seen him in the yard and he's got a shifty look about him.

Fine. I went to Lowe's with Charles and Iain and we bought some wire fencing. I got a 25-foot length, which seemed fine since my raised bed is 8x4 (ie, 24 feet around). On Sunday night, I suddenly realized (while on the phone with Iain's Nana, who lives in snowy Colorado) that with the last 20 minutes of light I needed to get that fence UP!

Rabbits eat at night, see? And it was going to rain Monday, so I couldn't do it then.

Ok, out I went. But, lo and behold, after half an hour of struggling with vicious wire scratches, plastic connectors that didn't want to cinch, and rolled wire that persisted in snapping back (scratch, scratch) into place when I wanted it to Stay Put, what I had was...a partial fence. That's right: 25 feet of fencing actually measured something like 23.5 feet. With the extra inches from the corner poles, I was short about 18 inches. Grr....grr....

I had to call Miriam and vent. Many F-words were used. Like: frustrating, fencing, fuming, and other ones I can't remember right now.

Charles helped me by brainstorming ways to make lemonade out of lemons. We worked out a plan by which I would build little PVC-framed doors on either side, add another length of fencing (back to Lowe's!) and in the end it would all be Even Better!

I left it for the night on Sunday. What could I do? It was pitch dark. I was covered in little scratches, mud, and bits of plastic. But yesterday, after the rain cleared away, I sallied forth for another go at the yard.

As you see above, I built my little compost pile. Out of wire fencing. And - get this - it was as long as it was supposed to be. Which meant I had a little extra. You know what I did with it, right?

That's right! A patch. Eat it, rabbits. There's a new sheriff in town, and I've got you in my sights. [Did I mention that on gardening websites I consulted the best solution for rabbits was, and I quote: "the 40 ought 6 solution." It must be fun to live in Texas.]


Here's a lovely closeup, in case my excellent patching work wasn't immediately apparent to you. Note the fact that my compost fencing was finer mesh than my rabbit fencing. No matter. Consider it embellishment, like the glittering sequins on a ballgown. Just call me Valentino.