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The Newt (Somerset, England)

After Stourhead , the second garden on the tour that day was "The Newt". Talk about a change in garden styles! As I review my photos, I can appreciate the beauty and style of this garden, but I must confess, it was one of my least favorites.  I remember mostly the heat (it was one of our warmer days), the glaring sun with few trees in sight, and the commercial feel of the whole enterprise. But then again, this was mainly a vegetable garden and I was having an "off" day (I had just toured Stourhead, where I missed some of the main landmarks). The entrance took us through an area with gift shops and display areas (nice thing about photos is you see things you missed - I had not noticed the intricate ceiling design) - We did have an actual tour guide at this one, and he led us through the entire garden - Down a winding, blinding white walkway, towards the large vegetable garden - Leaving one vegetable garden, we headed up a grassy avenue with water features.  Along th...
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Raccoon Round-Up

At first I thought they were cute. I started observing the little masked varmints about a year ago in my garden, usually at night, but increasingly during the day as well. I let the little guys go about their business and I’m sure our habit of throwing scraps out was welcoming to them. As long as they didn’t hurt my cat – they were fine with me. After all, I am a big animal lover.

About a month ago, I saw three baby raccoons playing around my waterfall. Adorable.


Then things started to get out of hand. They wouldn’t leave my birdfeeders alone and they have broken several, some beyond repair. Heck, the hummingbird feeders aren’t even safe because they love the nectar! Then we started hearing sounds in our attic. At first we thought it was probably squirrels but now we are wondering if it is the raccoons. That mystery is still not solved yet. Last week, I stepped outside to feed Isabella and heard a commotion of scurrying. I stepped back inside and observed a mother and five baby raccoons descending on the food dish. Okay, enough is enough! Our home is becoming "Grey Gardens II"!!!


My sister had loaned me a small cage trap so I tried to capture them but soon realized that the trap was too small. I called Animal Control yesterday and picked up a larger cage after leaving a $50 deposit. Last night I baited the cages and am happy to report that I caught three of them. They are crafty little buggers so this was not as easy as it sounds. I thought the mother would never go inside the cage and it was past 11 before she was captured. I took them out to a wooded area and creek about five miles from our house and released them. That is 3 down and 4 to go! Or at least 4 that I am aware of. The cages are baited tonight. I’m ready for action!

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  1. AnonymousJuly 28, 2007 at 12:13 AM

    Hey Phillip.
    Quite interesting about your Raccoon problem. I am sure you will be successful in rounding them all up in time. Watch out for those squirrels as well. They can do some considerable damage as they like bird feeders and attics just the same. That is speaking from experience on the squirrels as we had quite the bunch to roundup in our previous home as well. DW

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  2. SandyJuly 28, 2007 at 7:56 PM

    Just out surfing and stumbled across your blog. Beautiful garden and photography:).

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  3. CatherineAugust 16, 2007 at 10:56 AM

    I have a cat door that leads from my garage to the outside world. Recently I have heard some sounds in the garage that were not familiar. RACCOONS! I agree, they are real cute, but as you stated, things can get out of hand. I hope when your relocate these varmits that they are appreciative of your humane treatment of them...I am. :)

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