Grey squirrel eating mahonia berries in my garden
We have three grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) in our back garden – occasionally four. I tolerate them. I even let them eat the slab of bird fat I dangle from the bird table, knowing they won’t attack the squirrel-proof tube of small fat pellets nearby – for birds only.
I don’t mind them eating the mahonia berries, although I am surprised they are brave enough to climb the very prickly leaves. There are enough berries for all.
They like climbing a pine tree outside my study window, clutching a morsel of something I have thrown out for the wildlife…
Squirrel eating some brown bread, perched in the pine tree in January
As the pine sprouted the squirrels took a liking to the tree itself and snapped off the new shoots and nibbled them like sweets.
Squirrel on the pine in May…
…biting off the new growth
The way the squirrel ate the candle-like shoots reminded me of Stan Laurel eating the centres of some lilies in the old movie Thicker Than Water…
So far I was amused…
Squirrel entertaining on the frosty roof in January
But last month they started annoying me as they began biting off the developing flower spikes of my Heucheras. They also dug up and half-ate many of the Begonia ‘Apricot Shades’ corms I had planted in a trough. They had left them alone last year! I have since put a piece of sharp metal netting over them but there can’t be many left.
Last week was the last straw and the squirrels had me in tears of anger. I had been so proud of three wonderful mini sunflower plants I had ordered from You Garden. As usual from this supplier the plants were large and lush and already had three or four flower buds about to open.
Patio sunflower ‘Brown Eyed Girl’ from YouGarden – image from the catalogue
On the previous day I had planted up the sunflowers and now, as I returned from earthing up my tubs of potatoes, I looked to admire the new plants – and noticed pieces of greenery on the ground. Those pesky squirrels had bitten off every single flower from the three plants. Noooooo!
I have since covered the luscious plants with thin netting in the hope they will come again but I suppose I have learned that sunflowers have edible seeds and what do squirrels love? Nuts and seeds…
A thin veil of protection for the sunflower plants – too late of course…
Googling the problem also revealed that squirrels do NOT like geraniums and pelargoniums. This explains why they did not eat the begonias last year. I had put a couple of geranium plants in the trough to fill the space while the begonias grew. Doh!
So from now on geraniums are my new favourite flowers…
I documented the grey squirrels in my garden previously here…
Tail of a grey squirrel, February 2013…
The Squirrelbasket 
Simply love this post because I do like squirrels .Once i wrote a children’s book all about squirrels., and my two favourite commedien’s were Laurel and Hardy what a coincidence. Thanks for sharing. Hope all is well with you. Stay safe.
Funnily enough this post has solved a long term puzzle for me, because I couldn’t remember which film had someone eating lily centres in a hospital. I thought it was Abbott and Costello, but couldn’t find it anywhere. So now I know! Strange how that scene has stuck with us all!!
I’m glad it meant something to you! It was very visual, the way he picked out the centre and held it and bit into it.
Ah, Abbot and Costello – there’s another blast from the past…
All the best 🙂
The squirrels don’t bother with my garden but in our park of the world we don’t leave out bird food in the summer as it attracts bears as well as squirrels.
Now if I can keep my garden free of rabbits!
Bears! That’s something we don’t have to worry about here! Exciting if it weren’t dangerous…
We have no rabbits but there used to be some in a field next door when I was growing up in a village.
All the best 🙂
Squirrels are so cute, and can be such nuisances!
Juliet
http://craftygreenpoet.blogspot.com
Funny you say AND not BUT…
Best wishes and take care 🙂