Sunday, January 21, was Squirrel Appreciation Day.\u00a0 What?\u00a0 I\u2019m supposed to appreciate these fuzzy little things that destroy my garden?\u00a0 Well\u2026Yes.<\/p>\n
The word \u2018squirrel\u2019 comes from the Anglo-Norman word esquirel<\/em>\u00a0with roots in the Greek word skiouros<\/em> meaning \u2018shadow-tailed.\u2019\u00a0 A group of squirrels is called a \u201cscurry\u201d (a Scurry of Squirrels\u2014appropriate).\u00a0 They are native to every continent, except Antarctica and Australia.\u00a0 While there are squirrels in Australia, they were introduced there, but not native to there.<\/p>\n Squirrels are members of the rodent family but are particularly closely related to chipmunks, groundhogs, and prairie dogs.<\/p>\n Squirrels are omnivores\u2014meaning that while they do eat mostly seeds, nuts, bulbs, fungi, and fruits, but will also eat insects, eggs, caterpillars, etc.\u00a0 Because they bury so many seeds and nuts and fail to come back for them, they help to disperse plant material in an area (such as my yard in the spring with three million acorns coming up in my lawn, garden, and containers).<\/p>\n Squirrels are born in litters of two to eight.\u00a0 Babies are called \u201ckits\u201d or \u201ckittens.\u201d\u00a0 They depend totally on their mother for two to three months before venturing out on their own.\u00a0 They don\u2019t go far, however.\u00a0 They usually wind up living within two miles or so from where they were born.<\/p>\n The smallest squirrel is the African Pygmy Squirrel, which is about the size of a mouse.\u00a0 The largest squirrel is the Indian Giant Squirrel, which can grow up to three feet in length and weigh up to 4 pounds.\u00a0 Our common gray squirrel grows 15 or 20 inches long with the tail adding another 6 to 9 inches, and weighs one to one and a half pounds.<\/p>\n While they can be a problem in the garden, they are easy enough to deal with.\u00a0 Any repellent (granular or liquid) that contains cayenne or capsaicin is very effective against squirrels.\u00a0 You can actually mix crushed red pepper flakes in your bird seed to repel them from bird feeders (the birds cannot taste the heat).<\/p>\n To keep them away from your green tomatoes:\u00a0 They tend to go after smaller green tomatoes (because they are a size that is easiest for them to handle.\u00a0 They do not eat the tomato, they take a bite or two, suck the juice and seeds out, and drop them.\u00a0 Spray your tomato fruits with Hot Pepper Wax\u2014a spray that contains capsaicin.\u00a0 Then provide an easily accessible water source within 15 or 20 feet of your garden.\u00a0 If you spray the tomato but forget the water source, they may go after the moisture content in the tomato anyway if the weather is hot and dry.<\/p>\n To keep them from digging up bulbs:\u00a0 Plant tulip bulbs (their favorite) around 10 inches deep.\u00a0 Squirrels dig but do not tunnel.\u00a0 Plant deep and they\u2019ll leave them along.\u00a0 You can plant daffodils right on top of the tulips, at six inches deep.\u00a0 Daffodils are toxic so squirrels won\u2019t bother them anyway.<\/p>\n If they come along behind you and dig up seedlings you just planted, keep in mind that they\u2019re digging because the soil is loose and easy to dig in.\u00a0 They\u2019re not usually after the seedlings.\u00a0 Keep them from digging by generously sprinkling the soil with crushed red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper after planting to deter them.<\/p>\n Keep tree branches trimmed at least six to eight feet away from your house, so squirrels are less likely to chew through vents and make a home in your attic.<\/p>\n You know, once you learn to live with them, they are fun to watch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"