Mourning Winter Losses in Serendipity Gardens … and Moving On

Michigan had one of the coldest and snowiest winters on record in 2014. It was a winter quite hard on Serendipity Gardens, though the cold and snow were not the only causes of the damage.

“Wabbit” Season

Here in Serendipity Gardens, the snow was piled two feet high for nearly three months, and this gave the hundreds of rabbits that make their home in nearby fields and hedgerows an unusual perch for snacking. And snack they did, leaving behind their little brown pellets as a testimony — and, on the bright side, fertilizer.

They did tremendous amounts of damage.

• They ate bark off a large privet, a burning bush, a chokeberry, six hydrangeas, four dwarf fothergillas, and a corkscrew willow in a pot. I am not sure yet, but I may well lose some of these shrubs.
• They nibbled the stems of rose bushes, making severe pruning a must.
• They destroyed the connection between ground and vine on several clematis that had been growing for over five years!

Walking around the garden after the snow finally melted was a bit disheartening, as these photos show.

Dead Frogs

Plants were not our only casualties. Many of our frogs did not survive, either. Despite the oxygen hole our heat stone in the pond left open, the weather was apparently just too cold for too long. We do have a few frogs remaining, but the majority of them are gone.

Our two fish, on the other hand, lived to see a warmer season.

Garden Lessons

Some of my plants will recover. Others, I will need to replace. I am hoping that the few frogs that are left will get busy and reproduce.

Websites I have read say that because in some cases, the rabbits have essentially girdled a stem, that particular stem can no longer function as a pathway between root and leaf.  Some of my plants are putting out shoots at the bottom, which indicates that they are alive and doing their best to survive — but my best action may be to prune them down almost to that point.

The garden, if it does nothing else, teaches us patience, perseverance, and sometimes, the need for drastic action.

I am sad about the losses, but a new thought occurs. Perhaps these rabbits were not my garden’s worst enemies after all. Yes, the damage they did means that I will need to replace or sharply reduce the size of several shrubs and vines … AND I can replace them with native plants that will do more to carry their weight and be attractive to wildlife. For instance, I had a Sweet Autumn Clematis which bloomed beautifully in the fall. I am replacing it with Clematis Virginiana, a similar plant that is native and has fragrant blossoms.

Better Preparation

Next winter could be the mild winter to beat all mild winters. Or it could be colder than one this was. Who can tell? Either way, however, I intend to be more prepared. I will:

• Actively pile leaves up around roses and other sensitive plants
• Build fences of chicken wire around plants that I did not realize were so vulnerable
• Purchase covers for certain particularly tender plants
• Pray for hawks! (Since Elmer Fudd is not available!)

A New Day

This post marks the end of my mourning time.

I visited the Farmers’ Market last Saturday and a flower show on Mother’s Day. I either purchased or was given these mostly native newbies that include a plant called pussy toes, the Clematis Virginiana previously mentioned, an elder shrub, and two swamp milkweed.  It’s been raining a lot the past few days, so I haven’t been able to plant more than a few of these new additions. But the sun will surely come out soon.

Here’s to a year of great gardening, with beautiful blooms, fresh produce, and fewer rabbits.

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