Just back home from a week in a mountain cabin in Colorado.
First discovery: the cats had killed a mouse and left it for us in the bedroom. No sign of any more, but as the weather cools the cats will doubtless earn their keep.
Second problem: orderly rows of ants are marching across the kitchen counters, up the wall, and into the heating vent. There was no food left on the counters, mind you, so there seems to be no purpose to this great endeavor.
A mild dry winter has been followed by a very buggy summer; the juniper gnats never died back, and ants of all sizes churned up the ground and even the brick patio. The ants are also tending hundreds of aphids on my chrysanthemums.
Is there a benefit to all these anthills? Will they make the ground more permeable? Will some of the seeds they bury germinate over the winter? I'm not killing them outdoors, but inside the house— well, maybe we need to bring in some lizards.
No, wait— the cats eat lizards.
A few weeks ago I ordered some non-toxic ant repellent. The entire house smelled like cinnamon and cloves, but it barely fazed the ants.
Up at the cabin a bear had been raiding campsites close by; can't blame him for trying to put on weight for the winter. Guess it is the same for the ants and mice, and for us too, as we sense the shorter days and oncoming winter.
Looking forward to the first frost.
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