The trees are gone....

[sissy]

I would not even allow them when I had dish and the direct to put it up on my roof .Insurance companies will not pay for the damage they cause .Plus I did not want that ugly thing up there .They mounted them on poles they have and stuck them in my back yard .I have given up on those companies and went with fiber optic cable .Cheaper and have all my local channels ,plus do not have to go out and remove snow and ice from those stupid dishes and lenses .

 

[Mmathis]

Gee, I was so excited to have the trees down, that I never gave the turtle habitat a good looking over..... Not that it would have made any difference, as there really is no way they could have gotten those 2 trees out without damaging plants......

.....but almost the entire landscaping in the habitat has been trampled and mangled It's all fixable, but somehow I just wasn't expecting it to be this devastated. Most of the plants will grow back in the spring. Going to have to do quite a bit of work, but it's not going to be enough to help the turts out until they brumate in a couple of months -- they need plant cover. So I see a trip to Home Depot to buy potted plants that I can just sink into the ground for temp. cover for them. Just have to make extra sure that all of their "hides" are still accessible for them.

 

[j.w]

Do you have evergreen trees there cuz you can take some branches from them and jab them into the ground and they will last and look like something growing for a long time till your other plants start growing back.

 

[fishin4cars]

Gee, I was so excited to have the trees down, that I never gave the turtle habitat a good looking over..... Not that it would have made any difference, as there really is no way they could have gotten those 2 trees out without damaging plants......

.....but almost the entire landscaping in the habitat has been trampled and mangled It's all fixable, but somehow I just wasn't expecting it to be this devastated. Most of the plants will grow back in the spring. Going to have to do quite a bit of work, but it's not going to be enough to help the turts out until they brumate in a couple of months -- they need plant cover. So I see a trip to Home Depot to buy potted plants that I can just sink into the ground for temp. cover for them. Just have to make extra sure that all of their "hides" are still accessible for them.

For something during the fall and winter get some kale cabbage. they are pretty and they will give some thick cover for them, PLUS they can eat it if they want. Lowes and Home depot should start getting them in soon. Hate to hear the habitat's got damaged but it will be worth it. Now you can see what your dealing with and what grows best in the new area's.

 

[addy1]

Mums are cheap right now and last for quite awhile. They may help

 

[Mmathis]

@j.w Great idea, but no evergreens..... I do have a bunch of limbs & small branches left over from the tree-removal [I had to catch the guys before they took all the good pieces away -- they thought I was crazy, but I explained how I use the tree parts as habitat enhancements]. I can use a lot of those.

@fishin4cars @addy1 Thanks for the suggestions! I love plant shopping, but I rarely have a need for new plants -- now I have a reason....!!!!

I spent yesterday digging out their "hides," and doing some basic repairs & renovations.

 

[Mmathis]

Sad little turtle habitat.....

I managed to work on some "hides" and just piled up brush and fence planks for places for them to hide for the time being. They were happy to be back home.

A couple of "before" pics....showing the 2 ends of their bog.

What their bog looks like now..... I had removed all the plants because I knew they wouldn't survive the tree work. I used the wood to cover the bog and to keep the liner safe. I'll start working on getting some plants back in there today.

All of these areas were covered with plants -- clover, strawberry plants, and other ground covers. The red circles are either new hides that I just made, or old ones that I repaired. You can't tell anything from the top picture, but that is a raised area so that the hides are either right at or just below ground level for the turtles.

 

[tbendl]

So TM, do they have a full run of the yard or is this a section enclosed that includes a bog for them to "run"... I'm looking at the pictures at the beginning of the thread and wondering if they are in the upper section Hahaha turtles running... Anyway I'm sorry their little hidey holes got smashed but I'm sure they will be happy with the extra sun.

 

[j.w]

Looks like you made some good hidey holes for them till you get the plants up and growing again. Are they out there now somewhere?