Fresh Tracks

There's nothing like a fresh layer of snow to remind you that you live in deer territory. Unfortunately for our budget, we've discovered there is no such thing as a deer-proof plant. If they're hungry enough they'll eat anything; hence the reason we rarely see our tulips and the reason all our shrubs and trees are "deer-pruned" (everything 5 feet and below is stripped off the tree-even the bark).

Of course, it's our fault. We built our house right in the middle of a deer path. It was worse before we put a fence around the backyard. We can still see the path they trod through our neighbors' yards, the deer just veer around our back fence and then come into our front yard for dinner and breakfast. But what really makes me steam is the fact that our neighbors across the street have few problems with deer and their hundreds of tulips in the spring attest to that.