Gracious, I hear too much about voles and thankfully I do not have them. If I did I think I would be looking for something that would eat them. Do you have any Owls? how about a cat? Is there any delicious poison that they like?

I don't really bother about them, Susan, except when I'm thinking of (non-poisonous) spring bulbs.
So I tend to complain about them around this time of year.

I don't believe we have any problem with them attacking the root systems of perennials, girdling trees, damaging the lawns and the like.

My friend David Tomlinson, at Merlin's Hollow, Aurora, uses two inches of wet maple leaves on his extensive perennial beds each fall.
This makes a great habitat for voles, so he uses warfarin in beer cans, to save his sheets of crocuses.
He enlarges the hole in the can, large enough only for a vole to get in.
He never eliminates all the voles, but feels this keeps the problem in check.

Relevant things: I dig in organic matter, don't use mulch and though I maintain perennials close together, don't use plants as "ground cover".
I'd also be willing to believe that burrowing animals like voles do have some beneficial effect on our (upgraded) clay flower beds.

I don't see any evidence of natural vole predators in the garden and have been very hostile about a former neighbour's cat which regularly used my pile of potting soil as a cat box.

My solution with spring bulbs is to just plant more each fall.

Interesting. Do you mean he uses anticoagulant? Well, seems like you got a good attitude about them, I am sure they would aerate the soil. I found that the cats do not like the smell of Milorganite, It is a nice slow release fertilizer. Not sure if it is available in Canada. If not, have you considered plain old Cheyenne pepper? The voles might not like it either! LOL.

Yes, an anticoagulant, Susan.

Heard of using cayenne.

Thanks, Susan.

My other complaint about the voles: they don't eat the poisonous bulbs like Chionodoxa (especially) and Puschkinia which seed all over the place.

We have not had those as yet (fingers crossed). They do follow the mole runs & we don't have those either.

If they only ate the bad stuff like weeds.. I would have some shipped in.

Yes!
It's a pity that it always seems to be the good stuff that looks so tasty.

Cold today.
Currently 1°C/33°F, with a cold wind.
Melting delayed.

Today: still only bits of the garden out of the snow and ice.



More snowdrops (the first spring bulbs to bloom).
Think those are doubles.
Also, coming up, Chionodoxa 'Giant Pink' (blooms after the species, and then the hybrid, crocuses).

More snowdrops today.



Adding spring colour on the deck.

Two of the bowls of pansies are easter gift's for Carol's relatives.
Which two?

OH! that deck thing did not soak in at first. LOL. I was thinking...wow, they sure have a big picnic table!


Very nice Easter Gifts, and a very good idea to give them.

Funny, Susan!

Avoids the problem of what to give.

Colder today.
More snowdrops out:



But the first species crocuses, that opened yesterday, stayed closed today.



Currently the easiest way to get colour here; buy it!

Very, very beautiful. You have quite the green thumb. Here is a few of my things that are sprouting...clearing throat.

Very nice, Susan.

Our garden's still half covered with snow and ice and we can't leave any tender plants out over night.

These have been out all winter, they like cold weather. I hope your snow and ice clears up soon so you will see some sprouts from your happy plants! Did you hear snow is the poor mans fertilizer? You should have a beautiful garden, my plants do not normally get a good cold spell like we had this past winter, even my blueberry bushes have buds and that has not happened in three years! LOL.

Am certainly very happy to be getting the melt water, Susan.

62° here, all our snow has disappeared & John says the ginger has increased. He raked the leaves off it today.

So nice to see the end of the snow, Lucy.
I'd say about half of our garden is still covered.

Early crocus in the garden today:

Beautiful!!

Thanks, Susan.
More than half of the garden is now free of snow and ice.