Hi Gang,
Wow, it's been a long time since I've found the time to post anything. I've still been reading AND learning though... when I can. This post will be a "rambler" about numerous, mostly unconnected stuff.
The geese... Two of the six ran into 50 cal. balls of lead leaving four to continue the poop fests. I think the first to go was one of the parents, hard to tell once the young ones got big. I really thought this would discourage the rest from coming over and it did... for 2 days! They were definetely avoiding me and trying to come over when I wasn't around but still coming all the same. About one week later goose #2 met the same fate. This seemed to keep them away a little longer and coincided with their learning to fly. I think they are still in the area but are now flying around everyday and leaving our pond alone. Yea!! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif Of course the geese I've been seeing and hearing the past couple of weeks could just be flying over. I believe their migration has begun. I do think the addition of a tractor tire tube floating in the pond along with my previous interventions has gone a long way in keeping them away. I've seen some look like they wanted to land in the pond but decide against it once they see that floating tube. If you have the same problem I'd suggest trying the tube. It can't hurt! I also think the geese and their filth have contributed to an increase in algae growth. But they also may have introduced a snail population (the snails are new this year) which might mitigate the algae growth.
The deer haven't bothered the garden yet. This is our first year with this garden, although the spot had been used some time before for gardening. We're very pleased and surprised how well the garden has done. Used the FEL to remove 1-2 tons of rocks! We won't plant so much zuchinni next year. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif
We have a family of foxes, one adult and three young ones living close by. I think they chased one of our cats this morning. All 3 cats ran to the front deck and had a stareing contest with the foxes. Hopefully this taught our cats some respect for the wild critters around here... which they need. One of them came very close to being sprayed last night by a skunk. Skunks and racoons have discovered the pile of bird seed under our feeders and make nightly visits to chow down. I rigged up a frissbee to the feeder to try to keep more of the seed off the ground. Haven't seen any coyotes yet though my wife saw one recently on her way home. I don't think the cats would fare as well against them as they would against the foxes. /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif Though the foxes are very bold and seem to like checking us out I think the young ones were just playing around when one of the cats came strolling by. At least I hope so!
I had a very rough time with my dealer recently but we've pretty much settled all they outstanding issues. They paid for all the costs for my 50 hour service to make some amends. I'm STILL waiting (5+ months!) for wheel spacers so I can use snow chains this winter on my Kubotoa B2710 with R4 tires. If you have a 2710 or 2910 with R4's and possibly turfs(?) and want to use chains this winter I suggest you contact your dealer ASAP! Kubota used to make spacers for an earlier model of tractor that used the same rear end but dropped them when that tractor went out of production. My dealer claims Kubota wants to contract with the company that's custom making my pair but I wouldn't want to hold my breath waiting for either party to get it together. My second Bush Hog boxblade got damaged by a forklift so I took delivery of a Tufline 160 instead. I like it at least as much as the BH BX600! I've used it a little... and need to learn a lot! A good rain does make the job look much better. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif
The tractor is doing fine and I still love it!
Later- Dave
Wow, it's been a long time since I've found the time to post anything. I've still been reading AND learning though... when I can. This post will be a "rambler" about numerous, mostly unconnected stuff.
The geese... Two of the six ran into 50 cal. balls of lead leaving four to continue the poop fests. I think the first to go was one of the parents, hard to tell once the young ones got big. I really thought this would discourage the rest from coming over and it did... for 2 days! They were definetely avoiding me and trying to come over when I wasn't around but still coming all the same. About one week later goose #2 met the same fate. This seemed to keep them away a little longer and coincided with their learning to fly. I think they are still in the area but are now flying around everyday and leaving our pond alone. Yea!! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif Of course the geese I've been seeing and hearing the past couple of weeks could just be flying over. I believe their migration has begun. I do think the addition of a tractor tire tube floating in the pond along with my previous interventions has gone a long way in keeping them away. I've seen some look like they wanted to land in the pond but decide against it once they see that floating tube. If you have the same problem I'd suggest trying the tube. It can't hurt! I also think the geese and their filth have contributed to an increase in algae growth. But they also may have introduced a snail population (the snails are new this year) which might mitigate the algae growth.
The deer haven't bothered the garden yet. This is our first year with this garden, although the spot had been used some time before for gardening. We're very pleased and surprised how well the garden has done. Used the FEL to remove 1-2 tons of rocks! We won't plant so much zuchinni next year. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif
We have a family of foxes, one adult and three young ones living close by. I think they chased one of our cats this morning. All 3 cats ran to the front deck and had a stareing contest with the foxes. Hopefully this taught our cats some respect for the wild critters around here... which they need. One of them came very close to being sprayed last night by a skunk. Skunks and racoons have discovered the pile of bird seed under our feeders and make nightly visits to chow down. I rigged up a frissbee to the feeder to try to keep more of the seed off the ground. Haven't seen any coyotes yet though my wife saw one recently on her way home. I don't think the cats would fare as well against them as they would against the foxes. /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif Though the foxes are very bold and seem to like checking us out I think the young ones were just playing around when one of the cats came strolling by. At least I hope so!
I had a very rough time with my dealer recently but we've pretty much settled all they outstanding issues. They paid for all the costs for my 50 hour service to make some amends. I'm STILL waiting (5+ months!) for wheel spacers so I can use snow chains this winter on my Kubotoa B2710 with R4 tires. If you have a 2710 or 2910 with R4's and possibly turfs(?) and want to use chains this winter I suggest you contact your dealer ASAP! Kubota used to make spacers for an earlier model of tractor that used the same rear end but dropped them when that tractor went out of production. My dealer claims Kubota wants to contract with the company that's custom making my pair but I wouldn't want to hold my breath waiting for either party to get it together. My second Bush Hog boxblade got damaged by a forklift so I took delivery of a Tufline 160 instead. I like it at least as much as the BH BX600! I've used it a little... and need to learn a lot! A good rain does make the job look much better. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif
The tractor is doing fine and I still love it!
Later- Dave
