I'm tired of winter! Enough already!

[grapeman]

Well don't bother to take it off then to show it. What diameter are the trees right now?

James of course they chew on bark, they are rodents and are suited to that. Their teeth keep growing like a beaver and they chew it to help wear them down, otherwise they can curl around and impale their skulls. Besides that they can digest the softer part of the bark.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=...bvb4WrDEsGIPCiWpOhldoLJA&ust=1394815566457992

 

[ckvchestnut]

That's sad Grapeman! Is that tree still living? I'm going out now to check the diameter and take a pic to post BRB!


Carolyn

 

[ckvchestnut]

Oh and I think James was joking lol just being his cheeky self!


Carolyn

 

[jamesngalveston]

no...i have never heard of mice eating tree bark....guess its because there is so much food found in the south..they dont have too....
no snow, so there is no reason for them to eat bark here....
i have seen them eat many things, but not tree bark.

 

[grapeman]

See the following explanation James

Dental Formula

The dental formula is a simple method of describing how many teeth an animal has on both the top and bottom portion of the jaw. The first number indicates the teeth on one half of the top jaw, while the second number indicates the teeth on one half of the bottom jaw. Rats and mice have the same dental formula: incisors 1/1, canine 0/0, premolars 0/1 and molars 3/3. Since the numbers are for only one side of the mouth, they should be doubled to determine the total number of teeth. This means that mice and rats have a total of 18 teeth, including four incisors at the front of the mouth, two premolars midway back on the bottom jaw and six molars at the back of the mouth.


Growing Incisors

The incisors, or long front teeth, in rats have open roots, which means they continue to grow throughout the animal's life. A rat or mouse must gnaw or chew enough to wear down the incisors and keep them from becoming overgrown. Both animals can have serious problems if the incisors get too long. Crooked or misaligned teeth are often the cause of overgrown incisors, but a lack of proper chewing materials can also be to blame.

 

[ckvchestnut]

Really James?? Yes when there is nothing else to eat and like Grapeman says to wear their teeth down they will chew on just about anything! Thanks for the lessons on rat dental stuff Grapeman! Horses too grow their teeth their whole lives so we have to get the dentist I to float them...

Ok Here's one of my apple trees, this is a 5 in 1 tree that I have been growing for 8 years... In the pic the trunk looks smaller than it really is, I measured it to be 8 inches in diameter at the base. GRRR!

 

[ckvchestnut]

oops sorry the circumference is 8 inches lol... so it's at most just shy of 4 inches? I think?

 

[jamesngalveston]

yea, i know how rodents,rats,mice,squirrels rabbits have to eat something for there teeth, but here there is every kind of nut,fruits,seeds,bones,etc...and they have free reign at all the garbage on the streets. here and there is plenty because of the nasty tourist.

 

[ckvchestnut]

Like I said normally I never had a problem... but when things get severe, like this was our coldest winter on record for the past 20 years - the mice get desperate and with so much snow and ice underneath the snow, they start looking for things that are above ground to eat I guess. Looks like I'll be buying apple trees along with my cherry trees this spring!

 

[jamesngalveston]

wicked white weasel.....he has my vote....

 

[ckvchestnut]

wicked white weasel.....he has my vote....

Mine too! I know he's been hunting, he goes underneath my outbuildings where I know mice burrow... however, I may be taking a gamble with allowing him to live here. I don't think he'll ever run out of rodents to eat, but I do own a lot of chickens and they do go after chickens as well. They like to kill for fun too, not just for hunger! Truly a wicked animal!

 

[ckvchestnut]

here he attacks the camera man: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfqzRIr7AUQ

and this is what they do in the chicken coop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAmwg2aIv-c

 

[grapeman]

Nice blue sky. With a circumference of 8 inches the trunk is 2.55 inches (8/3.14). You can try to make a few bridging grafts to see if it will take, but I would buy some more trees so if the older ones die, you have a start on replacing them. Good luck with the mouse extermination!

 

[ckvchestnut]

Thanks Grapeman... I'm not gonna hold my breath that this will work... so I'm definitely buying more trees it's costly getting them big enough that they are already bearing fruit... argh I hate rodents!

 

[grapeman]

Our beautiful spring weather continues here. Temperature of -6F here again this AM to go along with the nice 24-30 inches of snow on the ground. It may get to the 30's today and tomorrow! WoooHooo! At least the ski centers are happy!

 

[ckvchestnut]

Still waiting! We had a snowstorm the other day and then it got frigid again. Today is supposed to get up to 3 with lots of freezing rain - fun! But all next week things are looking more docile! Temps just above freezing and warmer for the overnight forecasts... One thing's for sure the days are longer!

 

[ckvchestnut]

Ugh! Days are getting longer. Sun warmer. First day of spring came and went. Got 15 cms of snow over the weekend! My weasel has been busy though and the chipmunks are out. I guess he'll be snacking on them too... I may have to intervene. Time will tell.

 

[HillPeople]

16" of new Spring!

Yeah- winter is dragging out way too long up here in the White Mountains. Might be pruning with snowshoes.

 

[ckvchestnut]

That's pretty! It always looks so pretty and it is nice for awhile.... Awhile!

 

[grapeman]

My nephew posted these pictures. The one is showing 8 foot banks of snow on the roadside. The other is his driveway. I don't think it is quite spring on Tug Hill in NY yet.