xXInkedPhoenixX Posted May 18, 2022 Share Posted May 18, 2022 (edited) Hi all. I was doing an online order and came across Bee waterers....one of which looked basically like a raised ceramic pet bowl and it had marbles in it- so you fill it with water to just where the marbles stick out some so Bees and other buggy creatures could get a drink. I find random Lady Bugs and Bees floating (in various levels of consciousness) in my pump aggitated birdbath and fountain so I thought I'd help the little guys out. Instead of buying the object online I had a previously stored glass do-hicky (no idea what its intended original use is, probably for popouri or something) and used what was left of my fire glass (I intend to maybe get some yellow and orange marbles later) and did exactly what the other bowl did. This got me to thinking. There's a pretty awesome creative DIY group here. What have you created to be creature friendly in your yard? This could be anything for creatures from fuzzy or feathered, to buggy or scaled....we're coming into the hot and dry months where I live and they could use a hand! I would love to see the creativity of this group! Edited May 18, 2022 by xXInkedPhoenixX 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jawjagrrl Posted May 18, 2022 Share Posted May 18, 2022 Nothing crafty, but I use old horse feed buckets for water for my big farm dogs - more ergonomic for them. We're in a bit of a drought right now, so I'm watching them closely for wildlife falling in. I rescued two 5line skinks yesterday, so I added a stick from the hardscape reject pile to give them a way out that doesn't involve scary humans 🙂 I've always wanted to do a DIY hummingbird watering table with an old fish pump. The water is under 1" so they can bathe safely, and the pump keeps it from becoming a mosquito breeding ground. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xXInkedPhoenixX Posted May 18, 2022 Author Share Posted May 18, 2022 @Jawjagrrl yes thankfully my birdbath and fountains are run the majority of the day with solar fountain pumps and I haven't had any issues with mosquitos. I know I have Urban Possums and even Skunks come to my patio at night due to a plastic pot water catcher I use as a ground feeder water bowl (birds and squirrels)- that water is changed often so not growing mosquitos there either- but it's shallow enough for the ones who prefer to be ground level to drink from and take a bath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PineSong Posted May 19, 2022 Share Posted May 19, 2022 No pictures, but I have a small pile of rotting logs for all the creatures who rely on those and my stacks of leftover bricks and stones are arranged to make tunnels so that snakes can go in between to warm themselves and be unreachable by my dog--we have a lot of garden snakes and unfortunately he kills them if he catches them. I have one normal bird bath and two ground-level water sources for possums/bunnies/groundhog/squirrels whoever wants to use them. And since I moved here in early 2020, I have planted native roses (for the rose hips), serviceberry, native magnolia, buttonbush, elderberry,holly,chokeberry, skunkbush sumac, rudbeckia maxima, regular rudbeckia, coneflowers, and annually I plant sunflowers, Mexican sunflowers and giant tickseed coreopsis for the birds. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xXInkedPhoenixX Posted May 19, 2022 Author Share Posted May 19, 2022 (edited) Love it @PineSong! I had to build a cinderblock wall to keep rats from getting under my house- but that's how I work things- deter rather than exterminate- they live here even in urban areas and I respect their space and I stake my turf too. They still pass through my yard and likely eat left over bird food and water from the low sources but they aren't destructive where I live so- live and let. The cinderblock wall holds my succulent garden and bonus, has become home to lizards and spiders. I only have a patio for a yard in the plex where I live but I have lots of wonderful container plants- jasmine, trumpet vine, hot lips and other flowers that attract hummingbirds (and bees) and I hang 4 different hummer feeders around my house. I feed the ground birds (House Sparrows, Scrub Jay and Mourning Doves) with "mess free" bird seed every day. This time of year I have 20 or 30 Doves alone waiting for me in the morning on the wires..this was just a slow day... Edited May 19, 2022 by xXInkedPhoenixX 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PineSong Posted May 19, 2022 Share Posted May 19, 2022 @xXInkedPhoenixX, love the succulent garden rat barrier! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flumpweesel Posted May 19, 2022 Share Posted May 19, 2022 I have a teany tiny back yard I have it planted up so it has nectar giving plants and flowers from Feb to November to max out the bugs feeding time. From late October I leave the space alone so that everything can live off the autumn waste undisturbed. I make sure there is bird food and water available all year and a cat deterrent (there are a lot of cats in the neighbourhood) it's really urban where I am but aside from the crazy amount of bugs I am slowly gathering a growing number of birds visiting. I actually use some old aquarium gravel in a bowl for the bees. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kara C Posted May 23, 2022 Share Posted May 23, 2022 I make sure the birds have fresh food in the feeders and clean water in the birdbath. I put river rock on one side so the insects can get some too. I didn't enclose either tub pond so the neighborhood foxes and kitties can always have a water source in dry hot suburban heck. The top of the 110 is deck level so if smaller animals can get up there they're welcome to drink too. I also secretly put out foods once a week or so that are supposedly good for foxes. Extra sharing in winter is based on hard freezes. There's a new house being built next door so don't know if I'll be able to do that anymore. A fox family made a den just off my property in the ditch a month ago so I've been watching for construction workers to warn them. Dozer guy was all for leaving them alone. Hopefully the others will feel the same. Poor things keep getting run out of their homes to make way for new houses. Pest control said the neighborhood has a rat problem and I laughed. We have snakes of all kinds, foxes gallour, at least 3 species of owl, and multiple cooper's hawks. Haven't seen a single rat in the almost 4 years we've been here. Unless you count opossums as a rat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xXInkedPhoenixX Posted May 23, 2022 Author Share Posted May 23, 2022 @Kara C- good stuff there! I think people forget that we're encroaching on animals not the other way around so some of the most clever stick around and try to adapt- some doing very well. You may not see rats but I guarantee they are around- they are some of the smartest suburban/urban animals around. I know I have them in my area but it's rare to see them- the only reason I did before I built my cinderblock wall was when they were living under my house. Since they can't anymore- well I have a feeling they've moved to my neighbor's yard who has chickens- lol. I don't have a problem with any of them- like me they're just trying to survive! 🙂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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