We have been invaded

A creature of some sort has brought a small amount of carnage to our little plot.

It ate leaves from the burgeoning yellow squash plant.

It decimated lettuce in a pot.

"The humanity! Oh, the humanity!"

It ate through more squash leaves, this time in a pot.

We are not devastated, but will be planning accordingly next year. Everything not protected by a cage is fair game for rodents.

Both squash plants seem to be bouncing back. The carnage occurred on Wednesday, yet I already see new leaves shooting up. Will squash spring forth from them this year? Unknown.

We compared notes with the neighbors and have been able to determine that the creature could be a groundhog. I saw a fat, brown animal with little or no tail perching on the rim of one of the pots, mowing through lettuce as if enjoying an all-you-can-eat salad bar. Rushing outside to shoo it away, all I could think about was getting rid of it and I did not pause to notice characteristics for later identification. The neighbors agreed that it is not a raccoon or mole and suggested groundhog or woodchuck.

I made a terrible concoction to spray around the more delicate and tempting plants that are not within the protection of the cages. I smashed garlic cloves and brought them to a boil with water and Sriracha. After steeping for a period of time, the mixture was strained into a spray bottle and topped off with undiluted Dr. Bronner's lavender soap. I don't know if it will keep rodents away, but it certainly makes me sneeze.