Sarah is a British eccentric who writes offbeat fiction, haiku and tanka poetry. When stuck for words, she sketches or paints instead. She's into nature conservation, sustainability, gardening, dogs, natural health, and reading. Her sociability is something that happens in short bursts with long breathing spaces in between.
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25 thoughts on “Monday Morning #Haiku 67 — Snail Reproduction”
More ravaging in your garden too… 😉
Great haiku!
I dunno… have you not seen the impoverished nations? They seem to be overzealous in the over-population department! Then again, if you look at those areas, the landscape is pretty barren…
I know what you mean, but the reasons behind this overzealousness are so complex, it would involve an extremely long cultural, socio-economic, and political discussion to even brush the surface of this subject!
They’re a nightmare. I caught some yesterday, heading for my petunias, having somehow managed to slide up past the “deterrent” copper tape around the flower pot. Obviously they’re willing to experience a few electric shocks, if the food is tasty enough. I’m so glad they hate hydrangeas, which are my latest editions to the garden.
Or would it? You got me thinking and researching the subject, Sylvia, and it’s interesting what I discovered!
Much of the problem is down to the fact that we insist on having neat gardens and are selective about what we grow in them.
According to this article (via link below), the eradication of snails and slugs would badly upset the natural balance. http://www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/node/3471
I once knew a couple who ate common garden snails when they couldn’t afford to buy meat or fish. But they used to soak them in a bucket of salt for a day or two as, according to them, this made them clean enough to eat. When I say “I used to know” them, that doesn’t meant that they died of food poisoning. They just moved away to live somewhere else in Europe!
‘Hermaphrodite paradise’ indeed. Ha! Perfect Haiku for your caught-in-the-act photo this Sarah. Darn things, they are out and about aren’t they, breeding and eating and chomping. How my lupins have managed to grow at all this year is a miracle. And then wouldn’t you know it, only to be flattened in the Monday storms. Staked them now, snails and storms be gone with you (that’s putting it nicely) xxxx
The snails munched up my dwarf dahlia’s overnight, having finished with my French marigolds. The number of flowerpots sporting skeletal stems is increasing on a daily basis.
Dare I plant my hollyhock in the ground? At the moment it’s sitting in a pot on my garden bench, as is a sunflower plant.
What a miracle that your lupins are still uneaten, Sherri. I once planted out 10 lovely lupin plants I’d grown from seed and they were gone overnight. Most dispiriting.
xxxx
Nope D: If I put jars filled with beer in the flowerbeds as a diversion from the plants (as on our allotment), a certain Labrador will stick her snout into the jars and get tipsy, or get her snout wedged!
Oh no! I’m so sorry to hear this Sarah, and for your poor lupins too 😦 This is the first year mine have survived because of a natural, garlic product my mother gave me as a sample. I’ll have to find out the name as it seemed to work really well, despite some nibbling earlier on. I only had enough for the lupins and we haven’t been able to find it anywhere. My hollyhock is doing its best, yours might be alright. Have you ever tried broken egg shells to keep snails away? I haven’t, wondered if it works. The endless scourge of snails in our gardens…we need more hedgehogs!! xxxx
I will try the egg shells as my son eats loads of eggs! Not sure if a certain Labrador won’t try eating the shells, as she loves egg. Maybe she would lay off the garlic, though, although that’s not very good for dogs either. We used to have a hedgehog family and I guess it did keep the snail population down. Toads and thrushes are happy to eat snails, too. xxxx
Sarah Potter Writes 
More ravaging in your garden too… 😉
Great haiku!
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Thank goodness people don’t breed like snails (or rabbits) or the whole world would have been a wasteland long ago D:
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I dunno… have you not seen the impoverished nations? They seem to be overzealous in the over-population department! Then again, if you look at those areas, the landscape is pretty barren…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know what you mean, but the reasons behind this overzealousness are so complex, it would involve an extremely long cultural, socio-economic, and political discussion to even brush the surface of this subject!
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Ah aren’t they sweet, more mouths to chomp on your garden 🙂
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They’re a nightmare. I caught some yesterday, heading for my petunias, having somehow managed to slide up past the “deterrent” copper tape around the flower pot. Obviously they’re willing to experience a few electric shocks, if the food is tasty enough. I’m so glad they hate hydrangeas, which are my latest editions to the garden.
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Wretched little beasties…
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That it would, Sarah, that it would.
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This was amusing and clever. I did not ever think about snails and reproduction. ha ha!
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It seems they have the best of both worlds, without restriction of gender!
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Great haiku for your slimy image, Sarah. It would be so nice if snails stopped reproducing. 🙂
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Or would it? You got me thinking and researching the subject, Sylvia, and it’s interesting what I discovered!
Much of the problem is down to the fact that we insist on having neat gardens and are selective about what we grow in them.
According to this article (via link below), the eradication of snails and slugs would badly upset the natural balance. http://www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/node/3471
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lovely shells- too bad they aren’t escargot variety!
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I once knew a couple who ate common garden snails when they couldn’t afford to buy meat or fish. But they used to soak them in a bucket of salt for a day or two as, according to them, this made them clean enough to eat. When I say “I used to know” them, that doesn’t meant that they died of food poisoning. They just moved away to live somewhere else in Europe!
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lol!!! they are brave anyway!!
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‘Hermaphrodite paradise’ indeed. Ha! Perfect Haiku for your caught-in-the-act photo this Sarah. Darn things, they are out and about aren’t they, breeding and eating and chomping. How my lupins have managed to grow at all this year is a miracle. And then wouldn’t you know it, only to be flattened in the Monday storms. Staked them now, snails and storms be gone with you (that’s putting it nicely) xxxx
LikeLiked by 1 person
The snails munched up my dwarf dahlia’s overnight, having finished with my French marigolds. The number of flowerpots sporting skeletal stems is increasing on a daily basis.
Dare I plant my hollyhock in the ground? At the moment it’s sitting in a pot on my garden bench, as is a sunflower plant.
What a miracle that your lupins are still uneaten, Sherri. I once planted out 10 lovely lupin plants I’d grown from seed and they were gone overnight. Most dispiriting.
xxxx
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Oh dear… any way to encourage them to move elsewhere?
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Nope D: If I put jars filled with beer in the flowerbeds as a diversion from the plants (as on our allotment), a certain Labrador will stick her snout into the jars and get tipsy, or get her snout wedged!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh that little lush!!
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Oh no! I’m so sorry to hear this Sarah, and for your poor lupins too 😦 This is the first year mine have survived because of a natural, garlic product my mother gave me as a sample. I’ll have to find out the name as it seemed to work really well, despite some nibbling earlier on. I only had enough for the lupins and we haven’t been able to find it anywhere. My hollyhock is doing its best, yours might be alright. Have you ever tried broken egg shells to keep snails away? I haven’t, wondered if it works. The endless scourge of snails in our gardens…we need more hedgehogs!! xxxx
LikeLiked by 1 person
I will try the egg shells as my son eats loads of eggs! Not sure if a certain Labrador won’t try eating the shells, as she loves egg. Maybe she would lay off the garlic, though, although that’s not very good for dogs either. We used to have a hedgehog family and I guess it did keep the snail population down. Toads and thrushes are happy to eat snails, too. xxxx
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Party! Love this one, Sarah.
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It seemed that everywhere I looked that week, snails were partying!
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Gives new meaning to the word ‘slugabed.’
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