Few comments and questions. Have a woodchuck(groundhog) living uner my shed, next to my garden. I am still trying to catch him with a live trap. My compost bin is about two feet behind my garden, last year I saw him stretch from the top of the compost pile to the top of the fence to get in, and actually climbed the fecne ...about two foot wire fence to get out when I ran to the garden to get him. I did adjust the fence in that area since to try and keep it from happening again. I also have rabbits every where and not sure if they are able to get in the garden. Again fence in most area is about 2'. Only ever caught one rabbit in and it was a baby and squeezed throught the holes. I still loose plants chewed down to nubs. Have not found anywhere that someting has got through or under fence. Don't know if something is scaling fence or hoping over. I need help too.

Put chicken wire or hardware cloth cages around your plants. Without a doubt you had some 4-legged help. Herbs are not untouchables in the garden. They are not favorites but far from untouchable. And if you can tell me why a deer would chew and spit out not 1 but 2 young walnut trees or why a rabbit would chew down and then not eat a gas plant, then we'd both know why they would do such wacky things when choice herbivore plants like clover are growing large and lush right near these plants. In other words, it doesn't always make sense. But if you have precious plants, cage them or protect them in some manner. FataMorgana

To follow up, I emailed Ken at Oikos Tree Crops (they specialize in selling seedlings) and he said this: ""If the top bud is clipped then a side bud takes over immediately. If the side buds are clipped then a sprout can occur from below the root collar. Whatever happens the tree responds to the energy that is stored in the trunk ( a little on seedlings) and the roots (a lot on small seedling trees). So the energy stored in the roots in the winter is what tells how much growth that first flush of growth is."" I'll probably leave them in the ground and see if they come back, but if I haven't seen a decent recovery by september I'll be replacing them in october. Life's too short to wait for a stunted tree to grow.

No, I haven't given up on my attempt to have cucumbers this year. Feeling a bit discouraged, but my Lemon Cucumber and Homegrown Pickles seedlings are still surviving, and I have purchased and planted cucumber starts of Straight Eight, Boston Pickles and Burpless Cucumbers. Nothing is bothering the larger plants and yesterday I put up some caging around the seedlings and put up my "scary CDs" in hopes of protecting them. The only "caging" material I had available, unfortunately, was some rabbit fencing and ornamental wire fencing - rather large openings I am afraid, especially if the finches here are the culprit as they are for you, ! We have House Finches, and they are small enough that I imagine they will find their way through my "barricades" easily if they are determined enough - perhaps the fencing will look dangerous and discourage them! I have never seen this sort of damage before, either, Skybird. and still have no idea why birds would have any interest in pecking at cucumber seedling leaves, mostly without eating them. Thus far I have been unable to catch anything in the act, but since maxinmontrose has actually observed birds doing similar damage to the leaves of his pea plants, I think it is probably birds here, too. Birds are part of a healthy environment and I do what I can to encourage them to be in my yard and gardens. I have bird feeders and birdbaths set up, grow sunflowers and other plants to attract them. I enjoy watching and hearing the birds, even though most of the ones visiting this part of Denver are probably considered common and boring. An added benefit, of course, is that many of them eat the bugs that bother our plants the most - even House Finches, supposed vegetarians that they are, eat the occasional aphid. I can live with this destructive behavior, as long as it is only the cucumber seedlings that attract them! I can't deny a fellow creature her or his need for salad - who doesn't like salads?!? Holly