You shouldn't have moved them when you did...they're out of the ground now and chances are the foliage has wilted...and will not send its sugars back down into the bulb. Put them back ...somewhere...and hope the foliage will die back and do send energy back down into the bulb. If you cant plant them in their permanent place, then put them into a container and let them finish what they should have been allowed to do. Then, put them back when you can. Daffodil bulbs do not need to be lifted--they stay in the ground year round and and need no protection whatsoever. You will get your verdict on them next season whether what you did did them harm.

Hi Joanne: Here's a suggestion. Are you able to use those big gray construction blocks to line the hole? You can use long rebar in the blocks for reinforcement till you get the size you want, then backfill the block holes with soil. You can even step the construction blocks to give you shelves if that's what you want. You don't need to go to the top of the hole with the blocks. Once the blocks lining the hole are the size you want lay the liner over them (be sure liner is larger than the hole and you use an underlayer so the blocks don't tear it). Once you lay the liner over the top layer of blocks, lay a layer of flat stones/rocks on top of that, then fold the liner back over the 1st layer of rocks. Add another layer of rocks then backfill around the construction blocks. This may even give you a raised pond edge to avoid overflow into the pond while hiding the liner. You can backfill up to the edge to give it a sloping effect. Now you can plant flowers in the backfill. Just an idea you may want to consider. This way you won't have to wait till next year. Hope this helps. Good luck no matter what you decide! Jenny

Yes, I would say skunk(s). We have a terrible skunk problem. We've trapped and released two (no doubt they promptly found their way back)and I've used every skunk deterrent I can think of. I did buy some grub killer, but I haven't used it because I was told it would also kill the earthworms and I've worked darn hard to attract those worms. And yet the skunks are very destructive. I may just break down and use the grub killer. Tzus Tzus

Re: white cedar: Truly wonderous places are the naturally occurring groves of these! Seeing this all my life makes me just plain resent all the dumb cultivars of this plant. Okay, I DO like some of the cultivars, and they have great usage in landscaping, but these are trees! When young, they are most typically perfectly straight, single-stemmed, and have tiered branch arrangement not unlike a spruce or fir. As they age, due to branch differentiation and growth, considerable filling in takes place so that they become very dense. More or less pure stands are very common. In favorable conditions, this is not a slow grower in youth. At least a foot is common. They do have some shade tolerance, and when overtopped , they can slowly bide their time till some calamity befalls the overarching foliage. For this reason, they are considered climax species in some forest associations. Having said all this, it is rare to find really tall ones. I think the state record, as far as that which is still standing, is something like 85 ft. If you've seen young, unsheared plicata or GG, these are far more similar than different. Aroma of crushed foliage is heavenly. The white pine on my land range from young saplings all the way up to perhaps 80-90 footers. There are, for some reason, many WP's here that have two leaders, starting maybe 30 ft. up. My guess is either very careless logging or a storm in the past that snapped a lot of them off. Luckily, not all exhibit this deformity. Would someone please patiently explain to me how to post photos? We've got a digital camera (Again....long story) and now, with this land, I'd really like to be able to share some pics. I truly appreciate your interest in these groves of white cedar. It was prerequisite with me in my land search that I end up with some of this feature, or that I have it nearby to allow natural spread onto my land. It's been said that the air is always cooler and moister within these groves, and already this year, we've verified it for ourselves. This is said to be due to their high rate of evapotranspiration. An interesting aside: The DNR Forester stated that most of the WC groves we see in this part of WI got their start during the dustbowl years of the 1930s! It seems the seeds require soil temps of around 85 degrees F. and that the conditions during those years were right for providing this. It seems especially odd to have this be the case for such a tree that seems to signal cool, moist condititons. Nature is truly full of such paradoxes. +oM