What you witnessed is most likely a new variety of prank somewhat akin to lawn rolling, called "forking."

Basically, the perpetrator sneaks into their victim's yard under cover of darkness and plants a jillion or so pieces of plastic eating utensils, which makes the lawn look somewhat like mutant dandelions taking over a nuclear waste dump.

Here is a link that might be useful: Forking

Thanks for the explanation, Oakdancer-it was a day or two before Halloween,it must have been a prank.

I wish someone would come and do that to me. Those plastic utensils, with a magic marker, can become great plant labels.

OakDancer: It may have been a Holloween prank. However, I've used plastic forks in my potted plants to discourage my cats from sleeping in them. It helps to keep birds from building nests in my plants, also.

Plastic forks are great for aerating the soil too!!! I wish they would come and do that to my heavy clay soil!!!

Plastic forks placed close enough, keep cats away from your plants

Because it wasn't the entire lawn and just under the shrubs... it was likely to prevent dogs, cats, and other critters from digging them up because of the inviting loose dirt they were planted in.

Cat Deterrents for your Garden:

Keep in mind that each cat is different (like people), what works for one may not necessarily work for another. On the plus side, most cats will keep pesty squirrels, moles and other critters out of your garden. Cat's are also great for keeping out moles, rabbits, squirrels, and other critters which can do more damage in your garden than a cat ever will. If the cat's have owners, take it up with them without being non-confrontational. The cat owner who allows his cat to damage other peoples' property is as guilty as the cat hater who kills the cat for trespassing. Remember, cats will be cats, and it is unfair of us to blame them for being what they are. After-all, we praise them when they catch mice or rats or other creatures we deem to be 'pests'.

* amonia soaked (corncobs, etc)
* aluminum foil
* bamboo skewers
* black pepper
* blood meal fertilizer
* bramble cuttings
* Carefresh - "recycled" wood pulp
* catnip - donated into your neighbor's yards (so they'll stay in their own yards)
* cedar compost
* chicken wire (metal or plastic)
* cinnamon
* citrus peels
* citrus spray
* cocoa bean shells
* coffee grounds -fresh & unbrewed, not just a light sprinkling (highly recommended by MANY Gardenwebbers!)
* dogs
* electric fence for animals
* essence of orange. essence of lemon, lime (citrus essential oils)
* fresh manure(ditto)
* garlic cloves
* gumballs from the Sweet Gum Tree
* gutter covers
* hardware cloth
* heavy bark mulch
* holly leaves
* keep the area damp, they like dry soil
* lavender
* liquid manure (good for your garden too)
* motion sensor sprinkler
* pennyroyal
* pinecones
* pipe tobacco
* plastic forks
* predator urine
* red wine vinegar
* river rocks over the exposed soil
* rocks, crushed
* rose bush clippings
* rue, an herb (Ruta graveolens) (highly recommended in plant form only)
* short twigs throughout the planted area about 6" apart
* six-inch bamboo skewers (pointy side up)
* Spray on your leaves (not the cat): fill a spray bottle with 1/2 t chili powder, 1/2 t cayenne pepper, 1 t dish soap and water
* squirt gun with water
* talk to your neighbors
* tansy
* thorny berry, lilac, hawthorn, rose clippings
* toothpicks
* upside down vinyl carpet
* vinegar sprayed on areas where they roam
* water bottle on "stream"

NOT RECOMMENDED:
*** chili powder, red crushed pepper, cayenne pepper (NOT recommended), it gets on the cat's paws then they wash themselves and they get it in their eyes, beware cats have literally scratched their eyes out because of this. Even if it's one cat out of 500 infected in this way, that's one too many for me.
*** Don't ever use mothballs or flakes. Those little toxic waste pellets destroy cats' kidney function, could seriously harm people who handle them, and yes, contaminate your garden soil. Their packaging even warns against using them this way.

Give them their own areas:

(To keep them out of where you don't want them)
(If you don't mind them protecting your garden from other critters)

+ pick the cat up and bring it to eye level with the plant to see and smell it up close. She noted that once her cat has seen and sniffed at the plant, she usually doesn't bother with it later.

+ give them their own plants - i.e., pots of grass for her to chew on and a place in a large planted container on her balcony with some miscanthus grass in it (the cat likes to curl up in that for some reason)

+ if the cats are strictly indoors and attracted to your houseplants, grow catgrass for them. If someone forced you to remain inside one enclosed structure all your life, you might be attracted to the plants too.

+ Barley Grass
+ Any type of "catgrass" from the pet store
+ Carex elata 'Bolwes Golden' but put it in some shade
+ Catmint Nepeta mussinicultivars (Simply put, Catmints are Catnips without any culinary or feline use. In any case, they are, however, phenomenal, long flowering, hardy perennials that belong in every fairie or flower garden.)
+ Catnip Nepeta cataria (in your own yard) The oils of which also work as a mosquito repellent that works 10 times better than Deet! Catmint is the common name for all varieties of Nepeta. Catnip is the common name for the specific variety of Nepeta called nepeta cataria, which is the variety that cats are most attracted to.
+ Cat Thyme (Teucrium marum)
+ Flax
+ Oat Grass
+ Jacob's Ladder
+ Lemon Grass
+ Loose soil and mulch like small bark mulch
+ Mints
+ Purple Fountain Grass so the cat lays in the long leaves all day. Maybe put something in that the cats really like and - you know cats won't winky were they like to hang out.
+ Sandy area
+ Silver vine (Actinidia polygama)
+ Striped Ribbon Grass (can be invasive)
+ Sweet grass
+ Trificum aestivum (type of cat grass)
+ Various Varieties of Cat Mints (Catnips)
+ Wheat Grass
+ Wheat Berries
+ Valerian

This list compiled by Violet_Z6, email at violetgw@care2.com for comments and suggestions regarding this list.

Hi, I just checked back on this forum, when I noticed it pop up again. I had no idea it would generate such diverse answers.
Len, I am geting ready to cut up some of my extra blind slats this very evening! I had kept them for several years after installing new mini blinds, in case some were damaged.
I got the idea from a local plant exchange I attended recently. They also used the plastic forks as markers, writing the plant name down the handle.
Thanks for all of your responses.

Elsie

I'm going to try some of those cat deterrants, if they don't work, those two little wandering PITAS are going to the pound! Thanks for the suggestions Violet!

A layer of redwood mulch or micro bark can help that, even peat moss. The like a dry fluffy soil and they don't like the smell of the mulch, but then of course, mulch is a good idea in general, but it is tons of never ending work to keep it up.

We have a guy in our neighborhood we call Egg Plant Man. For years he has carefully cracked eggs and put the half shells on the ends of his plants. My husband says it must be to kill bugs or fertilize or something, but I disagreed. He's out there frequently smoking a cigarette and admiring them. SO the other day I stopped by and asked him about the eggs. He said he does it to enhance the beauty of his plants! I love it. I had a palm in the van with me, so I gave it to him, and now it's living in his front yard covered with eggs.

Love the forking. I've got some folks I'd like to fork.

I'm using plastic knives that I got at GFS to make the plants in pots and in the garden and they are working out pretty well so far.