Terry, I called the police, and they were there WHILE the goats were on our property. They took a report. I handed them a photo of the goats on my back porch, for their file. The issue went "through the system", according to them. They said they gave him a "warning", and told him that I had the right to KEEP his animals (and dispose of them as I saw fit), if they continued to come on our property. I told them I DON'T want to be responsible for getting rid of HIS animals... That's his job! To make matters worse, four times I came home and found a billy goat "stuck" in our field fencing. One of them had been stuck long enough (we have 10 acres, and he was on the back portion of our property), that I wasn't sure he was going to live. I set him loose, and he laid just laid there. I went and got a bucket of water, and slowly poured it on him, and some into his mouth. (It was the middle of July.) He finally got up and stumbled back to his buddies. (By the way - the only reason I knew to go back there in the first place was that the entire group of goats was standing back there, pacing, and looking nervous...) The only thing that really worked (right before my neighbors moved) was when I came home and found the goats eating my Heritage Birch. (This was a $160 tree we had just planted...) I called the guys house, and spoke with his wife. I told her they were going to owe us $160 for the tree, and several hundred more for the "all you can eat buffet". Within a week - the goats were gone. The people moved about two months later. They did - however, retain some of their acreage (about 8 acres) that is currently for sale. There are 3 horses on the property (he comes to check on them once or twice a week). He fixed the gate, so that they can no longer get out... ML

Hi Everybody!! I am on my Sister-In Laws computer right now and I don't know if anyone will even get to read this now.I forgot you can get on any computer and do this.((DUH!!)) Any way,I don't want to stay on this too long,((Yeah Right))It's killing me not having my own computer.But I just wanted to say Thanks For A Great Swap.It was especially sweet for me because my daughter Diana and her new Husband of less then a year and who's last name I still can't pronounce correctly got to come with me and they loved it.Diana can't wait to come to the next one,So I'm thinking we'll be coming to the fall swap as well.It was great seeing everyone and sharing all the plants and eating all the wonderful food.I wish I could have stayed longer,But my elbow was giving me a fit.I had surgery on it a couple weeks earlier and the cast was making me sweat and itch.But all in all it was alot of fun. Michelle,My daughter Diana got the wraped package,It was a large ceramic Owl.Very cool!! I probably won't get back on again.So Thanks for a great time as usual Beverly and Mimi!!! You two are Awesome!!!!!!!!!! I'm hoping to see you all again in the fall!! Granny57

HI,all! This is my first time posting myself. James ususally does it. Granny we will be bringing some of the Gold Nuggets Lamium with us. Allison we should have a few starts if your friend wants some. It is gold with a white stripe down the middle and has I think pinkish purple flowers. It stays nice all winter. We got the original from Franklin Park Conservatory. Bev James doesn't remember bringing that type of tomato. The poppies and lavender sound good to me. We have been out potting and weeding this morning. We have ready to go... golden tiara hostas bressingham blue hosta stilletto hosta un named varieties of hosta centuria montana zebra grass dwarf zebra grass gold nuggets lamium anne greenaway lamium lilacs(white) ostrich ferns japanese painted ferns vinca minor varigated stargazer lilies crimson pixie lilies crimson pirate daylily and probably a few more things. We have a small swap in Stasburg the week before. I also sent the swap info to my brother who had some people from his church interested. Can't wait to see you all... Michelle

Karalynn, believe it or not, both of these pileateds appear to be females. It's a bit hard to tell in the picture, but adult males have a red crest that comes all the way forward to their beaks, where the female's red stops in the center of the head, leaving a black area from just behind the eye forward to the beak. Now I can't see that for SURE in this photo, but I can see one other field mark...the stripe that runs from the corner of the mouth back to the neck is black in the females and red for a portion of the way in the males. Both of these birds appear to have black cheek stripes, so I believe they are females. They could be young female nestmates who haven't branched out into their own territory yet. I have often seen whole families of pileateds foraging together. Next time you see them, see if you can tell whether the red on the crest of either one extends all the way forward to the beak. You are so lucky to be enjoying the bluebirds up close and personal (you and Maureen!!). I have seen them many times in Florida, but always in rural areas with pastures or large meadows nearby. They are year round residents in Florida which need to be encouraged as much as possible. Invasive exotic birds like house sparrows and starlings throw them OUT of their nests and take over. They took a really bad hit from them for many years and were on the decline drastically. Loss of open habitat has hurt them too, but they WILL nest in urban areas when they find suitable food sources. (They use nestboxes, for those who don't know, and putting them out, plus planting lots of fruiting trees and shrubs can draw them in.) Marcia