I've seen them only once, a few years ago, and not since. You are lucky to be in a location that turtles choose for their eggs. Are you near a pond or lake?

EricWI, yes, we have a creek running right behind our backyard. Very nice for attracting wildlife, unfortunately beavers also, which did a real job on our newly planted trees until we put tree wrap on them.

Hi CarolinaAnnie,
We have a big creek too, but I've only seen turtles a few times, and I've never found any eggs. I know you feel bad, but these things happen.
Is there any way of knowing if the eggs are around where you'll be hoeing? I mean is there any way of learning to identify where they might be, so you can avoid them? I just don't know much about this.....
I can relate to your beaver problems. Several years ago, we had bigtime problems with them chewing down our BIG trees. We ended up putting chicken wire around alot of the trunks, but we have 33 acres and the creek meanders through the whole property, and there are just too many trees to protect. Fortunately, the creek has been too low for them recently, and they haven't been here.
It's such a dilemma with the beavers. They are such cool animals......and supposedly are great parents. It's just really tricky to try to live in harmony with them, plus protect your trees!

CatherineT, hi to you too. I can tell when they've laid their eggs in the grass because its all torn up. Unfortunately in the garden I'd let the weeds take control and had some monster ones I had to dig with the shovel. That's when I ran into the eggs buried deep. No mulch in the garden so its just the bare soil. We've always had lots of turtles around, our cocker spaniel would go foraging in the woods and bring them back to us in his huge mouth as presents. One year we started numbering them with nail polish on their shells and stopped when he'd brought back 33. Mostly just regular garden variety turtles although one time there was a monster snapping turtle laying eggs in our yard. The scariest thing I've ever seen. As for the beavers, the good news is I think they are GONE. I pretty much enjoy having any sort of wildlife in my yard but your comment about it being difficult to live in harmony with them hit the mark. Besides chopping down a brand new and expensive crabapple, cherries, and dogwoods they dammed up the creek behind us, flooded our yard, and killed many of the huge trees in the marshy area behind us. I'd see them swimming in the creek and they would actually come up into the yard in the evenings but I haven't seen them at all this year. Guess they've moved on to other areas.