Wow I never thought I'd see comments from this post again that was like 4 years ago. Yes I have plenty of the blue tailed skinks and some are very large, very. I think what the skinks do unless they are using toads tunnels, is make tunnels all through the ground. I think that's why the ground seems almost hollow in that area and I have seen skinks come out of the little holes. I believe I have had voles before but my kind dogs dug up the whole yard to get them and now they are gone. :/ I don't think the skinks are the roses roots that may have been voles but the skinks do a number on the spoil I think. I made chicken wire cages for the other roses along the back fence where I have the skinks problem. I don't kill the skinks, voles yes skinks no. ;)

Agreed the understory looks good in PA for the most part. What makes no sense to me is why the salt spray damage is SO MUCH worse in that stretch of PA than anywhere else? Could it be the method the PA DOT applies the salt? There was some frost damage in OH for sure...There have been two freeze events this May there, interspersed between an otherwise quite warm May. There were a few singed leaves on my dad's Japanese Maple that were probably due to frost, but the shoots themselves were intact and few leaves had more than a little damage. I saw some oaks with "crinkly" looking older leaves that might have been frosted. The only major frost damage I could see conclusively were on the Ailanthus trees that sprout up everywhere...a clump of them at a low site near my father's house were completely zapped. Not that anyone would care if some Ailanthus were killed. The cornfields looked fine even 2 days after the freeze on May 25. Things like tomatoes and peppers, etc were toast in much of the Akron area though.

There are lots of differences besides vegetation: As a person born and bred in Baltimore ( 40 years in NH and MA) I never ever miss the humidity of a DC/Balto summer. It is insufferable. However, east coast MA & NH have equally hot spells and humidity, just not week after week after week.. As you know, Md and DC are 4 season climates....there is certainly spring (long) summer (hellish) fall (just fine) and winter ( just not so snowy so often so long) You would not miss the drivers who have never learned to drive in snow. On the other hand, you'll have to learn. You will lose two months of real warm weather gardening and the long lovely springs which encourage azaleas. New England springs are rather short and violent.....here today, gone tomorrow. But beautiful, for sure. Oh yes, it can snow on May 1. You will miss reliably delicious tomatoes you can grow yourself, the operative word is reliably and soft shell crabs ....real crabcakes. (though you have to search as far and wide down there as you do here for the authentic lump crab) You can get Bud here. Maples we have, but the oaks down your way are fine. I miss the southern graciousness and friendliness that linger in more southern areas. Many parts of New England are more racially segregated than the greater metro area. I continued to be startled by that whenever I went home or visited DC. Maybe I wax nostalgic and inaccurate, maybe times have changed.....but around here one rarely "stops" by for a beer or a drink after work, people don't "drop in" or "drop by" . At least where I live, nobody hangs out on their front steps or front yard, though you'll certainly get a wave from the neighbors. Sure, we chat when we get to know each other, but I honestly think people are more reserved here. Maybe in part because we're holed up so long in winter. I feel very homesick right now.

It's a skink, which is a type of lizard.