That is a beautiful plant. Thank you for your insight on what you have done to get these pests out of the plants. At this time, I have set up the traps all over, and with the help of the forced air heat, have let the pots get a bit dried out. I have gotten into the habit of spraying them each day with a mister. I am hoping that it will keep the mice out of the soil, and also keep from getting any other flying critters around. I have been watering lightly each week, but not as much as I was. I do my mouse damage assessment each morning. It's becoming routine, and I think the plants like the extra attention. I have chopped back my arrowhead plant quite a bit, and now have 5 separate ones growing from it. I was thinking of trying to train the sections to climb up something, myself. Thank you for the beautiful image you attached. Stacy.

I go out early in the morning about an hour after sunrise when hunting slugs is the best here in SW WA state. I carry a spary bottle of water mixed with ammonia, 10 to 1 ratio. Spray slugs, which dissolves them. It also creates a protective coating on hostas that seems to deter future slug visits as long as it does not rain. I also spray along the petioles of hostas as I have been seeing slugs eating through the stalks rather than on the leaves of some hostas this year. TIP: I spray clear water through sprayer after use. If I leave ammonia/water mix in spray mechanism, the metal spring corrodes and quits working over time. Regarding Sluggo: It works for me, most especially when applied early in the year (Feb, Mar, early April) when there is little else to eat. This way, I kill slugs before they have a chance to lay eggs. This year, I used oranges and grapefruit rinds to trap slugs early in the year. I just cut fruit in half, ate the fruit, and then placed the empty rind, round side up, on the ground. Every morning, when I turned them up, I found slugs eating the pith. Ridns last a long time with cool evenings, but doesn't work in summer as the rinds rot too quickly. When I use Cory's, I put it under a heavy board or large piece of flat stone just barely propped up from the ground, which keeps birds and animals from ingesting it. Happy hunting!!

sportsmen contribute $54 per second, thats 1.7 BILLION dollars annually towards conservation which pretty much underwrites the protection and management of the wildlife of this nation. They do this primarliy through the self imposed taxes paid on every item used in outdoor sports. A basic fact is this: withoout sportsmens dollars the only wildlife to be enjoyed would be in zoos. I ca best speak of Pennsylvania wildlife as this is where I have spent my 60 years of life. my son is employed by the Pa. game commission and I am friends with WCOs and others who work in the field. Pa. has an expanding population of Bobcats, they are doing so well there is now a trapping season for them, a limited number of permits are given for their harvest. The Elk herd has grown to the point we have a season for their harvest. the state can only maintain so many of these large animals. Of course the black bear population has expanded so greatly they are now habitaing areas they havent been in for generations. They are harvested in a 3 day season in record numbers and at record weights. turkeys, well they are much like the deer, pests in some areas. Sportsmens dollars have purchased over 11/2 million acres in Pa., not 1 cent has come from another source. This land is dedicted to wildlife habitat. Sportmens clubs, local & national, such as Pheasants forever, Ducks Unlimited, The Rocky Mt. Elk Foundation and many more spend millions of dollars and provide many thousands of man hours dedicated to wildlife conservation; without these clubs and their members, there would be little to talk about re: wildlife. there just wouldnt be any. most sportsmen have a great appreciation for wildlife of all forms, they are the true conservationists. I applaud your personal efforts at aiding wildlife 1 animal at a time. Of course there are many non hunters who appreciate wildlife and are conservationists; these and the American sportng persons are doing a good job. What a pity we have those few slobs who give hunting, fishing and other outdorr activities a bad rap., I hope you are able to tank the sporting community for their efforts to gaurantee wildlifes future. without their efforts, you would be able to spend your rehab time at other endeavors.

Susan- my revolver is a 357 magnum and you're correct about the noise protection. We always wear both eye goggles and hearing protection when we shoot. As for hunting- I don't. It just doesn't interest me but I do enjoy target shooting with my husband. We do regular targets and sporting clay. I do allow my brother and one other friend to hunt deer on my property. Both men have permits for 2 doe a year and they do eat all the meat or donate it to the local group who distributes it to the needy. I personally couldn't shoot a deer but I don't have a problem with my brother hunting for deer or turkey. We have 135 acres in the PA mountains and my forest has been decimated by the overbrowsing of deer. The only way to restore our woods is to drastically reduce the number of deer. It's not unusual to look out the window and see 10 to 15 deer browsing. The only oak trees we have left are the mature ones, there are no young oaks growing because the deer eat all the acorns and the young trees. We are enrolled in the PA Forest Stewardship Program and the goal is to protect and enhance our property for the betterment of all species of flora and fauna. Here's the recommendation from the 2 foresters and 1 naturalist from the Yale School of Forestry: ......"The recommended deer density to allow for adequate tree regeneration is 20 deer per forested square mile (one deer per 32 acres). However, to perpetuate a healthy native forest with a diversity of native shrubs and wildflowers, the recommended deer density is 10 deer per forested square mile (one deer per 64 acres). The habitat value of forests is greatest where there is an extensive unbroken canopy of mature trees with a diversity of native understory species that includes shrubs and herbaceous plants. Given that there are about 138 acres of forest on the property, the recommended number of deer that should be using this property to sustain a healthy forest is two."........ It's a serious problem. Melanie I think it's a real accomplishment whenever we're able to overcome a fear. Congrats!