Masked bandits

Aaargh! I didn't get to enjoy the fruits of my own labor!

I planted four fruit trees one and a half years ago. Each was multi-grafted to produce four varieties of each fruit. Last summer the squirrels got the few fruits they produced. Or so I thought.

This summer, there were only a few apricots and European pears but many Asian pears and loads of plums. More than enough for me and the squirrels, right? I was willing to share but got short changed.

Fruit was gone before it was even ripe. I managed to pick a few plums to ripen on the counter. But the Asian pears were gone way early. I got nary a one. Maybe the squirrels invited all their distant relatives for dinner. But I had other suspicions.

One tell-tale sign was poop in my back yard. We don't have a dog and these weren't from the neighborhood cats or squirrels. Another sign were the broken branches. Unless squirrels got way fat and lead footed.

Then about 8pm one evening my headlights spotted them crossing the street about two blocks down the hill. Four raccoons. Big healthy ones. The rascals!

Fruit season is over now. I'd probably paid more just for water for these few fruits than they would've cost in the grocery store. I am scheming to keep these bandits out next year.