Rose of Sharon, Team Player

This winter has been particularly snowy and cold.  We got several inches of snow, than several more.  Unlike most winters around here, there was no thaw in between snowfalls.  This makes things more challenging for the critters living out there.  Such as the rabbit living in my backyard, for instance.

It is not unusual for rabbits to eat of the burning bush or other assorted plants during winter.  This year though, the rabbit has turned a number of Rose of Sharon saplings into what looks like toothpicks after being dropped into a garbage disposal.  I refuse to take a picture of this Rose of Sharon graveyard.

There are several Rose of Sharons in my yard of varying height.  (Fully grown Rose of Sharon trees are about 10 feet tall).  These little trees seed themselves.  Therefore, there are little shoots growing around the full grown trees that, under ordinary circumstances, are considered weeds.  Last fall, however, I saved a good many shoots and scattered them around a big section of the yard.  See, the neighbor cut down a bunch of weed trees that had shaded that big section of the yard for some years.  This lack of sun killed the shrubs that used to grow there.  With the weed trees gone, we now have part sun, where there had been full shade.  My plan to move hostas and ivy and ferns to that area had to be altered.  Thus, there were numerous pencil thick Rose a Sharon saplings sticking up through the snow. 

How many remain?  We'll have to wait till spring to find out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One thing is for sure.  The Rose of Sharon have taken a hit for Team Rabbit.