The drain to our pond has been stopping up more than normal the last two weeks. I knew it was slightly clogged with debris, but not so much so that one night of rain should have totally covered it and stopped it up.
I cleaned enough around it two days ago to get us through the forecasted rain. When we got home today and I mentioned the rain would start soon, Bobby remembered to tell me that the drain was totally covered and looked quite bad. So I headed down there to see what I could quickly do before the rain started. And I was amazed at what I found.
Normally there is one or two sticks with a lot of leaves and pine straw and the occasional piece of trash. I pulled so much debris off the top of the drain and from the sides of it that I could have filled up half a wheelbarrow. A layer of pine straw, a layer of sticks, a layer of mud, a layer of leaves, a combination of all of the above, and then it repeated. There was an entire buildup of sticks and mud in a circle around the drain. Strangest thing I've ever seen. But then I started noticing the sticks were all approximately the same size and were organized in such a way in the mud that it was designed to keep water from flowing to the drain. And the sticks were woven in and out of the drain slats with mud and pine straw that I was literally scooping and pulling with the hoe to get it all up and out of the water. The final piece of the puzzle was when I realized almost all of the sticks were slanted on one end.
This little house was made of mud. This little house was made of straw. This little house was made of sticks. And this little beaver is now entering a war.
To be continued...
I cleaned enough around it two days ago to get us through the forecasted rain. When we got home today and I mentioned the rain would start soon, Bobby remembered to tell me that the drain was totally covered and looked quite bad. So I headed down there to see what I could quickly do before the rain started. And I was amazed at what I found.
Normally there is one or two sticks with a lot of leaves and pine straw and the occasional piece of trash. I pulled so much debris off the top of the drain and from the sides of it that I could have filled up half a wheelbarrow. A layer of pine straw, a layer of sticks, a layer of mud, a layer of leaves, a combination of all of the above, and then it repeated. There was an entire buildup of sticks and mud in a circle around the drain. Strangest thing I've ever seen. But then I started noticing the sticks were all approximately the same size and were organized in such a way in the mud that it was designed to keep water from flowing to the drain. And the sticks were woven in and out of the drain slats with mud and pine straw that I was literally scooping and pulling with the hoe to get it all up and out of the water. The final piece of the puzzle was when I realized almost all of the sticks were slanted on one end.
This little house was made of mud. This little house was made of straw. This little house was made of sticks. And this little beaver is now entering a war.
To be continued...
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