YIKES! COW-SLIPS IN MY GARDEN????

OMG Spritz i had 2 read this Blog Twice as i didnt belive my eyes @ 1st :O Hope all the damage isnt 2 bad :/

Fantastic photos, Spritz.
Nothing too badly trampled I hope.
I'd better lend you my COW WATERING LANE sign, and you can head them off in a different direction. :o)

I'll tell my husband - as I said, I missed all the 'fun'. I don't think they can read, thanks TT.

Hope things not too bad and you ll be able to laugh in a few days - well may be thats stretching it but great presence of mind to photo it while obviously concerned so well done to hubby for that.

Oh dear Spritz. I guess they churned things up a bit with their hooves. We had one once in our garden when we lived in Hampshire. The present it left on our lawn resulted in a lovely patch of very green grass!!!!

Blimey, what a nightmare! It's not fair of the farmer though, his land should be stock proof. I suppose it's better it has happened at this time of year though rather than in Spring/Summer. A friend of mine lives on a country lane and a similar thing happened to her but unfortunately the cows ate most of her plants and some plants were irreplaceable as they had been given to her by her late father :-( She did make an insurance claim though, so it might be worth considering if the damage is extensive. How did they get in? Have they damaged any fencing. Hopefully the turf can be repaired but I guess everywhere is quite soggy after the recent rain (I see your stream is quite high) ours is too plus a bit of flooding. So frustrating after all your hard work into making the garden so beautiful. Grrrr. Please let us know how thinks look in daylight and I really hope its not too bad.

Think of all that free manure!!!

You do seem to have some events in your garden. Much better to read about them - but not to experience them, I should think!

awww Spritz, i hope there is not too much damage done to your garden , guess we will just have to wait till morning to find out

It's a good thing you left hubby behind...I hate to think what would have happened if no one had been at home...

WOW!!
What a hassle. Hope you don't have too much damage. Lucky you have a nice neighbor with the herding dogs. I think I'd be totally lost under the circumstances.

Oh Golly Spritz .... I hope they didn,t do to much damage ,

Will the farmer come back or send some of his men to help you put it right ?

Thanks everyone for the sympathy! I am dreading looking tomorrow.

This particular farmer is unfortunately notorious in his farming methods. He leaves the lane in a filthy state, his animals often 'escape' into the lane (but have never been down this far before) and has been warned by the council and the police, to no effect!

If we find damage tomorrow, we will be writing a stern letter and asking for payment from his insurance. Our farmer-neighbour is doubtful that he will even bother to reply! As to his coming to help us, NO CHANCE! Not a nice person, apparently.

At least it is the fall & winter season and will have the spring to recover, perhaps they will have done some needed pruning after all. It will always be a good story...

Hope this herd didnt do to much damage to your beautiful garden Spritz...

Oh Spritz.... all those muddy hooves tramping around as well... and they didn't think of wearing their wellies! I would insist that the farmer gives you some prime beef and some steaks as compensation.Pity they're not Aberdeen Angus!
When I was Headteacher of a village school one of the local farmers cows escaped and decided to plonk its bottom down on the bonnet of a colleagues brand new car outside my school. You can imagine what the car looked like when the cow decided to toddle off.

Hope there is not too severe damage to the garden.

Well.....we have been trying to 'grin and bare it' for the last few days as we are having our entire central heating system torn out and replaced. Every room is a tip and we've had no hot water or heat since Monday. There's dust and plumbers and electricians bits and bobs everywhere and we are both becoming increasingly 'environmentally unfriendly' as well, as its just a wash in a bowl of warm water. The installers are making a superb job and they are a great team. There were five of them here today working on all three floors. We can't even escape to the garden as all the doors are open and they are working outside as well!.Oh for tomorrow when the new boiler is fired up for the first time! Bliss..... a nice hot bath and showers.

~I know exactly where you are coming from as this happens all the time on our estate as a local<COWBOY!!!!!!!!> has Commoners rights to let his herd roam anywhere and everywhere!
They have trashed gardens,knocked down walls,put excrement everywhere,and damaged cars~ and guess what we get charged if we accidentally kill a black one in the dark~that is if you are not injured yourself!

So sorry Spritz! Do hope there's not too much damage and you get compensated by the farmer. Perhaps another visit from the Police may nudge him into securing his own fences. Then again, if he's hit in his pocket that may hurt most and things might get better for you.

Perhaps it's a good job you were out when it happened. I wouldn't have liked to see you doing something dangerous.
I hope not too much damage was done.

Oh Spritz, hope all is well when you inspect this morning and not too much damage.

But, what a beautiful garden you have.

Trudy

Good morning Spritz ~
How is your garden looking this morning ?

I hope those WATERING COWS didn't do too much damage. :o)

I've only looked at two beds so far, both have broken and trampled plants in them. I gave up because it's a case of notebook and pen and list time!

News travels fast in a hamlet like ours - a neighbour has already been on the phone to tell us that 'HIS' bull had spent 3 days in her field last week - glad it wasn't him that decided to visit us!!!

Oddly enough, when I got back with my new plants, I went to 'place' them where they are to be planted, and I saw some indentations in the flowerbed outside the window, but I didn't dream they were steer footprints!

~ hope that after inspection things are not as bad as you fear!~

Sounds like the steer could be handy at bulb-planting time making random holes in which to drop daffodil bulbs. Would create a very natural effect.

Yes ~ a pen and notebook, and more photographic evidence, just in case the cow invasions become more frequent and you need proof of the damage.

Is the bull getting really keen on horticulture ?
Would he also like his own avatar ? :o)

PS I've given this blog a 'like' for the quick-thinking of your husband in taking such useful photos, and for you Spritz, keeping your good humour in the face bovine bombardment.

~I'm sorry that the damage appears to be so extensive~will the owner pay up or is it an insurance claim?~all we have been able to do is grin?! and bear it , not worth making a claim on your car insurance,although an neighbour was recently incandescent after painstakingly and lovingly planting £200 of plants and then had the lot totally ruined overnight! I like cows-in fields!

You know what's best for moving cows? A bulldozer. But don't be too pushy - you wouldn't want to start a bullrush or make a cowslip.

Oooh, Barbara, I am so sorry to hear of this invasion. As others have said, thank goodness it happened at this time of the year if it had to happen at all.
When you open your garden next year you will be displaying your husband's photos, won't you? There aren't many folk who can boast such cowslips in their garden.

Funny, funny, a nightmare must be. We just get other "live stock" named deer, now and then, when they feel frisky. Your garden viewing from the pics are beautiful, wow I was impressed, the cows must have been too, LOL

Thanks Adoon - I love my garden - glad you like it. Those steers must have liked it. too - especially when they found my beautiful ornamental grasses which got munched!

Xela - NO chance! He has already been playing with a slide show of our predecessors' work on the garden and what I've changed. DO NOT encourage him to add more pics, or the visitors will be staring at the computer and not at the carefully nurtured garden!!!! LOL.

I like your pictures - Hope all's well now.

Thanks, Mark - we don't dare go out leaving gates open any more! Otherwise, I haven't come across any more cowpats and I've filled in the hoof marks in the beds. My lawn raking helped with the dents there.

Needless to say, we had NO response from the farmer responsible!

Spritzhenry, do you cut your ornamental grasses in late Winter, or just "comb" the dead out with your hands later on???

This blog is now featured on GoYpedia Pets In The Garden..Lol.