Keep Smiling

Keep Smiling

Monday, May 18, 2015

Beware of Friends Bearing Gifts :)

Beware 
that is unless they are rubber snakes.
Can you see it in the tree . . .
well, the birds sure can :)

Did you know that by hanging a couple rubber snakes 
in your fruit trees
or any other place in your yard . . . 



you can eliminate birds from eating your fruit.


 and from pooping on your furniture 
or car, if you like parking it in the shade of a tree. 

 My sweet neighbor saved me a lot of
mess and worry,
by gifting me with three rubber snakes.

 The birds see them and they stay away from those trees:)


It sure can ruin a relaxing nap in the hammock 
to have a bird gift you with a surprise.
Not to mention ruining a great picnic.

Therefore I am now pro rubber snakes.

And grateful to my sweet friend
for such a thoughtful gift.

Keep Smiling!
Your blogging sister,
Connie :)
 

81 comments:

  1. Yes, but it would scare me too and then I'd be crapping on the car!

    :-o sorry, oversharing!

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  2. That's a great idea I'm goning to try it in my strawberry patch. Right now all I'm doing is feeding the birds!

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    1. That's the way it was last year with our grapes. I yet watching them and tasting them, waiting for them to be perfectly ripe, then I went out to pick them and they were gone. Thank you sweet birds:) This weekend I was at Walmart and I bought one of those plastic owls with the rotating heads. I hope he helps keep the pests away, too :)

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  3. I have been searching high and low for a couple of rubber snakes for the garden, I have been told they keep the rabbits at bay as well?

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    1. Hi Gill, look on Amazon, they have a huge variety :) The other day Butchy was out in the yard and he barked at a flock of birds sitting in our grape vines. They all flew into the apricot trees and it wasn't but a couple of seconds when I heard this loud streaking and all the birds flew out of the trees. They saw the snakes, LOL. Saturday I was at our local WalMart and I purchased a plastic owl with a head that rotates in the wind. We found a spot for him overlooking our grapevines. Last year the birds ate all of our grapes. We'll see how they react to our new plastic owl :)

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  4. That is news to me, I wonder if it would work here in the UK, I will be finding out.

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    1. Hi Pam, I'm sure that birds in the UK respond to snakes the same way they do here in the US :)

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  5. That is a great idea. I wish it could keep them from pooping on my car while I'm driving down the road. That's been happening to me a lot lately

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    1. Hi Ann, I don't know the answer to that one, LOL. My friend puts them out on her deck railing and the birds stay away from her deck :)

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  6. Wow Connie that is really interesting and you learn something new every day. The yard is so pretty and I love the table and bunting! Have a nice day and wee.
    Julie xo

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    1. Hi Julie, thank you so much for stopping by. It is a pretty cool trick to keep birds away, and the best part is, it doesn't hurt them.

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  7. It's a good old fashioned gardening tip, one that I had forgotten about until now :)
    Thanks for the reminder!!

    Sweet wishes for a happy week.

    ~K.

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    1. It's simple and it doesn't hurt the birds, other than giving them a good scare :)

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  8. Great idea to keep the birds away. Love you table setting in you yard...so pretty!!
    ~Cindy

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    1. Thank you, Cindy. We have a lot of birds and I even like to feed them, but I don't want to feed them my garden and fruit:) This is a great way to keep them away from the garden and the lawn furniture . . . and it doesn't hurt them, other than maybe raising their blood pressure for a moment :)

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  9. Hmm... will keep that in mind! Thanks for the tip!

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    1. You are very welcome, it's a great way to deal with a messy problem :)

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  10. I need some of them so the birds don't build nests right next to our door, where they lay eggs, have babies, and scream at us if we try to leave the house. Thanks for the hint.

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    1. Hi Linda, it will work. Look for them on Amazon :)

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  11. I like this idea but I'm afraid I would scare myself with them! We have so many snakes in Florida already...not sure I want to add the rubber variety too. My cats do a good job keeping birds, snakes, and squirrels away. They don't try to catch them but I guess their presence is enough to keep them at bay. Your table is set so pretty in the shade of the tree. Looks like a perfect place to sit and chat over a tasty meal...:) Have a happy week!

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    1. Hi Vicky, I would not advise getting rubber snakes if you live in a snaky state. You would not want to be off guard if it were a real snake. It's great that your cats keep them at bay:)

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  12. What a great idea! We have cherry trees and we're hoping that the birds wouldn't eat them all before they were ripe enough to pick. We'll have to give this a try 😃

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    1. It will work and if you bring them in, in the winter they should last for several years. The best part is the birds stay away and they don't get hurt.

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  13. It saves your fruit too. Bungees work nicely too.

    Dad used them in the strawberry patch but had to move them around, especially when I was coming to pick, to fool the birds.

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    1. Hi Gail, I was told that birds are smart, so move them around about every two weeks or so :) I've heard of cutting up an old water hose, too.

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  14. Great idea! I We don't have snakes here, but I bet it would still fool the birds.

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  15. Connie, That's hilarious! And of course very very clever. I will have to try that in our apple trees, although it's the deer rather than the birds that seem to enjoy the feast.

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    1. Oh, I don't know how to keep them away. Snakes might work. I know that horses are afraid of snakes, so maybe deer are, too :)

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  16. LOL----Oh- I don't know if I could look at those rubber snakes without freaking out....lol But---I sure would like to keep the bird poop off my furniture. What a great trick!!!! xo Diana

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  17. Great idea...and they do look real. Would certainly scare me.

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    1. I know, before our company sat down, we showed them the snakes in the trees. I wouldn't want someone to see one of them and not realize that they were only rubber:)

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  18. Hi Connie, No, I did not know that. Could use one by our pergola but then I don't like snakes so don't know if I would like one that near even tho is is not real!!!! Nancy

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    1. I know exactly what you mean. I am so afraid of snakes that it isn't funny, but these are very helpful and I hate washing bird poop off my lawn furniture:)

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  19. They would scare the bejeebies out of me. But it made me wonder, would other snakes be afraid of them?

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    1. Who knows, other snakes might fall in love with them, LOL

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  20. Hmmm.. I am so anti-snake that I don't think that I could bear to have one hanging in any of my trees. But I'm glad you like them! ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

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    1. Hi Teresa, it is not so much that I like them, it's that I do not like bird's pooping on my lawn furniture. It's hard to relax when you have to clean each time you go out to sit in the shade :)

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  21. Grin - great trick!! I wonder if birds in NZ know what snakes are and if the trick would work here!!!

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    1. Interesting question. I think that maybe they all have a built-in fear of anything that might be a predator, but then again who knows :)

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  22. I never would have thought of that, such a great idea if you are having a party or something and don't want the mess, we have had visitors in our yard here lately!

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    1. It is a great little trick, but if you are having guest and you have snakes hanging in your trees, be sure and warn them . . . you wouldn't want your sister-in-law having a heart-attack over a rubber snake:)

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  23. I had never heard of this! Very interesting. The only shaded place to sit in our yard is on the patio on the side of our house. Our neighbor's trees hang over the patio but for whatever reason, we never have bird droppings on our patio area! I guess the birds don't like that particular tree. Which can be a good thing!

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    1. That can be a very good thing. It could be due to having cats as well, neighborhoods with outdoor cats will have less birds.

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  24. I had forgotten about that little trick. I heard the same thing about those huge plastic OWLS~
    Your yard looks like a wonderful place to hang a hammock and relax with a glass of tea!

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    1. Hi Patrica, I just purchased and one of those owls the other day. I going to have him guarding my grapes. Last year they were food for the birds.

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  25. Hahaha! Snakes as gifts, who would have thought? Fantastic idea!

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    1. It sure does work and eliminates a huge mess :)

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  26. Nice idea! I never knew this before today. Now if only I could find a true home remedy to keep mosquitoes, wasps and bees away. I've tried a few, but they don't seem to work.

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    1. I have found that if you find the wasp nest and spray it with ammonia, they will not come back.

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    2. Denise, I wouldn't do this to bees. You do know that the bee population in our world is declining and we need bees to survive :)

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    3. I won't, Connie. I'm not looking to kill the bees, I just don't want them flying around by us. My dog was stung in the paw a few weeks ago. Oh, how he cried and licked his paw. He wouldn't even let us look at it.

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    4. Oh, that sounds terrible. Bee stings are so painful and the pain usually lasts for days. I've never heard of a way to keep them away. It is next to impossible to teach a dog to stay clear of bees or yellow jackets, because they are curious creatures and like to investigate there world. Usually that involves using their noise or paw, the two places that bees go for. That happened to Butchy a couple of years ago and I felt so helpless to comfort him:)

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  27. WOW is that true? Didn't know that rubber snakes will scare the birds but it make sense.

    Domestic cleaning Clapham

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    1. Hi Heather, it works great, and it doesn't hurt the birds. They will just find another bird :)

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  28. What an ingenious idea, Connie!! Your friend is to be commended! I thought that first pic had a real snake in it. I was fooled until you revealed that these were rubber! Wow!

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    1. These rubber snakes work great and it is so nice to be able to stop and have lunch under those trees without the mess of bird poop anywhere in sight:)

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  29. This is great info to have. However I do imagine the shrieks from friends and neighbors who wander over to your tree unsuspecting. Those rubber snakes are bound to give someone a real start. I bought a black crow as part of my Halloween decorations one year. I finally had to take it down because the neighborhood birds sat around and screeched at it all day trying to scare it out of their territory.

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    1. Hi Judy, what a funny story:) I did warn our company before we had our picnic . . . I didn't want to have one of them get excited and chock on their food, when they spied one of our rubber friends:)

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  30. Wow, they look so real and thanks for sharing that great tip. I am definitely adding rubber snakes to my next shopping list. Have a lovely day... :)

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    1. Hello Dee , I know! Who would have guessed, but they work great:) Thank you so much for following my blog, I really do appreciate your blogging friendship :)

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  31. What a clever idea to use plastic snakes lol if my plum tree ever recovers from its leaf curl and develops fruit I will try this lol

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    1. It's a great trick and it doesn't hurt the bird, other than giving them a big scare:)

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  32. I had no idea...glad to know that it works! Wonder if it keeps squirrels away? Turkey vultures? Neighbors' pit bulls?

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    1. It might work on squirrels, but they are little fighters :) When it comes to turkey vultures and pit bulls . . . you might be on your own, LOL

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  33. Hi Connie,

    Very interesting about the rubber snakes! Your yard looks so inviting; especially the hammock!


    My parents bought my bed at an antique auction when I was in either junior high school or high school. Either way I've been sleeping on it ever since then!

    Hugs,
    Kay

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    1. It is a treasure! I would never let it go:)

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  34. that's a great idea! I don't like real snakes to be close by or spiders. I hope your holiday weekend is great!

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    1. Hi Marie, I am right there with you, on the real variety but this rubber variety is slowly growing a place in my heart. Can't stand bird poop:)

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  35. Who knew!!! You are a wealth of knowledge! Your back yard is so adorable it certainly does not deserve bird poop! thank you for your well wishes on the Flea, I so wish all of my blogging friends did not live miles away! Oh, and how can you be old enough to have a granddaughter old enough to be getting married? !!! You have fun and be sure to post wedding pictures...We love a wedding!

    Carol

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    1. Hi Carol, I don't know what I said that would make you think I had a granddaughter getting married. Maybe you have me mixed up with someone else . . . not that I am not old enough, I certainly am, LOL. I am afraid that I was 60 when I became a grandma, that was nine years ago. So, if I wasn't such a late bloomers I could easily have a granddaughter getting married, but I'll have to wait a while for that :)

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  36. What a great idea, Connie!
    Happy weekend.
    Helen xox

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    1. Thanks . . . I give the credit for the idea to my sweet snake gifting neighbor and friend:)

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  37. I'm having a terrible time with birds (and dogs) getting at my fruit trees this year so needless to say, I'm excited to give your snake idea a try! Also, I must tell you what a beautiful, inviting yard you have; looks like the perfect spot to sit and enjoy a glass of lemonade and the company of friends.

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    1. Hi Randi, thank you for your sweet words, we do enjoy our yard. Those trees are great for shade until the apricots start to ripen, then it's pretty messing and the bees swamp around, but that is only for 4/6 weeks a year:) I am sure that this will help with your bird problem, but dogs . . .if you mean peeing on your fruit trees . . . then I found this on the internet. it's worth a try: Dogs do not like the smell of citrus maybe if you cut oranges in half or grape fruit and hang them from the branches it may keep them away from the trees. Also if you put moth balls around the ground by your bushes it will keep them away. Don't do this it you have small children in the yard. Now, these are not my ideas, just something I read, but maybe worth a try. You could call your courthouse and ask to speak to your Master Garden and check these out with them before trying:) I would before trying the moth balls. They might effect your fruit, I don't know?


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  38. I have been out of blog land for a few weeks so have been having a good catch up today. I love your back garden it is so beautiful, a wonderful place to relax with friends and family. We do not have many snakes over here and certainly not ones that climb trees, so I wonder if our birds would be equally scared never having seen a snake before? It us lovely to be back and I look forward to keeping up to date. Lots of love xxxx

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    1. Dear Fran, an place with no snakes . . . that sound very appealing. I'm sure that your birds would still be born with an instinctive fear of any and all predators, but that's just my opinion. Hey, it's great to have you back in blog-land . . . welcome home:)

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  39. what a brilliant idea! I must go and buy me some plastic snakes :)

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