A hole full of Frogs
 

Hello,
I have an old septic tank in the garden (just moved in) which is partly filled in, but I need to put some more stuff in to fill it totally. When I lifted the cover though, I found it full of frogs (about 15 of them). I'm not really wanting to cause them much distress, but I do need to fill in this hole, do you think they will just get the message when I start emptying wheelbarrows full of dirt down the hole and find a new space?

A hole full of Frogs
 

In article ,
alanroy writes:
|
| I have an old septic tank in the garden (just moved in) which is partly
| filled in, but I need to put some more stuff in to fill it totally. When
| I lifted the cover though, I found it full of frogs (about 15 of them).
| I'm not really wanting to cause them much distress, but I do need to
| fill in this hole, do you think they will just get the message when I
| start emptying wheelbarrows full of dirt down the hole and find a new
| space?

Yes. Frogs are more intelligent than trolls, and can take hints. You
should do it in the summer, as they may be hibernating at the bottom
in the winter. Assuming that (a) they can get out and (b) there is
somewhere for them to go.

But there is a question of whether you need to fill it in completely;
if it is on safety grounds, either a solid cover or filling it mostly
full with rubble is fine. You might be able to turn it into a bog
garden, and there are some lovely plants that will grow only in very
wet conditions.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

A hole full of Frogs
 

On Mon, 20 Aug 2007 11:44:43 +0100, alanroy
wrote and included this (or some
of this):

Hello,

I have an old septic tank in the garden (just moved in)

Don't yer kecks get awful dirty?


--
®óñ© © ²°¹°-°³

A hole full of Frogs
 

alanroy writes

Hello,
I have an old septic tank in the garden (just moved in) which is partly
filled in, but I need to put some more stuff in to fill it totally.
When
I lifted the cover though, I found it full of frogs (about 15 of them).
I'm not really wanting to cause them much distress, but I do need to
fill in this hole, do you think they will just get the message when I
start emptying wheelbarrows full of dirt down the hole and find a new
space?


Take them out and put them into an area of damp undergrowth.
At this time of year they're active on land hunting prey, so although
they'll have problems finding somewhere new to hide up, it's not as if
you're obliterating their entire habitat.

If you just tip wheelbarrows of soil in you'll risk burying some of
them.
--
Kay

A hole full of Frogs
 

"K" wrote in message
...
alanroy writes

Hello,
I have an old septic tank in the garden (just moved in) which is partly
filled in, but I need to put some more stuff in to fill it totally. When
I lifted the cover though, I found it full of frogs (about 15 of them).
I'm not really wanting to cause them much distress, but I do need to
fill in this hole, do you think they will just get the message when I
start emptying wheelbarrows full of dirt down the hole and find a new
space?


Take them out and put them into an area of damp undergrowth.
At this time of year they're active on land hunting prey, so although
they'll have problems finding somewhere new to hide up, it's not as if
you're obliterating their entire habitat.

They will however head back to the place they were hatched to breed next
year so it might be nice to leave a small pond there for them if that's
possible?


--
Chris. West Cork. Ireland
Drink is the curse of the land. It makes you fight with your neighbor.It
makes you shoot at your landlord and it makes you miss him." - Irish Proverb

A hole full of Frogs
 

"Cerumen" wrote in message
...

"K" wrote in message
...
alanroy writes

Hello,
I have an old septic tank in the garden (just moved in) which is partly
filled in, but I need to put some more stuff in to fill it totally. When
I lifted the cover though, I found it full of frogs (about 15 of them).
I'm not really wanting to cause them much distress, but I do need to
fill in this hole, do you think they will just get the message when I
start emptying wheelbarrows full of dirt down the hole and find a new
space?


Take them out and put them into an area of damp undergrowth.
At this time of year they're active on land hunting prey, so although
they'll have problems finding somewhere new to hide up, it's not as if
you're obliterating their entire habitat.

They will however head back to the place they were hatched to breed next
year so it might be nice to leave a small pond there for them if that's
possible?


--
Chris. West Cork. Ireland
Drink is the curse of the land. It makes you fight with your neighbor.It
makes you shoot at your landlord and it makes you miss him." - Irish
Proverb

Create them a nice home in your garden, and you are a long way towards a
good, non toxic, biological control system for slugs.

John

A hole full of Frogs
 

On 20/8/07 19:11, in article ,
"Cerumen" wrote:


"K" wrote in message
...
alanroy writes

Hello,
I have an old septic tank in the garden (just moved in) which is partly
filled in, but I need to put some more stuff in to fill it totally. When
I lifted the cover though, I found it full of frogs (about 15 of them).
I'm not really wanting to cause them much distress, but I do need to
fill in this hole, do you think they will just get the message when I
start emptying wheelbarrows full of dirt down the hole and find a new
space?


Take them out and put them into an area of damp undergrowth.
At this time of year they're active on land hunting prey, so although
they'll have problems finding somewhere new to hide up, it's not as if
you're obliterating their entire habitat.

They will however head back to the place they were hatched to breed next
year so it might be nice to leave a small pond there for them if that's
possible?


I must agree with this. Frogs are losing habitat and are in need of
thoughtful and considerate gardeners to help them. If the OP can manage to
leave a pond in which they can breed he, or she will be doing wildlife a
great favour.
--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove weeds from address)
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

A hole full of Frogs
 

"John T" wrote in message
...


Create them a nice home in your garden, and you are a long way towards a
good, non toxic, biological control system for slugs.

John
I thought that was toads ... we have frogs. And slugs.

Mary

A hole full of Frogs
 

"Mary Fisher" wrote in message
t...

"John T" wrote in message
...


Create them a nice home in your garden, and you are a long way towards a
good, non toxic, biological control system for slugs.

John
I thought that was toads ... we have frogs. And slugs.

Mary

We have frogs, toads, salamanders, thrushes, blackbirds - and slugs and
snails.

David.

A hole full of Frogs
 

"David (Normandy)" wrote in message
...

"Mary Fisher" wrote in message
t...

"John T" wrote in message
...


Create them a nice home in your garden, and you are a long way towards a
good, non toxic, biological control system for slugs.

John
I thought that was toads ... we have frogs. And slugs.

Mary

We have frogs, toads, salamanders, thrushes, blackbirds - and slugs and
snails.

David.


I have toads, and dont have too much of a slug problem (touch wood!) in my
new home, i have some friends who deliberately set up a frog habitat to
control a slug problem, and it worked.

John

A hole full of Frogs
 

On 22/8/07 17:40, in article ,
"John T" wrote:


"David (Normandy)" wrote in message
...

"Mary Fisher" wrote in message
t...

"John T" wrote in message
...


Create them a nice home in your garden, and you are a long way towards a
good, non toxic, biological control system for slugs.

John
I thought that was toads ... we have frogs. And slugs.

Mary

We have frogs, toads, salamanders, thrushes, blackbirds - and slugs and
snails.

David.


I have toads, and dont have too much of a slug problem (touch wood!) in my
new home, i have some friends who deliberately set up a frog habitat to
control a slug problem, and it worked.

From the RSPCA web site:
Gardeners' friend
Gardeners should welcome frogs and toads - both eat a lot of beetles, bugs
and woodlice. Frogs also eat a large number of slugs and snails, and toads
favour ants.
Don't be surprised if you find toads or frogs in your greenhouse - they are
attracted by the warm, moist conditions and will live quite happily eating
the insects and other small creatures that also live there.
Garden hazards
Frogs and toads are often the victims of careless strimming and mowing,
especially in grass that is not kept closely mown. Nylon gardening netting,
used to protect fruit and vegetables, can trap and slowly kill amphibians
and other wildlife.
If you use nylon netting make sure the mesh size is at lease 4cm (1.5in) and
kept taut. And always check your bonfire pile before lighting it!
Later on
During the autumn, as night-time temperatures drop towards freezing point,
frogs and toads look for winter quarters. Female and immature frogs and most
toads overwinter on land in sheltered places such as under old logs or in
stone walls.
Most male frogs return to the water and lie dormant at the bottom of the
pond. If the pond freezes over for a long time, there may be problems for
the frogs - they will suffocate when all the oxygen in the water has been
used. This risk can be reduced by regularly melting the ice on part of the
pond by placing a pan of hot water on it. This method cuts out the
possibility of shock waves harming whatever is living in the pond.
Dead frogs?
There has been an apparent increase in the number of unusual deaths of
frogs, particularly in garden ponds in the summer. Symptoms vary but can
include emaciation, ulceration of the skin and haemorrhage's.

--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove weeds from address)
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

A hole full of Frogs
 

Frogs and toads are often the victims of careless strimming and mowing,
especially in grass that is not kept closely mown. Nylon gardening
netting,
--
Sacha

You got that one right. I often find frogs playing "chicken" with the lawn
mower. They leap out of the way at the very last moment - or not :-( I don't
intentionally hurt them and if I see them re-home them from the lawn to the
vegetable plot. I just wish they were a bit more afraid of the noise of the
mower. When they hop out of the way they don't clear off, just sitting there
in the unmown grass waiting to play the same game over and over as I go up
and down the lawn.

I have childhood memories of mowing time and corn harvesting time at my
fathers farm. Depending on who did the job they cut the grass (or harvested
the grain) in various patterns up / down / around the field. The worst
pattern seemed to be concentric circles from the outside of the field
finishing in the centre. As the mower/harvester went along, the wildlife
moved for cover to the uncut area until they all ended up in the middle of
the field where they got massacred on the final cut. Rabbits, voles, mice,
rats, partridges etc. Carnage. :-( So the moral of this is always to mow
from one side to the other, where "the other" is somewhere for wildlife to
safely escape to.

David.

Thanks for all your suggestions, I may seek a second opinion as to whether or not I have to totally fill the hole.
I have a second old hole, with a much better manhole, and was told that was safe to leave, and perhaps I could coax them out of one into the other - failing that I'll leave them where they are and try not to jump up and down on hole 1!

This new garden has the worlds largest slugs in it, so there is plenty to feed on ...

A hole full of Frogs
 

"David (Normandy)" wrote in message
...

I have childhood memories of mowing time and corn harvesting time at my
fathers farm. Depending on who did the job they cut the grass (or
harvested the grain) in various patterns up / down / around the field. The
worst pattern seemed to be concentric circles from the outside of the
field finishing in the centre. As the mower/harvester went along, the
wildlife moved for cover to the uncut area until they all ended up in the
middle of the field where they got massacred on the final cut. Rabbits,
voles, mice, rats, partridges etc. Carnage. :-(

Yes, the guns were always ready and a good bag was usually gained :-)

Mary

A hole full of Frogs
 

"John T" wrote in message
...
I have toads, and dont have too much of a slug problem (touch wood!) in my
new home, i have some friends who deliberately set up a frog habitat to
control a slug problem, and it worked.

Ok till it rains. Then take a stroll down the path and
get made to jump yourself on every pace as they
seem to enjoy the raindrops.