Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Snailing, Snailing - And Snail Haiku



This week I managed to convince a few friends that it would be a great idea to go with me to the lake and help collect sufficient snails to keep my garden pond clean. Sometimes we have a fairly mild winter and the snails winter over in the bottom of the pond, among the decayed leaves. Sometimes we have a very harsh winter. The past winter proved to be the latter.

And in case anyone's worried, I checked the Wisconsin DNR website to determine which snails could not be collected. None of the forbidden snails reside in the lakes in our area, so armed with a bucket for snails and fortified with a lunch from a local restaurant, the four of us trekked along to the lake.


Intrepid Snail-Collecting Assistants

At first, it seemed to be pretty slim pickins, but when we ventured to another spot, we found several snails just begging to be noticed. Without soliciting help, we also gained a good number of snails from a group of kids who wondered what on earth we were doing - and then joined in the exciting hunt with us.


'Pick me! Pick me!'
Kate's lovely hand adorned with happy snail


Snails in bucket
along with some sand and a reflection of the  trees overhead


The snaily shoreline
And actually, they were in slightly deeper water this year.


New Home Away From Home
Our garden pond, where the snails will enjoy keeping the algae off the rubber liner

Thank you to my friends for accompanying me to the lake. I don't know about them, but I had a great time - and our pond will be very happy and healthy because of their efforts. A few pond plants and some snails keep our pond clean all summer and fall. 

Now I just need to get a few fish.

P.S. If you're interested in building your own garden pond, here's the post I wrote on the making of our garden pond.



Snail Haiku:

Living in the lake
Woke up in a big bucket

Mom and dad you there?


C'mon, you know  you want to add your own Snail Haiku!  Feel free to put it in a comment below. :-)

(I never claimed to be good at this.)

***

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37 comments:

MadSnapper said...

your pond is so beautiful. I had no idea snails were good for ponds or that they would be in the water to be picked up. i have never seen a snail in water. and only a very few in our yard, maybe 5 all the years here. learning new thing s daily in blogland.

Ruth Kelly said...

Tis a lovely pond. We usually try to get rid of snails here from eating my strawberries.

Balisha said...

People with bare feet..
Wading into the water..
Snails slip,crawl and hide.

A lovely pond and a fun day for you catching the pond cleaners.
Balisha

aspiritofsimplicity said...

What a great idea to collect snails! You get a fun outing along with it too!

don said...

A fine series and informative narrative describing the process of collecting.

TexWisGirl said...

too cute - your haiku. :)

love the garden pond! here, the egrets and herons would be fishing, non-stop. the dogs would be diving in to cool down.

Lady Linda said...

Fun post! It's hard to have ponds in our area too....racoons! My friend finally gave up on her's after the racoons ate all of her fish, several times. She tried screens and all!

Life Happens said...

I have never heard of snail picking! Sounds like something the little ones would love to do. You have a beautiful pond.

Unknown said...

What fun and a good find for your pond too.

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

HI Judy What a great idea to rope in your friend to find snails for your lovely pond. Margaret

Carla from The River said...

Fun, Fun, Fun!
I think your pond is beautiful. Someday I hope to have a garden pond too. :-)

podso said...

AH, your garden pond is lovely. I would love one but think it would be a mossie magnet.

Heide at ApronHistory said...

Fun! Lovely pictures too.

Bossy Betty said...

Ah, intrepid hunters! You were rewarded and the snails were too! I hope they enjoy their new home.

sweetbriardreams said...

For a moment I thought you were collecting them for dinner! What a great idea for your pond, good luck with the fish! Take care. Chel x

Meggie said...

Thanks so much for your comment today. What a lovely post and I did connect and read the one on building the pond.

Meggie said...

Thanks so much for your comment today. What a lovely post and I did connect and read the one on building the pond.

Susie said...

We use a snti- algae additive for our pond...it's safe for birds. I never thought about gathering snails. Good the kids wanted to help. xoxo,Susie

Diane said...

Hmm.. My neighbor has a pond. Wonder if he knows about snails?

Yenta Mary said...

The pond is so lovely ... sigh. How wonderful to have such a peaceful setting!

tlcukjourney said...

Never in my life have I heard of snailing!!!! That's just awesome:)
Gorgeous pond too!! xx

Cherry's Prairie Primitives said...

I love your pond!! I already showed my husband your blog post explaining the making of your pond!! I can't wait to use your guide to help create my own!!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful pond and what a great bunch of helpers.

Denise said...

You make me smile.

Chatty Crone said...

What a beautiful pond you have there my friend. And how smart you are to think of collection snails to keep it clean. I never would have thought of that. sandie

NanaDiana said...

What a fun little outing that turned out to be. I thought you were going to say you dined on escargot but I am glad you put them in your pond instead! You were lucky to find them! xo Diana

Deborah said...

Glad you're gone to camp.
Dad and I need a rest.
We will miss you.

(As you see, I haven't done this before either and by the sounds of it maybe this should be my last.) Lol!

Deborah said...

Glad you're gone to camp.
Dad and I need a rest.
We will miss you.

(As you see, I haven't done this before either and by the sounds of it maybe this should be my last.) Lol!

Trace4J said...

So much fun you are friend.
I wanna find snails.
Woolie Blessings

hawknitr13 said...

my grandson, henry, started building a small pond in his backyard...i can't wait to see the finished pond when he gets back from vaca in Florida! your pond is lovely!
^)^ linda

Unknown said...

I love your pond, Judy! And I'm glad you got some help in getting those snails. Seems like a big chore to do just by yourself... plus it's always fun to have a little company :)

Samantha said...

I wish you were local, we've got TONS of snails in our garden! We take them out the back gate so they can live on the mountainside instead :)

JoAnn SweetPepperRose said...

You have a beautiful little pond! I don't think I'll ever have one quite like yours - we live on top of a hot dry hill... and our dogs would probably either drink it dry or lay in, or both ;-) But if ever I do, I'll have to remember about the snails.

The Quintessential Magpie said...

That is fascinating, Judy! I wonder if the same snails are the ones in our garden? I have tinny ones there that pop up after a rain.

I want to thank you so much for sharing your story with me as we are facing losing Mom. You are such a sweetheart, and we had a similar experience with the chaplain of all people. She was insisting that Mom was afraid, and she clarified that indeed she was not nor had she ever been afraid, and her earnestness in standing her ground came through loud and clear. I am proud of you for standing up for The Lord.

Love you much,

Sheila

Terri D said...

What a pretty little pond! And now it will stay that way. I love that the kids came along and helped. Very nice and a good lesson for them, hopefully! Love the photos and your post!

laurie said...

That sounded fun! Your pond is beautiful.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing on Wildcrafting Wednesday!! Did not see a link to the blog hop if you could put one, thanks bunches!!! :)

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