Groundhogs/annual wildlife war

[danf]

Anyone else seeing/shooting them?

In the last 4 nights, I've shot/shot at 4 of them on my property, all out of the same den... I know for a fact I've killed 2 of them, and at least drew blood on a third. Pretty sure I hit the 4th, but didn't want to tromp through the poison ivy to find out.

I'd normally leave them alone, but they've been getting into the yard just a little too much.

It's getting to be time to start taking care of chipmunks and discouraging the rabbits too... Another month or two and it'll be 'coons/possums that'll be raiding the garden.

[Decatur]

What? You don't eat them?? You are missing out!

[JohnSmiles]

Seriously.
Groundhog and Raccoon is good eats!

'Coon tastes very similar to roast beef if baked with tators, onions and carrots.

ushotstuff.com/wg/GroundhogSmp.htm

www.backwoodsbound.com/zracoon.html

[danf]

I've always heard that groundhog is good eating, but the young ones are the best. To my knowledge, I haven't ever had groundhog... Though there were some "roadkill" stews back in Boy Scouts that had some unidentified meat. ;D

I might try it, but I'm not going to waste my time and energy on skinning and cooking a groundhog just for myself. There is *no* way my wife would even think about it!

[jrbhunter]

The coons will certainly be a problem in your sweetcorn, as expected. I always said i was going to grow two patches of good sweetcorn. One in a high fence - hotwired - cage and the other right out in the yard. When the coons came to eat the corn in the yard I'd know my other patch would be ready in the next day or two..... those ba$tards have impecible timing!!

[danf]

I've given up on sweet corn... If the wind doesn't get it (which it has every year I've planted it), the coons will. In the three or four years I've planted sweet corn, I think we've eaten corn from the garden for one or two meals.

[Woody Williams]

danf said:

I've always heard that groundhog is good eating, but the young ones are the best. To my knowledge, I haven't ever had groundhog... Though there were some "roadkill" stews back in Boy Scouts that had some unidentified meat. ;D

I might try it, but I'm not going to waste my time and energy on skinning and cooking a groundhog just for myself. There is *no* way my wife would even think about it!

Dan,

Please no "mystery meat" at the Hunting-indiana Homecoming..

[jrbhunter]

danf said:

I've given up on sweet corn... If the wind doesn't get it (which it has every year I've planted it), the coons will. In the three or four years I've planted sweet corn, I think we've eaten corn from the garden for one or two meals.

Same here Dan. I have some friends, an elderly couple, who have the best sweetcorn known to man. They put out about an acre and harvest whatever they can. Friends and family stop by to pick the corn at their own leisure. I got on the "in" by livetrapping a bunch of coons out of their garden in the summertime. When that corn came in- there wasn't any bait that would lure them off. I'd catch stragglers coming in before and after the sweetcorns prime but when the corn was in- you'd better just go out there with a rifle at night to defend your territory.

[danf]

[quote author=admin board=varmints thread=1180661802 post=1180798517Dan,

Please no "mystery meat" at the Hunting-indiana Homecoming.. [/quote]
It doesn't look like I'll make it, but if I was going to be able to, I'd have it labeled. ;D