I was standing in my vegetable garden recently, in pure happiness admiring the toil of my hands. I was distracted by the loud shrieking of the cockatoos in the giant pine trees above my head.
For almost a week now my vegetable garden has become the object of their obsession. Every day I watch these patient yet loud predators. The watch me intently too.
If I was to just leave the garden unattended for a short while, I am certain they would, in one fell swoop devour the sprouting lettuces and corn that are just starting to stand tall and proud. The image of those pesky cockies waiting to drop down hurls my thought into preservation mode. After all this is war of another kind. I set about constructing a scarecrow to deter these parrots from pillaging my crops.
This method is an environmentally acceptable deterrent that has been tried for centuries and found to be a true security system against the many feathered free-loaders flying about. I stuffed him to the brim with straw from head to toe. He looked raggedy and worn as a scarecrow should.
I placed him in the corner of the vegetable patch and placed a hat on his oddly shaped head. I found a brightly coloured shirt to put on his body. His enormous straw arms were bound together with twine. Without words this lonely warrior will surely keep my vegetables safe and secure.
- Tracy Brussow
