Black Gold

Long time, no blog - excuse: working on article about 'not turtles' and can't hardly write anything else. But its almost over!

So this morning I am outside trying to convince Frankie to get up early and take a walk with me around the block. No happening. Frankie likes his morning rest. He just sits there in his enclosure and watches out the door and that is that. Reminds me of people who relax in front of a TV - it is just some people's way of relaxing and the same for Frankie.

So I sat there on the steps next to the enclosure. Thought about the fact it is dry so all the worms are really deep in the earth so I can't find any for the box turtles or the robin. Then I look down at Frankie's front door entrance. Piles of poop, straw all nice and damp and smelly from me dumping his pool water every couple of days. I pushed back the damp straw and poop (yes, bare handed) and there were worms right at the top of the soil!

So I started to dig up a few worms: there are more and more big fat earth worms. Surprised me to see so many. Then it dawns on me how very black the soil is under all that decaying hay and poop - OMG its a gardener's black gold! Oh, yes, that dear Frankie has been creating rich organic compost soil. I have struck gold. You know its gold when the earth worms move in! But then the big question. Which is more valuable: the worm or the soil?

On the other end of the yard, far away from the overly-sensitive nose of my husband is my five year failed attempt at a compost pile. Yes, I put in cut grass and leaves and garbage but after years of try, try, try all it attracts is those big wood cockroaches. I can't compost but Frankie is a master.

I spent two hours digging around Frankie's house and in the area where he spends hours sitting and pooping. I dug up a big bucket of the stuff and a small bucket of worms. Of course, Frankie did get up to see what I was doing. He sat on my pile of black gold and basked for a while. I guess he was claiming his masterpiece.