The story below is an excerpt from our July/August 2015 issue. For the rest of this story and more like it subscribe today, view our digital edition or download our FREE iOS app!
“When God blesses the harvest, there is enough for the thief as well as the gardener.” –Polish Proverb
Every year, my husband, Joe, and I plant at least three blocks of sweet corn in our garden. Each block has a different maturity date, and the types that take only 63 days from seed to table don’t grow very tall.
Last summer, just as we were ready to pull the first sweet ears from our early block, they began disappearing. Our dog, Luke, was letting the corn thief slip in under his nose. Joe set a trap, figuring he’d catch a possum or coon. For a week, the trap was empty and the stalks continued to topple. Then one day, I rounded the corner and caught the corn thief in the act. It was Luke.
He’s a beagle, which made him just tall enough to grab the ears from the short stalks and pull them off, toppling the stalk in the process. Then he placed the corn between his paws and rip, rip, zip… shucked it with his mouth. When I caught him, Luke had corn between his teeth and a cob between his paws.
He hasn’t bothered the tall corn. I’m not sure he even realizes it has ears. And he does a great job of keeping all other varmints besides himself out of the garden. I often hear him at night barking to warn the deer and coons away. I figure he’s so good at guarding because he wants all that corn for himself. So, next year I think I will plant a row of short corn just for Luke as payment for a job well done. Maybe I’ll even treat him to some melted butter and salt.
