Hillbilly Science

We've had this tree stump on the side of our branch since we moved here nearly 5 years ago. it was taking a looong time to decompose & has threatened vehicles several times when we have a lot of company trying to maneuver into our parking spaces so I thought I'd see if I could hasten it. My solution? Chickens!

When leftovers go bad or some yolks come our way (a friend won't eat hers & so saves them up for us in pint containers) I pour them onto this tree stump. I figured the food would draw the ants up to eat it which would attract the chickens but more often than not they just scratch & peck the stump for themselves to extract every speck.

It's been a fun experiment & the stump has diminished faster in the last 6 months than the last 5 years. The heavy fall rains are pulling it out a bit but a goodly sized hollow has been pecked out too. We refer to the process as "greasing the stump".