Does anyone remember the children’s story The Berenstain Bears and The Spooky Old Tree? It was a favorite in my family when I was little. I loved reading the story and looking at the illustrations as three little bears dared to enter the spooky old tree. The cover of the book was a huge tree with human-like features, branches for arms, and a giant hollow branch for a nose. Of course, since it was Berenstein Bears, inside the tree was a haunted mansion with suits of armor, alligators in ponds, and a giant sleeping bear.

We have a tree like that in our yard. It’s a tree on the decline, with huge hollows in it, but somehow Milton spared it. We know it will fall someday, but for now it is in a spot where it can’t hurt anything and does give us some shade. But it has a more sinister side, and it sort of reminds me of the tree on the cover of the book. We actually named it Raccoon Tree. It has a hollow, kind of like the bears’ spooky old tree, that looks like the perfect spot for a family of raccoons to make a home.

And it turns out Raccoon Tree was the right name for this tree. One evening as we were sitting in the garden, a sizable raccoon casually climbed over the chain link fence, sort of stopped to look at us, then scurried to the base of the tree and nimbly scaled the twenty feet of trunk to get to this spooky little hole.

Then the next morning, as we were enjoying coffee in the garden, we saw her peeping out of the hole. Since raccoons are typically nocturnal, I imagined that she was looking at us, shaking her head and wishing that we’d quit yapping so she could get to sleep. Some time went by, and we hadn’t seen anybody for a few weeks, but just the other day, I’m pretty sure I saw two heads peeking down at me!

They can have their tree as long as they leave my veggies, mangos, and chickens alone! But at this point, we are glad that we didn’t have this tree cut down. Old trees like this that are starting to rot are actually homes for a wide variety of native wildlife, from raccoons to birds and squirrels to bats, and all of them play an important part in creating a healthy, natural environment. In all of my pollinator and butterfly workshops I always say that one of the best ways to support your favorite insects, be they bees or butterflies, is to let things get a little wild. So, let some branches stack up, let an old tree remain . . . are you as brave as Brother and Sister Bear? Do you dare?

P.S. Join us for Yoga in the Garden this Saturday at 9:30 am – it’s our second anniversary of this peaceful, rejuvenating, monthly practice. Get your tickets here. Plus, Spellbound Sourdough will be here from 10 am – 1 pm (unless they sell out earlier), selling their delectable bread and treats.