View largerLab
Toads (and their close relatives, frogs) are very important for the ecosystem. Both animals main diet consists of insects, many of which are pests to food crops,such as aphids or slugs. Wouldn t it be great to attract them to your yard to keep an eye on your garden?
Materials
- 10 (25 cm) clay pot
- Paints
- Paint brushes
- Clear polyurethane
- Sealer
- Trowel
View larger
1. Paint some fun designs on the clay pot and let it dry. Apply the sealer and let dry overnight. (Fig. 1)2. Find a shady, out-of-the-way location in your garden for your toad abode. Using the trowel, dig a slight depression the soil so that when you lay the pot on its side, it won t roll around. (Fig. 2)3. Lay the pot on its side in the depression you dug. Fill the area around the pot with soil so that the pot will stay in place.
Fig. 2: Dig a small area for the pot.DIG DEEPER! If you aren t seeing frogs or toads in your neighborhood when there should be some around, there could be something wrong. Lawn chemicals, pollution, or acid rain could be some of the reasons. Both frogs and toads are amphibians, and are key indicators of a healthy environment. Why? Because they breathe and absorb water through their skin! If the environment is polluted, they ingest those pollutants, which can kill them or prevent them from reproducing. Healthy toads, Healthy environment.