Aardvark

One of the many remarkable animals we are fortunate to have in the pecan orchard on Ramah is the Aardvark. (Orycteropus afer)

This particular one is not averse to walking about during daytime. Usually, they are nocturnal and a very rare sighting.

We consider the aardvark as an undeniable asset in our orchard management. Termites can be a terrible problem in young orchards particularly. They are inclined to ring bark young trees at ground level. Because we irrigate the trees, termites are attracted to the area for water.

We have two defences against termites.

1. Irrigate enough to make the area around the tree too wet to be comfortable for termites.

2. Hope that this rare animal finds your orchard and if it does, hope that it stays!!

For more information on this animal try: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aardvark