My last post referred to the winter repose, when we all pull back from our gardens and rest as do many other creatures in the garden.

I was thrilled this summer to discover we had a toad in our garden. Toad is now doing the same thing, hibernating, buried deep underground for the winter months.

 I like to believe he or she has been with us for quite some time but I cannot prove that. The reason I believe he has been with us for some time is because a few years ago one of our Scottish Terriers while playing in the garden, was visibly suddenly in great distress and pawing at his mouth. When I went to investigate, he was foaming at the mouth and a small toad was sitting nearby. I knew right away what had happened. Toads secrete a toxic substance through their skin to protect themselves when in danger. I rushed poor Angus inside and caused him further distress by trying to wash out his mouth with water. At that point I was not concerned about the toad. Angus gradually recovered over the next hour or so and had obviously not ingested too much toxin. However he had either picked the toad up or licked it.  By the time I went back into the garden the toad had disappeared.

Off at a trot, more a slow crawl come hop!

If Toads like a spot they can hang around for years and so I like to think we have been favoured. This summer while in the garden my little Yorkie suddenly started yelping and pawing at her mouth. On going to investigate, sitting close by was a very large toad, much bigger than the toad of a few years ago and looking very smug. The same scenario ensued and I rushed my dog into the house to quickly wash out her mouth. An animal would have to ingest a  fair amount of the toxin to cause severe illness. Luckily a dog will not likely do the same thing twice but terriers are natural predators and if it is small enough and moves they will go for it. My Yorkie has one mouse to her credit but she wanted nothing more to do with this toad.  

Could this be the same toad of a few years ago I wondered.

On returning to the garden this latest toad had remained in the same spot which enabled me to get my camera and identify the interloper. A Western Toad. A toad in a garden is a great sign of a balanced and diverse ecosystem so I felt extremely honoured that Toad had found us.   Now that we were aware of Toad, it was easier to try to spot him. Our first meeting was very close to the compost boxes after a heavy summer rain shower but after that, throughout the summer, we had sporadic sightings in my perennial border and close to an ants nest in the grass. ‘In the grass’ had me concerned because I did not like entertaining the thought of Toad meeting a lawn mower. As a result I alerted the neighbours to our guest and suggested they please check their lawns before mowing. Sure enough the boys in a neighbouring garden found him one day as did another neighbor. The boys were thrilled and very respectful of him.

I believe Toad ‘lives’ in a deep, old leaf pile behind my compost boxes that never gets disturbed. It is a very safe place to burrow deep in the winter and it is a ready source of juicy bugs. Toads like their prey alive and snap up unsuspecting bugs in a millisecond. They are a very superior and natural pest control consuming ants, beetles, spiders amongst others.

Mr. Thaddeus Toad, Toad of Toad Hall  in ‘Wind in the Willows’ was a favourite  character for me as a child but I had to wait years for my real life encounter with a toad, which happened in this garden of mine. As a child in the spring I loved collecting frog spawn from a neighbouring pond. I vividly remember racing through a field of yellow Cowslips (like a Primrose), bucket in hand to bring spawn home so I could watch the eggs amazing transformation from tadpoles to tiny frogs, when they would be released back to the pond. Toads are different than frogs however, in that they do not live in water year round. They only gather to breed in the late spring but for the rest of the year remain solitary, preferring to live in damp areas on land. Their spawn is also different, being laid in strings of jelly rather than a mass.  I could assume Toad found us as we have a pond. However our pond has a raised edge and although toads can move over substantial distance they cannot climb a vertical wall and we have never found toad spawn in the pond. Our closest natural pond is about two kilometers away although there are one or two garden ponds that I know of in the neighborhood. Other than that we are surrounded by roads, homes and then forest. What brought Toad to our garden, we will never really know.  

Toads are very susceptible to chemicals especially herbicides and pesticides. Although we are not purists we try very hard to not use any pesticides or herbicides in our garden and I feel Toad’s residence is a reward for that. How long Toad has been with us is a mystery but I will eagerly anticipate his appearance come spring.

Worldwide toad and frog populations are decreasing and many are appearing with deformities. One of the causes frequently listed is the overuse of pesticides and herbicides so if my chaotic garden with ‘weeds’ in the lawn can be a haven for Toad, I welcome him or her, I think her. I also have confidence my dogs will not be trying to catch her again!

For more information about the Western Toad: