The mystery of the egg and the lemon tree.

[sashh]

So I have a lemon tree in the garden, it has not been planted yet so is still in a pot.

If I have eggs that have gone well past their sell by date I often put them out for the local wildlife.

Well I went out to check on the tree a couple of days ago and found an egg half buried in the lemon tree pot.

Now what I am trying to work out is what put it there?

I know we have:

Various birds, but they tend to peck through the shell.

Squirrels but I have never seen them interested in the eggs.

Hedgehogs, but I don't think they are awake yet and I don't think they could carry an egg.

Foxes, now I know this is more likely but they usually carry the eggs away and I don't know if they bury food.

I know I could probably google but I'm sure you fine people can come up with more interesting and amusing reasonings.

Ooh, this is interesting. I would’ve thought foxes too greedy to bury something for later but I’m biased.

At my house it would be a prank and I would be told my egg tree was fruiting.

It’s likely to be some evil entity, goblin or witch most probably, who you’ve been luring with your gifts (eggs are quite magical ofc, golden treasure within) and they’ve planted the shell of a significant egg during a full moon so it would grow and hatch into a deceptively cute lemon chick you’d take in and raise only for it to reveal its hideous true nature and peck your eyes out when you sleep. Then the goblin would plant your eyes and grow a new messed up you they could use to inhabit and take over your life.

For now, find a spell to sacrifice the shell safely and cleanse the tree, and put a border of salt across your threshold at full moons. In future, use the eggs by the use by date. This is exactly what it’s there to prevent.

Foxes do bury things if they have an abundance of food 😄

However I think you should consider burrowing birds. Got any puffins near you? 😄

The Easter bunny.

I found an egg in one of my pots a few weeks ago. I‘m London so assumed fox. It was next to my lemon tree…

Pregnant foxes bury food for their male mates, to keep them sweet until cubs are born, so they have some protection. I have seen this happen over several generations of foxes in my garden.

In my garden we had next to the canal, I would regularly find eggs buried in our raised beds. No idea how they got there.

Foxes do bury food, I've seen one do it on my cctv.

I found a cooked chicken carcass in one of my pots once!

I live on a council estate in Wolverhampton.

@pinkdelight I do have a couple of spell books.

Apprentice Easter Bunny?

On a slightly different note, aside from the egg issue, it is too cold for the lemon tree to be outside at present and it is likely to die. Citrus trees not only need to be kept out of frosty conditions, temperatures should be in double figures.

@StarlightLady I think it will be OK, that side of the garden gets full sun. When I first moved in anything I planted shrivelled and died, until I got an olive tree that is thriving.

Thank goodness! Good luck with the spells.

i love the Wolverhampton puffins possibility.

OP, Olives are much hardier than citrus. Good luck with the egg mystery. Poirot is on his way 😀!

@StarlightLady thank you. Much as I would love it to be a goblin aided and abetted by a puffin I suspect a fox is more likely.

Although my house is between one rented by a witch and the other rented by a pagan so who knows,