The inspiration for this post goes to the lovely lady who writes on Adventures of a new Floridian. She writes so beautifully about reptiles, amphibians and the natural world in general.
About a year ago I began to research and then plan a Keyhole Garden. This is a raised garden bed that is shaped like a Keyhole and there is a compost pile in the center area where the key would fit in. Here is a picture of mine:
If you pour water into the compost pile, you water the garden and, at the same time, you send nutrients into the surrounding soil from the compost pile. My main reason for building a Keyhole garden was to create a unique, pesticide-free micro-climate for all the critters that are native to my area of Central Florida. This list would include the Pollinators–honeybees, Bumble bees, (now on the endangered species list) and Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds. Then would come the amphibians–several species of tree frogs and common toads. Then the lizards–the Cuban Anole and the Green Anole. The snakes–harmless but adorable Black Racers and my favorite: The Ringneck Snake.
Passive, sweet and shy; the lovely Ringneck likes to burrow in rich, mulchy soil and the Keyhole Garden has plenty of that! Just a few days ago, I was weeding my garden and came across one; here he is: 
The head and the top part of their bodies are brownish-black colored and they have a beautiful fiery orange ring around their neck and their bellies are orange as well. I didn’t want to traumatize this little guy too badly so I didn’t flip him over for a “belly shot”, I just let him go…he frantically scrambled back into the mulch!
My other reason for building this raised garden bed was to have my own fresh organic veggies, herbs and beans. Be careful what you wish for-you might get it all!
Do any of you have reptiles that love your garden beds? Tell me about them!
Wilder Wanderer 