Guardians of the Egyptian Walking Onion
Every Egyptian Walking Onion patch has a guardian, and it's usually a cat! Cats love to patrol their onion gardens walking amoung the talk stalks that wave topsets in the air. They move quietly, weaving between clumps and leaves, pausing to sniff, listen, and observe. As they meander through the onions, they inspect the growth and spend time resting beneath the arching stems. They wait patiently for prairie voles to emerge or grasshoppers to hop, and swiftly take action. All in the duty of protecting the Egyptian Walking Onions.
The Cat Guardians
Cats are natural protectors of gardens. Their presence discourages prairie voles that would chew through roots and bulbs. They keep rabbits from clipping stalks and leaves. They keep the onion patch free of mice. They chase grasshoppers away. Ever vigilant, they watch for movement, sound, and scent that does not belong.
Catnip should be planted throughout the Egyptain Walking Onion garden for the cat guardians. Cats enjoy pausing by a catnip plant to sniff and chew a few leaves while on their patrol route. They may even take a nap in the shade of a large catnip plant in the middle of the day.
A bowl of water or small water feature should be present in shady spot next to the Egyptian Walking Onion garden for the guardian cats. The water feature can be a small pond or fountain. The moving water is soothing to the cats and encourages them to drink.
The Cattagoo is one of the newest guardians of the Egyptian Walking Onions. He is pictured here on a pile of old dried up Egyptian Walking stalks. He is looking for any good, viable bulbs for planting that might have been missed while sorting.
Star faithfully garded the Egyptain Walking Onions for most of his life of 20 years along with his sisters Sun and Moon. Read about the rescue story of Star, Sun, and Moon.
The Dog Guardians
Dogs have also been known to guard the Egyptain Walking Onions. In ancient Egypt, the onion fields were watched by swift sight hounds and village dogs protected crops from intruders and animals. Guarding comes naturally to dogs, and they enjoy incorporating an Egyptian Walking Onion patch into their guarded territory. Dogs patrol the borders, scent the ground for burrowing pests, and announce anything that approaches the beds. They love a good rabbit chase and enjoy digging for prairie voles and mice. Miniature Schnauzers, in particular, have proven excellent guardians: alert, tireless, and devoted to their territory.
Dogs can be very helpful in the Egyptain Walking Onion garden. They help to dig up the onion bulbs when it is time to divide them. They also chew and eat any blades of grass that poke up amoung the onion plants.
A patch of valerian root should be planted nearby the Egyptian Walking Onions for the canine guardians. Dogs enjoy these pants for their calming and soothing effect.
A bowl of fresh water should be provided for the dog gardians. Even a small pond for them to swim in is not out of the question.
Cowboy loves to play with cluster balls of topsets. He chases them as they roll down the hill in between the rows of Egyptian Walking Onions. He happily tosses them up in the air and runs with a cluster in his mouth playing keep away from the other dogs. When it's time to sort the topsets, Cowboy likes to be handed a cluster ball of his own so he can pull it apart and sort them himself.
The newest Egyptian Walking Onion garden is guarded by wild neighborhood cats. But there are also special guardians for this new garden: a small pack of Miniature Schnauzers! Pictured here are Buckshot and Chocolate. Chocolate's camouflage helps her to blend in so the prairie voles will not detect her as easily.
The Guardians of Ancient Egyptian Fields
Across the Nile lands, cultivated ground was never left unwatched. Fields, canals, and storehouses were guarded by both animals and symbols of guardianship. The great stone lion that faces the eastern horizon — the sentinel of the plateau — has watched over the river valley and its agricultural lands for thousands of years.
In the ancient world, onions themselves carried meaning. Their layered structure was seen as a symbol of continuity and renewal, and they were placed in tombs and depicted in temple carvings. At the same time, living guardians worked the edges of the fields. Cats controlled rodents in grain stores, and desert dogs watched the cultivated borders along the Nile.
A patch of Egyptian Walking Onions often lends itself to be guarded and protected naturally. The dense growth provides shade and shelter, and the garden itself tends to attract rodents and insects, which in turn draw the attention of the guardian cats and dogs.
For thousands of years, crops and animals have existed side by side in cultivated landscapes. Cats protected stored grain and gardens from rodents, and dogs chased away intruders, while people tended the plants. That simple working relationship is alive and well in the gardens of the Egyptian Walking Onion today - an echo of the ancient fields when onions, cats, and dogs were highly revered. The guardians of today seem drawn to the Egyptian Walking Onion patch as if it awakens that old instinct to protect.