Pesky Termites

So, yesterday I dug a bit in our shed. The shed is about 12' x 12' and at least as old as me. It's at minimum 25 years old as it was here when we first moved in and wasn't new. Over the years it has begun to sink into the ground and in general rot.

We had the roof fixed and parts inside shored up, but I was thinking we'd have to demolish it soon and start over as there isn't any structure left to the bottom. I kind of want to rip out the south side and add glass to use it as a quasi greenhouse, but needed support at the bottom to attach. I also wanted to get it squirrel proof so they will stop storing acorns in all the pots I store.

While I was digging out a few rotted chunks of wood I found the main culprits of the sinking. Termites. They were eating the front support beams of the shed in addition to the planting beds that sat in front of it. So today I dug up all the plants from that bed and removed the dirt so at least some of their food is gone. (And so when we crunch the shed I won't have to worry about any plants.)

I have to go around the yard and check all the wood beds to see which ones have attracted termites (so far the pond most definitely has them.) Thankfully the one at my back door actually near the house foundation appears to have dry rot rather then termites. That one I have to replace as soon as possible with something not made of wood just in case. We will also be demolishing the old wood pile even though it isn't particularly near the house. Mom does not like the idea of termites and we're trying to remove some attractive territory.