Designed by Jens Jensen for Henry and Clara Ford from 1913 to 1921, the gardens and plantings are being restored. But woodchucks appear determined to thwart that progress. They ate the gloriosa daisies and every single chrysanthemum bud last fall. Digging woodchucks have undermined stonework outside the boat house. A large woodchuck hole is in the center of Henry Ford's root cellar.
Woodchucks brazenly approach the house and visitors on the estate's rear lawn.
Woodchuck damage so incensed one estate intern that he not only caught an offender, he roasted and ate it for lunch. Plants and gardeners have rights just as the woodchuck has rights. Still, the idealistic concept of peaceful coexistence with all living things is in vogue with many urban gardeners, who would rather tolerate significant plant damage than attack a problem with anything more lethal than insecticidal soap. Some people not only want to solve the problem, they want revenge. Werling doesn't necessarily want bodies.