I have one of those tiny ceramic frog houses for my yard where they (the frogs) can sit on top or inside. Where should I put it? Do I need a water source nearby?

Do they actually use these things?

Anyone ever find an actual frog in one?

Hi Jill,

From my experience I cannot answer for a ceramic frog house and or for cold and freezing places and frogs.

What I can say, is that yes there must be a water source nearby as frogs need it to breed etc. but they live on land being amphibious. They are generally shy creatures so love hidey holes and leafy dark places where they have privacy and can hide from predators like snakes and owls even.

I would surround your ceramic house with leaves and twigs and smaller rocks still leaving the entrance 'open' - some lucky chap and chapess will stumble upon it and with the raw material you have provided make a very nice home there I don't doubt!

Frogs can travel far, are good for your garden space and eco- system, are for the most part harmless and will stay as long as they feel safe. I said above they are shy etc. so often you are lucky to see them in residence ... but you will hear them for sure and then you will know you have been successful in luring and inviting them onto and into your space. They do not like to be disturbed and are more/mostly nocturnal anyway.

I am a lucky fish as I have a resident family in 'my' back garden where they stay near a small pond and root and sleep around the undergrowth of a whole lot of water grasses and reeds and leaves etc.

I stumbled on them by chance while cleaning up some space for new containers but withdrew immediately to allow them to get over the fright they must have had. Them and me too, though surprised, I was more delighted to find them there. I love their sounds! I go to sleep easily as I am reminded of my childhood on the farm.

P S I was told that they are an unlucky symbol for some African peoples and are most often killed - oh dear.

Cheers

Lestie, thank you for this awesome and comprehensive answer! I will add some brush to the ceramic house area.

I only found a little frog around my house once, and would love to have a family living here. If I find a frog, can i put him in my garden? can I buy a frog and put him here? Like how you can buy ladybugs?

You are so lucky to have little froggies in residence!

Hi Jill,

Can't answer for the buying of frogs in the area where you live but am sure it will be easy to find out just by speaking to your local garden centre - or maybe, while not a pet per se, maybe Dianna of Exotic pets will know a thing or two?

Frogs though are migratory and will find you if you offer a nice home, like owls. BTW, I am trying to entice an owl into our space and have put up an owl house in one of our trees. I have not seen or heard anything yet but I was very excited the other day when one of the residents who lives on that garden side of the building said she has seen one twice now. Maybe he is sussing us out and maybe, hopefully and all that, he will pick us for his new home.

Anyway, back to frogs, they have to feel safe and they will come if you build it (Hah! Kevin Costner style in Field of Dreams). Perhaps if there is farming area near you it could be worth asking if they have spare frogs and the right kind? Can't say. I live in the middle of a big city but we have a lovely back garden and there they were (as explained above), so I do not know where they came from; but I still hear them so guess they are still happy here.

My garden assistant has strict instructions to leave that patch alone so we clean and weed around it but do not disturb them.

Some people hate the sound of frogs and chase them away. To me it is like the laughter of children and birdsong, I can never get enough so lucky me, am not sure what I would do to get rid of them beyond taking away their refuge ... and that would be a mean thing to do. Besides, they eat a lot of the harmful bugs and goggas that I do not want in my garden or chomping on my roses and containers!

Cheers now and good luck, hope you come right as we say!

Jilly, if you put in a water source, you will have frogs or toads. We have toads that hang out in the water until they have legs, then they go jumping around the yard.

Our neighbors hate the sound of the toads when they are calling for a mate. We love it.