Haunting Discovery Means My Plants May Not Survive the Season

I made a haunting discovery on my property today and I'm not sure my plants will survive the season.

Of course, I make this discovery the day after I went to the local farm stand down the road to purchase a bunch of flowers to plant in my yard. While I was out playing in the yard with the kids, I had a chance to get a good look at the main entrance to the groundhog's massive lair. I say the main entrance because I have spotted other "side holes" in this big wooded hillside. While observing them, I noticed 5 adult groundhogs sitting in front of the hole.

First off, five adults, definitely mean there are probably more adults than that, I'm sure. But, why were they crowded around the entrance to their huge home? Oh, they were waiting for the at least five baby groundhogs that were out exploring the hillside. This can't be good, right? That seems like way too many groundhogs for one small area.

Over the years, the groundhogs have ruined anything that I have tried to grow, including vegetables, flowers, pretty much anything, I just purchased a bunch of flowers and I'm hoping that these pests don't ruin their beauty. Every year more and more of these groundhogs show up, and they are very much not welcome. Talking to the woman at the local farm stand, she stated that many people were worried about groundhogs this year.

It seems that this is a worry among many Hudson Valley residents. Have you seen an increase in groundhog near your property over the years?