# What in Heaven (or Hell) was the noxious smell in my garden? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 25, 2018, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-in-heaven-or-hell-was-the-noxious-smell-in-my-garden/814792 "2018-05-25T12:22:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-in-heaven-or-hell-was-the-noxious-smell-in-my-garden/814792/21 "2018-05-26T01:56:03Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > You didn’t hire that guy in Canada who buried body parts in people’s yards, did you? > > Well, if a plant decides to give you a hand… Hey!!! ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-in-heaven-or-hell-was-the-noxious-smell-in-my-garden/814792/22 "2018-05-26T02:31:03Z")
One dead frog can stink up a huge amount of area. We were on the deck one evening and had to go in. The next day, we were gonna find out what died under there. I am thinking large raccoon or squirrel. Nope. One normal sized frog who was clearly emitting the odor, for all to smell. It was disgusting. I went under and poured bleach on his deathly hollow. It took a few days for the odor to completely leave. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-in-heaven-or-hell-was-the-noxious-smell-in-my-garden/814792/23 "2018-05-26T02:54:56Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Do you have Basil? > > I had some in my apartment a few years back. Then for a while I kept searching the area around it to find the cat pee stains, which weren’t there. Turned out it was the basil, reeking for all the world like cat urine. Were you growing it, or did you just buy some and leave it out? And how much did you have, anyway? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-in-heaven-or-hell-was-the-noxious-smell-in-my-garden/814792/24 "2018-05-26T03:27:17Z")
> [@ioioio](#): > > The worst thing I ever smelled in my yard turned out to be a decomposing possum. But you could smell it as soon as you got close to the yard, and it didn’t stop stinking until it was removed, which was a lot of fun. I had the same experience! Smelly dead possum … but it was in the basement. And this was in a place I rented back in college but, for whatever reason, decided to remove the source of the smell myself. That was, indeed, fun, for certain values of “fun.” ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-in-heaven-or-hell-was-the-noxious-smell-in-my-garden/814792/25 "2018-05-26T03:30:03Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Were you growing it, or did you just buy some and leave it out? And how much did you have, anyway? Growing it in a small pot. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-in-heaven-or-hell-was-the-noxious-smell-in-my-garden/814792/26 "2018-05-26T08:49:04Z")
Termites can cause a smell like moth balls. The aforementioned stinkhorn is more like rotting meat + gym socks. Then there are various slime molds, which emit various evil miasmas at various stages of growth. My money is on a slime mold in the wet stage,but a better description of the scent would help. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-in-heaven-or-hell-was-the-noxious-smell-in-my-garden/814792.md?page=1)