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Fruit & Orchards

how to keep birds from blackberry

12 years ago

Following the very helpful recent post about keeping birds off blueberries, I am planning on constructing some cages of some type next year. Because of the size of my bushes and the space they inhabit, I think I can manage this even with my limited carpentry skills. However, I also have a sizable thornless blackberry that I would like to cover next year (too late for this year, as I stupidly trained it on a fence and the birds can just come from the other side if I drape bird netting over as I intended).

So, does any one have some great photos of how they protect their blackberries from birds? I am thinking of installing a sturdy (wooden?) stake next to the main 5-6 ft. branch, and then adding additional stakes at intervals to attach the lateral branches.

I am thinking I could then attach a perpendicular piece of wood at the top of the stake, and drape the bird netting over the entire length and secure it at the bottom. In this way, there would be enough clearance that the birds could not get the closest fruit, and if I pull the netting taut at the bottom then they cannot get caught.

Any other suggestions? I need this to be moderately attractive.

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Comments (3)

home_grower
12 years ago
Wear this!

{{gwi:112788}}

Haha coudn't resist.

Could you build a lattice that you could move/retrain the berries to grow on a few inches from the fence? Then you could install some 1/2" steel mesh over the fence to keep the birds from the back. You could use plastic bird netting in the front, sides and top to save money.
veeta
Original Author
12 years ago
I've considered it, believe me! They are getting my tomatoes too, which is really painful. It has been very dry, so that could be playing a part, but I think the birds just know what is good. It is frustrating because they have had plenty of mulberries from my neighbors yard and plenty of service berry in mine. I feed the darn things worms and grubs when I dug too!
I've got the laterals lashed to the wooden fence, so it is probably too late to take on that task, but if I get a new system built I'll report back. I just need help on getting a sturdy stake in for the main branch (without having to do a post hole, etc.), then I think the laterals would be easy to train onto additional stakes. I just had a light bulb that I could keep the primary branch on the fence and just train the laterals--then I would not need so sturdy of stakes.
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home_grower
12 years ago
Mine is similar except it's boysenberries and blueberries. Last year the birds got every last boysenberry in one day. This photo is kind of old but gives you an idea of the area. Everything is much larger now, especially the tomatoes. I had the mesh up to keep snakes and rabbits out of my yard. When the blueberries just started to ripen I saw a bird get a couple of them so I ran to the store and got large bird net. I put three metal fence posts up on the far side of the fenced area then stretched the bird netting up the remaining part of the rot iron and over the fence posts. They have hooks to hold barbed wire which were perfect for hooking the netting to them.

{{gwi:112789}}

The birds haven't even tried to get in. My wife and I enjoyed a lot of both berries this year.

Some of the boysenerries

{{gwi:112790}}

and blueberries

{{gwi:112791}}

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