OI had to resort to 2x4 fence wire cages for some ofine until they get bigger, I was losing them to ground hogs and rabbits, who seem to like young tender plants.

The rabbit population used to be under control here with plenty of hawks, but after the tornado last May the hawks have been conspicuously absent. Not sure what has happened there. The tornado didn't get our neighborhood, so just don't know....

Sandy

I don't know your state laws but here in Kentucky its legal to kill any animal if it is damaging your property. We have rabbits thick here and fortunately my yard is crappy and full of clover... so they avoid my hostas. You could plant a patch of white clover in hopes they chose that instead of your hostas. Or you could buy live traps and bait them with lettuce..then either have fried rabbit and biscuits and gravy for dinner or take them off down the road somewhere lol... The cages work to protect your hosta, and so does the light fencing...but I they wouldn't be my ideal control device =)
John

That's nasty damage. But the Hosta will come back. Perhaps even this year. Leave what is left and protect it with a repellant like Bobex or Liquid Fence. You want to make your Hosta taste and smell bad so that the bunnies go next door to your neighbor's yard. If you do get new growth this year, then re-spray with the bad smelling stuff. The bunnies will be back until you convince them to go elsewhere.

Steve

Ohhhh, those pictures are shocking...I don't guess I've seen rabbit damage before. Not here, anyway. I'd be freaked out if I found my beloved Sagae looking like that. I'd have a heart attack for sure. And go load the slingshot!!!

Oops. I'm not supposed to do that.....I am a certified wildlife habitat area now. Oh dear. But NOT the hosta...that would be going too far!!

I'm a certified wildlife habitat too, one reason I don't spray or use any thing toxic to the wildlife. So I use the cages until the hostas get more mature, also systemic Repellex and whatever other deterrent I can find. If they eat the young tender first year hostas, chances are they WON'T come back. Mature ones will. (voice of experience here, I have lost too many. Weakened by critter attack, they are more likely to be finished off by pillbugs, earwigs or cutworms.)

Sandy

Argh! You should have used a "caution, some of the following pics are graphic" statement. I'd be willing to bet that each person viewing them said "oh,no" and had to turn away. ;-)

-Babka

Here we are VERY lucky to have a very healthy Coyote population, YES.

That being said, and with (not so serious, please understand practicalities), some lead poisoning, we are so lucky to be, as yet, unaffected (pray for us).

hh

Oh, I had that problem a couple of weeks ago. We live caught 2 but the 3rd one was slippery. In anger, I went to Walmart and got a bebe gun. Come to find out, I'm a decent shot. But live trapping is my preference but those dang things don't go in them very readily, even with tasty bait!

You should change your name to Cindy NRA.

Steve

I have had the same thing happen in my yard. They got my Orange Marmalade and Shockwave