Could be a critter that's thirsty. Squirrels, chipmunks, groundhogs, who knows unless you can catch them in the act.

The chipmunks feasted on my strawberries this year, bold as you please, sitting upright on a small rock by the garden and munching away. So I know they will eat garden stuff.

We have the same problem at the community garden. I suspect rats or maybe a possum. They only hit the fruit about a foot off the ground or lower and the chew marks are strange.....not really a bite all the time. It's a wide open place and it only seems to happen at night. I've considered making a visit with my nightvision googles.

Well, I found my pest.

Seems there's a squirrel that has a thing for very green tomatoes.

Me and a neighbor watched it in a tree gnawing down on an extremely unripe tomato. Critter even dropped it and the others that got to it before he had a chance to climb down and retrieve it wanted nothing at all to do with it.

Figures I can only grow a limited amount of plants and a lover of extremely unripe tomatoes would take up residence in my yard.

At least it's running out of lower-limb fruit to steal. If they go for my peppers, we have an issue, though. Heheh...

~~~ At least it's running out of lower-limb fruit to steal. ~~~

Hate to tell you this but it is highly unlikely that your squirrel will find your other toms "out of reach".

You can put your plants in Jail, erradicate the pest, or live with what he leaves you.

I have tried several methods to deal with this problem.

Bobble Head Owl, we joked that Hooty must be on the take.

Rubber snakes, something chewed on one of them.

Human urine, they still cleaned me out.

1" poultry fabric, will work if it is completely enclosed including the top but what a major pain.

A 22 and a frying pan have been the only to work.

Best of Luck!

I had the same problem, with serious damage to the garden, only my pest was a family of racoons. We finally caught them all (five of them) in Have-A-Heart traps, and they are now living in a State Park about 45 miles from here. We let them all out at the same spot so hopefully they got back together. The "babies" were old enough to go it alone anyway. The "Daddy" darn near tore the cage apart, and getting him to the park was one hair raising ride, let me tell you! So that's my story: if you can't cohabitate: relocate. Just make sure it's not where you're turning it into someone else's problem! MacThayer

The home improvement stores sell a spray that rodents (squirrels, rabbits, etc.) find too much to handle here in my corner of the world. It stinks for a few hours, but I haven't had any squirrels (which is my potential problem) cross the line yet. You spray the area near you plants and they go away. I sprayed both of the trees that border my containers, and they won't come down that way. Seems to last for about a month before you have to redo.

An electric fence worked very nicely for me against
chipmunks. It should handle squirrels too. Just be sure to
place the wire low enough so they won't creep under it.
I really prefer that to the frying pan method. Haven't
you heard about the guy in Kentucky who got mad squirrel
disease from eating them?

you heard about the guy in Kentucky who got mad squirrel disease from eating them? ~~~ No I hadn't but a quick search did show several, mostly non main stream articles about it. A few blurbs from the first in the search. "Creutzfeldt\-Jakob disease, thought to strike one person in 1 million, produces holes in the brain. Symptoms include loss of muscle control and dementia. It may take years, even decades, for symptoms to appear. ... that he has treated 11 people for Creutzfeldt\-Jakob in four years, and all had eaten squirrel brains at some time. Six of the victims, ranging in age from 56 to 78, have died." I wonder what avg death age of all of those 11 people will be and the incidence of dementia at those ages? "The normal incidence of the disease in the area should be one case in about 10 years, he said. ... Dr. Joseph Berger, chairman of the neurology department at the University of Kentucky, cautioned that the number of cases is small, and no squirrel brains have actually been examined for the disease. They said many questions remain, including how the squirrels would contract the disease, since they do not eat meat." Either way, I never took to that particular delicacy :\-)

I always liked my squirrel boiled and then baked with a little red pepper, and served with skillet taters and sliced tomatoes. The skins make great fur-lined gloves to keep your hands warm on the next hunting trip.

Of course, I haven't been able to do that in the last 40 years. :>)

I have had an unintended side effect that has resulted in NO squirrel/bird attacks this year so far. I put up sun shade cloth (from a vendor someone posted in G.W.) and it appears to have fooled the squirrels and birds. Most of my small garden faces directly south and is up against a brick wall on one side and has a wood fence to the south. I put up a white Sun cloth over the top and draped down a foot or two on the south side that partially blocks the sun and apparently obscures squirrels and birds garden view. I have not lost one tom this year to either pest - knock on wood-, whereas in years past, they've cleaned me out. This is anecdotal evidence to be sure, but I'm thinking that they spy the maters from tree tops, roof tops and fence tops and when all they see from up above is the white cloth, they don't bother investigating.

My electric fence is working to keep deer away from my cantelope, so far.

I am going to drive a 4 foot rebar into the ground and cover it with 1/2 inch pvc for insulation.

I will attach a single stran of wire at 2",4",6", 9" up to 27" as squirrels are capable jumpers.

I plan to surround my plants in a way that I have pleanty of room to work with them.

Fingers crossed.

John

So what can I do about mockingbirds. I watched one fly right over to CRW cage, land on it, hop into the tomato plant and start pecking. He's so bold he didn't even move until I was almost at the cage and then he flew just out of range.

So I go get bird netting and wrap up the cages.......he still found a way in.

Between the rabbits, squirrels and birds, I seriously considering falconry as a hobby. At least I wouldn't have to go anywhere to practice....just step out the back door.

Rats eat a hole in the bottom of the fruit, and then eat the inside out.

Squirrels takes the tomato off to eat it.

See the photo of the tomato that a squirrel ate.

You can also click on the little photo on the right and see how chicken wire will protect your tomatoes. Worked for me.

Karyl
====

Here is a link that might be useful: Tomato eaten by Squirrel

Try going to a dog groomer and begging for a bag of fur. Lay it about under your tomatoes. The dog scent doesn't last long so you may have to renmew the application a few times until the squirrel gives up. Sqirrels are terrified of dogs so the dog fur may help some. I used it with some success against deers, so it may help with the aquirrel.

Otherwise, enclose your yard and get a couple of small terriers to patrol the perimeter.

Amazing what you can find on the internet. (from Treehuggers)

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1341540}}

You don't have to worry, that squirrel is poorly trained. That AT-4 is pointing backwards!

Steve