I have had some success with a motion activated flood light, but it's not a sure thing. They also make motion activated sprinklers that will spray any critter that sets them off. They are about 50 bucks, but they will probably help keep them off your lawn at night. Just be sure to turn them off in the day, or they will be going off all the time. Others have had success with Coyote urine, but that wears off, and the animals can get used to it.

Terryr, why are you saying it? Obviously, you don't know anything about opossums. I'm sure they were dead. There is no way an opossum will "play dead" for 24 hours. A 6" baby wouldn't even know how to play dead. They don't know who or what to be afraid of. I have seen many adult opossums playing dead after they had been confronted by my dog. They will come back to life within hour and even in the presence of a human (but not a dog!!!) . Chilled babies can look dead, but you can bring them back to life if you place them in warm water,with the head up (if it's not to late and they are still alive). After 24 hours the body will become "stiff" and a little hard if it's dead. If it's soft and floppy, it could be alive. Also, a dead animal will be cold to the touch. Less than a 7" baby should be with it's mother. Without the mother they will die quickly from dehydration and from exposure (even in warm weather - they can't control there body heat at this point.) Mother-opossum's will not return for lost babies, even if she is alive. So leaving 6" babies where they were would not be a good idea. Please, check the link bellow.

Hi All Thanks for all your advice - I can really relate to the sulking, V, we really get emotionally involved with these roses, don't we?!! We went for a mechanical deterrent rather than a chemical one. Each of the shrub roses has its own barricade of stakes and wire mesh - I guess that's the advantage of only having 20 and not 200 like some of you ;) The only exception is Tatjana - my is she thorny - I guess she can look after herself. She gets a 7 on the MGR thorny scale (a point I overlooked when ordering her) but I don't see how any rose could get more. As you say, Hazel, the barricades don't look too aesthetically pleasing but hopefully they're temporary and can be removed once the bushes are more established and the rose garden is off the possums' tucker lists. Thanks, MM, for the condolences over the loss of my first flower. I'm certainly looking forward to reaping the rewards of the past year's labour and photos will be forth-coming in due course :) Jackie

We have been using an electronic deterrent - it makes some kind of noise - sort of like a dog whistle - and blinking lights. It does seem to keep raccoons out of the fountains, but it does nothing to deter squirrels or possums. I'm going to put wire fencing around my pitaya to protect my fruit from possums.