Garden Pests

21 years ago

Can anyone recommend a way of deterring Foxes, Pigeons and Squirrels from my garden, the foxes are spraying everywhere and making the place smell and the squirrels dig up my seeds as fast as I plant them, the pigeons just eat everything that's tender in the green line!.......... Please don't suggest shooting or poisons as I'm a pacifist at heart..

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Comments (6)

ChrisRandall
21 years ago
John,

What are you trying to grow? I have problems with rabbits and deer, but I am (mostly) getting round these by concentrating on plants they don't like.

If squirrels are digging, it sounds as though they are after beans or peas. You could try bringing them on it pots under cover. I suspect that the pigeons are going after green vegetables. You could try streatching thin wires or strings along the rows - or just aquire a cat with a bad attitude! Bird scaring devices only have any effect for about three days, in my experience.

Foxes are a problem I'll leave to somebody else to discuss. We have them walking through at night, but they don't cause us any problems.

Chris
John46
Original Author
21 years ago
Chris.
Thanks for the reply, you are correct about the squirrels Bean & Pea seed are their target, strange thing is that they dig them up from one place and bury them elsewhere, usually destroying other tender plants in the process, funnily enough the seeds that they do 'transplant' never seem to germinate !
Pigeons ! Again correct, all the tender centres of my brasicas.
Foxes. Apart from the doggy-doo's don't do any visible damage, it's just the acrid smell where they spray their territorial boundaries.
I'm going to invest in one of those ultrasonic deterrents that run on batteries and see if that has any effect.
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shrubs_n_bulbs
21 years ago
A few dogs or cats will probably be the best deterrant, but you might have to cage in your brassicas.
flora_uk
21 years ago
For pigeons you'll just have to net your brassicas. Hold the net well above the plants or the weight of the woodpigeons will squash it down and they'll just peck through it.
origami_master
21 years ago
garlic turns away quite a few animal, have you tried before? When i was in hong kong, i bought a sound based mosquitoe device. It has a high frequence and works one anmals as well (i went to the zoo with it on and the animals went wild, really!). mix white pepper and soil, cover the top of your garden with the soil and pepper mixture and it'll turn away animals. Try to build a canopy like thing over your vines. It will a, give the vines support and b, keep away birds. be sure to use cheese clothe and not plastic, or else the heat in the canopy will 'bake' your beans, joking, but plastic won't allow air circulation and the temperature could go way up high!
John46
Original Author
21 years ago
I thank everyone for their tips and suggestions, I have ordered the ultra sonic deterrent but it hasn't arrived yet. One of our local stores had a sale of garden materials and I bought three mini greenhouses, tubular clip together frame and a plastic shaped cover, I discarded the plastic cover and replaced it with three quarter inch anti bird netting, the results in just a week are amazing , the kale has sprouted again and I think I might even get some Purple Sprouting Broccoli. Of course the frames are only eight feet long and four feet wide but at least I'll get some greens before the birds eat it all !