I installed a trailcam next to my garden, and a couple of large crows/ravens are hanging around suddenly everyday. The strawberries disappeared, and most of my BBs are starting to turn color. The crows look waay too comfortable, don't get spooked by pedestrians 10ft away!

That's pretty slick. Some of my plants may not be able to get netting. Do you know if I could encase the blueberry fruit in a sealed paper bag, or do they require sunshine to ripen?

Also, at what point do birds take a crack at BBs? Only when ripe? Or a bit green still?

Usually birds wait until the blueberries turn blue but there are some notorious birds they pick berries even when green. In case of rabbiteyes, berries turn pink before turning blue and I have experienced birds pick pink berries as well. Whether they pick on green berries initially or not, one thing for sure is once they start stealing berries, they don't go away until all berries are gone. Therefore, it is common practice to cover the berries with bird netting while they are green. There are some very smart and persistent birds they try every possible way to get in the enclosure to steal berries (picture attached). To my experience, deterrents of any kind (flashing colored tape, flashing CDs, mirrors, scare crow, electronic predatory bird noise, etc.) do not work for long, the birds get use to them, even gunfire.

I have not experimented blueberries encasing in the sealed paper bag while they are still in the plant. I have read people do these practice with stone fruits, apples, and grapes but could not find information if it can be done with blueberries.

Thanks inkfin. Looks like a clever one you got there. I was really surprised last year. We've grown cherries and strawberries next to our house for a few years, and all the birds keep a safe distance. Lots of foot traffic, cats on patrol, visual obstructions that make a quick getaway difficult. We got a new mulberry tree, and had quite a bit of fruit, I wrapped it in bug netting. Two birds were able to get to the fruit by taking turns on the lookout and doing these divebomb runs and quickly poking holes through the netting: it was like a planned bank heist.

I'll cover what I can of the blueberries with bird netting, and do a test with the bagging and let you know how turns out. They sell really nice purpose-made grape bags here, I bought 100 of them today.

Just feed them rice and be done with it.

No, theniceguy is a nice guy and isn't going to kill birds! By the way, it's best to use bird netting only with a frame. If it's just draped over the plants, birds and animals can get tangled up in it and die. When it's stretched on a frame, if a bird flies into the net they will just bounce off.

Nice guys finish last. But if you enjoy feeding wild animals you will have great success.

I hear you guys mention birds eating blueberries but my blueberries have no pest pressure at all. I have 4 blueberry bushes and I've never seen a bird on them ever. I've even left overly ripe berries sitting on the tree for what seemed like weeks without nothing bothering them.

The hard part about blueberries for me is getting the soil conditions correct.

I have a few blueberries in an oak barrel. When I had to compete with a mockingbird for fruit, I covered the plant with an inexpensive netting from Daiso (like the 99cent store). I used binder clips to hold the edges together and put bamboo skewers in the soil where there were gaps. The smart mockingbird was trying to get under the netting!

if permanent use hardware cloth, bit pricy but does it Pay off.....then I used either tulle, or old sheer curtains, or Remay etc over top of the hdwe circles...., draped it.. Oh the "cages are held togher with the pieces of fine like number 20 wire, twisted together....

Several years ago, even sewed Pillowcase style tulle with drawstring >it was a pain to remove unless the "pillowslips were extra extra larger... that was a waste of time etc... too hard to remove like I said....

Oh hold the "fabric" on with good old clothespins......

Now to get at them I carefully take off the draped tulle... then carefully "unroll the wire cages that are around my berry plants,,, It is so easy to knock off unripen berries etc...

I bought largeroll of it... special order from a farm store.. bought 5 ft tall roll either 5oft rolls or 100 rolls. Oh ordered the first roll special order from local hardware store......

I believe it was available up to 6 feet tall, the hdwe cloth was, that is...

Measure the circumference and add lots if you DO NOT want to remake them cages as the berries grow. Course the tag on the new bush should tell you the ?mature size"

JUst my years of experiences.

This year I use netting over ( 1/2 squares) with a length of concrete reinforcing wire spanning,,,, mine are in raised beds.. My strawberries that is.... worked really really well. Plus I have about six or ore plastic "owlS around the permimeter of my garden fence..

JUst my years of experiences. Just wish I would have "tulled" all my squash and cabages when first planted them

Happy Gardening all

Great info, jeanwedding, thanks!

Jeanwedding, we would like to see if you have picture of cages you created. Thanks.

All netting is not equal. I find that the woven green netting is MUCH better and easier to use than the stiff black plastic stuff. Not easy to find, and a bit more expensive, but well worth it. Denetdirect is where I get mine. Long nets for rows of berries, 30x30 for cherry trees. For trees I don't bother with supports.

Marc5, I've found the same in my experiences this year. Easier to work with and doesn't get tangled.

We'll be rearranging and transplanting end of the year, so I'm reluctant to buy expensive nice netting and frames, just to have the sizing off next year.

I was experimenting with easy cheap options this year. The local $store had 4 fabrics available. I found the woven blue mesh on the left nice and not bad in wind. 2mx1m for 1$.

I wove 2 sheets with a 2 meter fiberglass pole for an easy 2mx2m dome.

I've got some larger plants to Macgyver a solution with. I like the old mesh curtain idea. Maybe I can track down a fishnet piece. I have an old dome tent, the telescopic poles could be commandeered. I'm already useing the tent pegs to secure netting.

Local farm stand gives a loaded large pitza for 5 crows on a stick. He planted 5 ac to corn in my back yard and my 22 mag bought supper every sat.

I got some more netting, and am half done 2 more large bushes. I lost patience with it all this morning, as the harvest is not that big this first year anyway, and some of the Rabbiteye BBs I tasted weren't all that amazing.

Someone opened a grape bag and ate a couple of unripe green ones. I think it's those crows. Some kind of rifle sounds good about now. I lucked out on a bag + mesh solution that makes grape protection really easy.

Netting for BBs is seeming like a real PITA right now.

I bought one of the assemble-yourself cages for one BB bush, and built a cage over several the others with wire shelving, which was even easier to assemble. It also serves as an outdoor protected cage for my elderly kitty. I made it so I could open up a locking flap to harvest berries and to fertilize. If anyone's interested, I can post photos and a link to the shelving.

Great thread..this has got me thinking..out of my 18 blueberry bushes I got maybe a pound of fruit..can't seem to win between the squirrels and the birds. I definitely need to do something next year.

What do you mean wire shelving? Do you have a picture?

Ya Jeremy, 18:1 sounds pretty bad!

Had to cover or we wouldn't get one berry! Leftover fence, 1" chicken wire, PVC and some netting.

I am loaded this year to

Wow some nice fences. Initial outlay comparatively expensive for most. If you know your plot is permanent worth it.

My father planted those bushes. They are over 50 years old. I wish I knew what varieties they are. There are three different kinds and then I have planted 2 Reka and 2 Blue Gold to replace dead or poor bushes.

Berries are expensive and my daughter makes a Blueberry wine that is incredible but it takes a few gallons of berries per batch. She never would have tried to make it if she had to buy the berries.

That's nice your daughter can enjoy her grandpa's hard work and foresite.

inkfin,

How do you get in and out of your netted area? Thanks.

Isoh,

I remove the plank on one side, lift up the netting to get in when I needed (watering or picking berries or release the bird that somehow got trapped inside, lol). I know this is not convenient but I had to build the whole thing very quickly as berries had started turning blue and birds (mocking birds, blue jay and cardinals like to steal my berries) were lined up already so I didn't get enough time to construct the entrance. The blueberry season is now over in my area and netting has been removed but will be covering the frame with plastic sheet in the winter for the frost protection of blueberry flowers and buds. Soon I am going to expand the covered area as number of blueberry plants are going to be higher than this year, and definitely will construct a gate out of 2" pressure treated lumber.

I use dear-x netting stretched tight over a bamboo structure. Remove it every year after harvest. It can get tangled if left on year round. I have just 5 plants about 15 yrs old. 3 behind, two in front.

Like mentioned, do not drape any netting. Early on and years ago i did that and caught a humming bird and was sick about it.

The bamboo stays for the most part. I just secure it every year before the netting goes on. That will probably happen this weekend. Lots of berries but still green at this point.

calfee20(6b),

I love the enclosure that you have! Can you give the dimensions of your enclosure, the height of the outside posts, the height of the center of the enclosure, the length of the PVC over the top, the amount of space between the fence and the bushes, and the width of the central walkway, and some more photos? This is the best example of the kind of enclosure to protect my Dad's (he's 89 yrs) 30+ year old bushes. He can't take care of them now. I have access to the posts, PVC, wire, space to build it, and can buy the netting, and anything else. My Dad likes your design and we want to copy it. I, too, hope to have a bumper crop next year that we don't have to share with the birds!! We put up several plastic birds, that I move every day and they have helped a little, but your enclosure is what we like best. The mocking birds, blue jays, and robins are so heavy they're breaking the branches AND eating the berries. Got to stop it in Buford, GA.

I missed your post. Give me a couple of days and I will get some better pictures and measurements