Keeping wildlife out of the garden

Hi there -

(Ironically, although I have a soft-spot for squirrels (see username), this post is very anti-squirrel! haha!)

I'm working on setting up 5 square foot gardening boxes. Last season I had a big problem with squirrels in my containers. I had several nice red tomatoes growing just waiting for the perfect time to be picked... but every day I would notice another one half-eaten laying on the other side of the yard. I actually caught a squirrel with one of my tiny eggplants in hand, taking bites out of it like a sub sandwich.

So I'm pretty sure I'm battling squirrels here. I have no deer problem because I'm living in a big city.

I'm trying to set up domes with PVC pipes. Mel shows these in his book as a way to protect against frost. The plan is to cover them with a flexible netting like what is used on the trellises. I want to make sure the holes are big enough for pollinators, but too small for squirrels.

All you advanced gardeners out there --- is such a netting available in stores? will this work, or am I dreaming? What do you suggest I do to fix this squirrel problem?

THANK YOU for your insight!!

That's a nice design, Dan. I'm sure that will keep the critters out of your garden. I think the reason I was thinking of a cage is because I wanted to have the required space around each bed to be able to tend to the garden (pull weeds, harvest). I'm sure my plan sounds kind of "out there" but I'm hopeful that it will work. We will hopefully begin work on it in mid April. We are having a visit from my mom and when she leaves I think we will start putting the plan into motion and I will take lots of pictures.

Wouldn't bird netting do the trick? Or is it too lightweight? Not sure if squirrels wouldn't gnaw through it.

1" chicken wire/poultry netting will let the pollinators in, and will keep out birds and animals. If the netting will be put up permanently, go with the metal version. If you will be taking it down, they make a plastic version that you can find at the big box hardware stores. Last year, I used the metal chicken wire, and it worked well until we had a blizzard that crushed the hoop house. This year, I am using the plastic chicken wire so that I can remove it in the fall, and roll it up. This stuff can be easily attached to 1/2" pvc pipes with large binder clamps. The only downside is that an animal with teeth could bite through it. We'll see.

I thought I was having a squirrel problem with my tomatoes last year, until we saw the mockingbirds jumping into the middle of the tomato plants and going after them.

And since they were the first tomatoes I'd grown in about 20 years, I was very proud and I was checking the tomatoes twice daily. I'm QUITE certain there were no worms involved. The birds starting pecking at them the first time once the first tomato was ripe, but after they "found" them, they would start at the first hint of orange.

Bird netting kept everything safe after that, and still seemed to let the pollinators in just fine. I got the netting froma big box store - pretty cheap, too.

This morning I went out to check on my two SFG boxes, and I found plenty of damage... Some animal had walked all over my young, fragile spinach plants, damaging most of them, and dug out almost the whole square where yesterday I had seeded some arugula. I'm soooo annoyed... I first though about a cat (we have fences all around the garden, so bigger animals would not be able to come in) but reading this post I wonder if a squirrel might be the culprit; I saw one a couple of days ago, and the square that was dug out was covered with two wooden slats that left very little room to get to the soil. I had put those to protect the square from cats, while waiting for the seeds to sprout.
Another lesson learned... I didn't cover this box because I want to plant tomatoes and pole beans in it, but next year I'll get more boxes for the things that need a trellis, and cover everything else. The other box, that has hoops and an insect cover, is for the moment safe from damage...
It wouldn't be too bad if I had more stuff planted, but with just 24 squares in total having a few destroyed does make a difference!

Many of you may remember this post of mine that I started months ago. I was wondering how to keep deer and other critters out of my garden. Many of you have posted some great ideas too. I just wanted to go one step further....... The cage is 24 X 24 and 8ft tall. Totally enclosed by galvanized 1/2" or 1" chicken wire (top and bottom too, although in this pic the top isn't done yet).

Here is the result. The pics show the garden in total shade but it actually gets full sun from sunup to about 4:00pm





I've totally missed the spring/summer planting season but I hope to be able to get a few things in and perhaps some fall veggies.

That's what I call a fence! Not much getting through that is there?
Good luck with your next crop.

Wow. now that is a cage -- on steroids! Great work! I can just imagine critters gazing in at all the wonderful plants you're going to be growing. Is that landscape fabric I see on the ground?

Well, I think you have done what needed to be done. Might as well take the time rather than have all of your produce eaten by deer, etc. Looks like a pretty darn sturdy fence. Now, let the dance begin. Of course you won't know your weak spots until you have vegetation in there, but it doesn't look to me like there are any.

Btw, did you put chicken wire on the ground also?

Thanks for your comments. Yeah, I just didn't want to deal with the disappointment of planting things only to come out to admire my little seedlings and find that a squirrel or deer has been enjoying the salad bar. As it was we have an ancient apricot tree that only fruits every couple of years due to late frosts and the other day I was admiring the apricots from the kitchen window and thinking "gee, I should go out and see if they are ripe yet". The next day or so I went out and ALL of the apricots were gone thanks to the birds. They got every single one of them. I immediately put bird netting on my brand new peach and Fuji apple trees.

The bottom of the cage is lined with 1/2" chicken wire extending out underneath the bottom plate and nailed in place. Eventually we will put pavers in between the 4 X 4 boxes we plan to put in there (at least 5 eventually not to mention some 2 X 6 or 2 X 8 boxes along the walls.

I'm very excited to finally get started. I figure that I still have time to plant a fall garden.

Wow Miss Mousie! That is an amazing "cage"! I'm sure it will keep just about everything out of your garden.

Do you mind if I ask what the approximate cost of building it was?

I'm very jealous. Hmmmm.... I wonder if I can convince my hubby to build something similar for me next year.

Hi Blackrose,

No, I don't mind you asking. It was approx. $500.00 we underestimated the chicken wire and had to buy more plus we bought chicken wire at Home Depot and our local feed store and you might be able to find a less costly source. Other people are great at using "found" items to build their gardens with, I'm not that creative I just went out and bought wood and wire and stuff. Also you could make it smaller but I wanted room to expand right up front, I didn't want to have to build again in a year or so when I wanted more room. So it's 24 X 24 ft. and 8 ft tall. (the 8 ft tall was so we didn't have to cut the wood, thus taking up more time with the cutting and measuring ).

I'm in the planning stages for my fall garden. I did buy some marigolds yesterday to plant in one square. I'm so excited. My local nursery said they'd have fall veggie seedlings in in about two weeks.

Well I am moving next year and will be starting my square foot garden. We are in the middle of the forest with tons of squirrels and chipmunks running around however there are also bears that were spotted and causing damage this season and I would really rather not attract them closer. Any ideas on what not to plant that would attract these animals. My mother believed to hear something growling oddly (wolverine or wolf or something of that scary sound) that scared her half to death so who knows what we could find in our garden.

I've had bears in my yard but they never seemed to bother the garden they go for ant hills, blueberries and garbage cans around here.

Bears also seem to like cocoa mulch, so don't use that if they're around

I'm just getting started with gardening again after a good 20 years.
Oh, I've dabbled with containers over the years, but this year I discovered SFG.
LOVE IT.

My concern has been the village feral cats. 
(don't understand why people can't be responsible pet owners)....
{{{sigh}}}

But, wishing away the problem simply doesn't work.

The posts on this thread have been so informative 

THANKS EVERYONE ~ I think I've discovered some ideas to keep my beautiful food beds feral free.

I received this e-mail from Bluestone Perennials the other day:

Oh Deer! Inexpensive, nearly invisible deer fence

Greetings from Bluestone,

If you are dealing with deer – here is an idea you might wish to try: A nearly invisible fence made from fishing line. It is quick, easy, low cost, and it works! What's not to like?

My father has a vegetable garden in Michigan that was being pillaged by deer. He put up 6' green garden stakes about shoulder high every 25 to 30 feet apart. Next he ran fishing line at waist and shoulder heights, about 3' and 5'. He used clear monofilament line, however you can get green tinted if you wish. That was the end of his deer problem. Deer are very skittish and spook easily. They can't see the fishing line and panic when they bump into it. The result is "Feet don't fail me now".

Deer also can't turn by bending their bodies. Need a gate? Just overlap the fence by about 3' and leave yourself a narrow path between the sections. Smaller animals, (rabbits anyone?) will not be bothered by the fishing line so if they are also a problem then a low run of chicken wire or similar fencing will be necessary. My father uses 24" tall chicken wire and buries it 3" to 4" to discourage critters from tunneling under.

The end result allows you to enjoy your flowers, enjoy your view, and not have you feeding the neighborhood maurauders. Hope it works for you - this method has been a home run for my father!

Happy Gardening!

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Second Generation Owner & Grower

from:

Bluestone Perennials | 7211 Middle Ridge Rd | Madison, OH 44057

This also works for geese I'm sad to say. It stopped the geese from coming up on my neighbors beach hence cutting off my supply of goose poo.  

CC

So we all have our problems with varmints in the garden from time to time. My good friend's father, who is 83 years young, is being stymied by pests digging up the lawn in his half acre blueberry patch. The damage looks something like this.  









This is the type of damage caused by the varmint known as feral swine... 




He is limited in his options for dealing with the monsters.

camprn wrote:He is limited in his options for dealing with the monsters.

 

Bacon? Ham?

donnainzone10 wrote:Bacon?  Ham?

YES! However, in NH you can hunt them anytime but need permission from the owner. The owner is the hunting preserve they escaped from 50 years ago. Typically they give permission. Richard is 83 years old and won't be camping out in a lawn chair, with a rifle, in the dark, waiting for a 160 wild pig to make an appearance.

Feral pigs cause massive damage and FAST! I guess I wasn't aware they had made their way that far northeast already. They are starting to hit the lower south portions of Colorado, and will continue on.
I can understand Richards situation...to bad he can't find some folks wanting to come out and hunt. The pigs are nasty to dress out, but the meat is excellent.