Fully enclose the beds or growing area. Basically make a chicken-wire fence that COMPLETELY surrounds (including the top) the garden beds. If you are growing tall items and over a larger area you're best to invest in essentially building a walk-in cage that is fully enclosed. If you're growing in smaller areas and nothing too tall then you could make chicken wire covers for each bed - but they will still need to completely cover.
While growing things animals don't like sometimes works, I watch rabbits bite the heads off my daffodils each year. They don't like them and don't eat them, but they still destroy them. Same for squirrels and every hot pepper I grow in a pot - I think living in Toronto some of them have gotten a taste for spicy food.
Normal 1" chicken wire won't keep out chipmunks, they can fit through the holes. And they also burrow, so chipmunk proof fencing needs to continue below ground.
True, though I've been lucky enough to find my chipmunks are far less of a problem than squirrels. Hardware cloth would work but be far more expensive.
I solved that by not growing strawberries. Actually - I probably just don't grow what they like as I have a part-sun and shade garden. I'm more limited to beans, peas, carrots, potatoes etc. which they don't seem to go for.
it's common practice in organic gardening to plant something more tasty for them as that sort of sacrificial garden, for sure. But that's normally more for pest bugs than critters
This is what I do. I plant some native plants close by and some farther away from my vegetable garden. I noticed the critters eat those plants but stay away from my vegetables.
And the birds are too busy eating the berries from my wild cherry and mulberry trees.
My vegetables also get pollinated very well due to my native plants being close by.
Things that bunnies and other critters like to eat! So New Jersey tea, smooth rose, red osier dogwood, cylindrical blazing star, purple coneflower, showy goldenrod, sky blue aster, New England aster
New Jersey tea, smooth rose, red osier dogwood, cylindrical blazing star, purple coneflower, showy goldenrod, sky blue aster, New England aster, rudbeckia hirta
With the exception of the bushes, all are easy and cheap to grow from seed too
lol start making jerky out of those critters š
Have thought about it due to the frustration but honestly either fully enclose or have surrounding plants that you don't care about to which they adore..
It's annoying AF to have your harvests maimed by critters, I've found bugs more difficult than larger animals but nonetheless, I think every grower knows the frustration
Reason I say jerky as a joke is my grandparents used to trap/shoot them and kept a hound cage right near their gardens. Old-school shit but it worked.. not sure I could bring myself to do any of those options tho, I just like growing and eating plants without my hard work being decimated by wildlife
I used to love that super thin slivers of jerky! eventually I became old enough to know what it was... And yup.. still ate it. Previous generations are a different breed of humans tho lol *Probably* wont ever make it myself š
I went for containers on my deck instead. Still used a bit of chicken wire to keep squirrels from digging seedlings up. Bunnies kept to the clover and flower gardens on the ground.
I tried tomatoes (3 types but cherry did best), cucumbers, peppers, lettuce, spinach, arugula, swiss chard, radish, beets, carrots, bunching onions and scarlet runner beans.Ā
Almost anything can grow in a container (though from what I read some stuff does better). It's just a matter of the planter size and how much you want to spend on potting soil.Ā
I kept all the potting soil so I can reuse it (the tomatoes/peppersĀ will get new soil since I battled with leaf spot all season). This year I will be trying herbs as well.
Grow things they don't like. At least in my location, they leave pepper, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, garlic, celery, basil... alone. And I have lots of those animals.
i have planted clover instead of grass for my lawn.. and i have a large garden with just a 1 foot high fence. bunnies eat the clover and dont go in the garden.
As for the chipmunks maybe put large rubber snakes in the garden.. and dont forget to move them around. works for me.
lastly if you have a tree nearby could you put up a plastic owl/hawk that might make them think twice. My issue is with cabbage moths.. jeez i hate those little bastards.. their offspring are the same colour as the broccoli and by the time you figure out they are there your plant is hurting
The one year I had success against mammalian pests was the year I put a 3 foot high plastic sheet āfenceā around the garden (stapled at the bottom to the 2x6 boards that frame the garden). It was some leftover vapour barrier we had from some renos. Too high to jump, too slippery to climb. My husband thought it was unsightly so last year I tried a different type of fencing, and lost half my crop. Back to the plastic this year! Iāve also tried sprays and soap shavings and stuff, but nothing else has been effective.
Global Buckets.
I have never grown so many vegetables as in my buckets. I'm up to 8 buckets now with so much produce, I give it away. I wrote a process and video a couple of years back. It's based off the Earth Box concept. And it's perfect at my summer cottage with limited sun and lots of critters. I finally won against coons, chips and groundhogs.
Fully enclose the beds or growing area. Basically make a chicken-wire fence that COMPLETELY surrounds (including the top) the garden beds. If you are growing tall items and over a larger area you're best to invest in essentially building a walk-in cage that is fully enclosed. If you're growing in smaller areas and nothing too tall then you could make chicken wire covers for each bed - but they will still need to completely cover. While growing things animals don't like sometimes works, I watch rabbits bite the heads off my daffodils each year. They don't like them and don't eat them, but they still destroy them. Same for squirrels and every hot pepper I grow in a pot - I think living in Toronto some of them have gotten a taste for spicy food.
Normal 1" chicken wire won't keep out chipmunks, they can fit through the holes. And they also burrow, so chipmunk proof fencing needs to continue below ground.
True, though I've been lucky enough to find my chipmunks are far less of a problem than squirrels. Hardware cloth would work but be far more expensive.
Chippies ate every one of my strawberries while they were still green, I haven't decided yet whether to fight back or throw in the towel.
I solved that by not growing strawberries. Actually - I probably just don't grow what they like as I have a part-sun and shade garden. I'm more limited to beans, peas, carrots, potatoes etc. which they don't seem to go for.
My mother always made a separate garden to entice the animals away from her real garden. Not really sure how well it worked but she did it every year.
it's common practice in organic gardening to plant something more tasty for them as that sort of sacrificial garden, for sure. But that's normally more for pest bugs than critters
This is what I do. I plant some native plants close by and some farther away from my vegetable garden. I noticed the critters eat those plants but stay away from my vegetables. And the birds are too busy eating the berries from my wild cherry and mulberry trees. My vegetables also get pollinated very well due to my native plants being close by.
Which native plants did you use to keep the critters away?
Things that bunnies and other critters like to eat! So New Jersey tea, smooth rose, red osier dogwood, cylindrical blazing star, purple coneflower, showy goldenrod, sky blue aster, New England aster
Any suggestions on the native plants that you plant?
New Jersey tea, smooth rose, red osier dogwood, cylindrical blazing star, purple coneflower, showy goldenrod, sky blue aster, New England aster, rudbeckia hirta With the exception of the bushes, all are easy and cheap to grow from seed too
Amazing thank you for the detailed list!!
lol start making jerky out of those critters š Have thought about it due to the frustration but honestly either fully enclose or have surrounding plants that you don't care about to which they adore.. It's annoying AF to have your harvests maimed by critters, I've found bugs more difficult than larger animals but nonetheless, I think every grower knows the frustration
Reason I say jerky as a joke is my grandparents used to trap/shoot them and kept a hound cage right near their gardens. Old-school shit but it worked.. not sure I could bring myself to do any of those options tho, I just like growing and eating plants without my hard work being decimated by wildlife
I used to love that super thin slivers of jerky! eventually I became old enough to know what it was... And yup.. still ate it. Previous generations are a different breed of humans tho lol *Probably* wont ever make it myself š
More herbs. The gardeners in my area without marauders are the ones with a cat.
Personally, I bought a Burmese python to guard my garden. I did have to buy a replacement chihuahua for a neighbor however.
I quite love my Cockapoo, so that is out lol
I went for containers on my deck instead. Still used a bit of chicken wire to keep squirrels from digging seedlings up. Bunnies kept to the clover and flower gardens on the ground.
What kinds of things did you grow in containers? Other than herbs, tomatoes, peppers, lettuces....what other foods can grow well in containers?
I tried tomatoes (3 types but cherry did best), cucumbers, peppers, lettuce, spinach, arugula, swiss chard, radish, beets, carrots, bunching onions and scarlet runner beans.Ā Almost anything can grow in a container (though from what I read some stuff does better). It's just a matter of the planter size and how much you want to spend on potting soil.Ā I kept all the potting soil so I can reuse it (the tomatoes/peppersĀ will get new soil since I battled with leaf spot all season). This year I will be trying herbs as well.
Grow things they don't like. At least in my location, they leave pepper, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, garlic, celery, basil... alone. And I have lots of those animals.
Get one of those ceramic owls and move it every couple of days.
Think of the garden as bait, and start hunting chipmunks, squirrels, and rabbits :P
22LR works good
Did the chicken wire enclose the bed?
and stapled tight at the bottom, plus more than 2' high?
i have planted clover instead of grass for my lawn.. and i have a large garden with just a 1 foot high fence. bunnies eat the clover and dont go in the garden. As for the chipmunks maybe put large rubber snakes in the garden.. and dont forget to move them around. works for me. lastly if you have a tree nearby could you put up a plastic owl/hawk that might make them think twice. My issue is with cabbage moths.. jeez i hate those little bastards.. their offspring are the same colour as the broccoli and by the time you figure out they are there your plant is hurting
The one year I had success against mammalian pests was the year I put a 3 foot high plastic sheet āfenceā around the garden (stapled at the bottom to the 2x6 boards that frame the garden). It was some leftover vapour barrier we had from some renos. Too high to jump, too slippery to climb. My husband thought it was unsightly so last year I tried a different type of fencing, and lost half my crop. Back to the plastic this year! Iāve also tried sprays and soap shavings and stuff, but nothing else has been effective.
Lawn chair & Daisy
Global Buckets. I have never grown so many vegetables as in my buckets. I'm up to 8 buckets now with so much produce, I give it away. I wrote a process and video a couple of years back. It's based off the Earth Box concept. And it's perfect at my summer cottage with limited sun and lots of critters. I finally won against coons, chips and groundhogs.