Who is eating my courgettes?

ginvzt

Who is eating them?????

I have planted out 3 plants on Monday afternoon and by the evening one of them had a leave eaten off. Then yesterday morning it looked just the same, with one leaf eaten off, so I thought it can't be slugs. Besides, I sprinkled blue pellets around, so fingers crossed, slugs would be off. But then I came home from work yesterday and the whole plant was eaten!!!! I found some bits of it laying around - so could it be birds?

This morning, another courgette suffered and has a leaf off. I put some stiks around as I couldn't think of anything else at 7am in the morning, and laid some of bamboo sticks with coper tape around hoping to deter slugs eve more if it is their doing, but I have no idea what to do!!!!!

I have 2 tomato plants close by that are not touched, and cucumber plant is fine too. I have another cucumber plant further away, which is fine, beans are fine.

I have planted out some carrots a week or tow ago, and half of them were gone in a couple of days - I blamed slugs, but maybe I was wrong...

I don't expect the plant to re-grow, so will be going to garden centre to get a 'replacement', but I would like to know what I can do not to have any more losses like this...

irishwexford

Can't help with this one as no problems with my plants. Mine are on allotment with loads of birds around but they never touch the squashes.
Someone will come with an answer I am sure.

Mayflower10cat

My instinctive reply was going to be; slugs or snails. They love young courgette plants and will happily chomp right through the stalk of a young plant... very sad. Possibly rabbit damage? Birds will also peck at young plants, pigeons are notorious for it. Try making a birdscarer; take plastic milk bottle, cut some vertical 'wings' in the sides, unfold them out to make a kind of blade, slide onto a short length of bamboo and as the wind catches the 'wings', the bottle clatters about on the pole. Also, those little windmills on sticks from the Pound shop are good.

ginvzt

Mayflower10cat wrote: »

My instinctive reply was going to be; slugs or snails. They love young courgette plants and will happily chomp right through the stalk of a young plant... very sad. Possibly rabbit damage? Birds will also peck at young plants, pigeons are notorious for it. Try making a birdscarer; take plastic milk bottle, cut some vertical 'wings' in the sides, unfold them out to make a kind of blade, slide onto a short length of bamboo and as the wind catches the 'wings', the bottle clatters about on the pole. Also, those little windmills on sticks from the Pound shop are good.

No, no rabbits in our garden, only a cat - he loves grass, but I haven't seen him go anywhere near the area with the plants.

I'll try the milk bottle trick, if there is anything left when I come home!

DavidAC

I have cought a slug and snail eating my Courgettes. I go out every night and catch any I find near them, put them in a bag and free them far away. I still get some damage but not nearly as much. It is a lot of hassle though. Next year I might just plant them in big pots and take them in at night.

ginvzt

DavidAC wrote: »

I have cought a slug and snail eating my Courgettes. I go out every night and catch any I find near them, put them in a bag and free them far away. I still get some damage but not nearly as much. It is a lot of hassle though. Next year I might just plant them in big pots and take them in at night.

But in my case, the worst damage was done during the day?:think: