What's eating my strawberries?

Enterprise_1701C

My strawberries always got eaten until I got fed up with one I was looking forward to half disappearing, I then netted them and they are fine. I do let the birds have a few of my redcurrants though! (Slightly annoying when the wood pigeons use the netting to stand on to try to get to the currants though!!)

WhiteHorse

Blackbirds will sell their souls for strawberries and rasberries. Netting is the only solution for that problem!

lostinrates

froogs wrote: »

What does the CD's on strings do please? Thanks.

Scares birds!

I use them both with soft fruits and for avian predators when I have very little chicks about. some people doubt how good it is, but where I used to live I got a decent cherry crop. I reckon if you can get loads of cherries without netting then something works Its more effective if you move them about the garden regularly so the birds think they might be a live. The string gives them some movement in the breeze.

grrmich

The squirrels are the worst culprit at my plot. I net my strawberries but the net has to be really secure to stop the squirrels getting in. This probably won't look pretty in your garden, but I dig a shallow trench around my strawberry bed, and use large bottles of water (recycled bottles) to weigh the netting down in the trench. The bottles are postitioned around the bed so that there are no gaps between them. You could use bricks or paving slabs for a garden.

cootambear

froogs wrote: »

What does the CD's on strings do please? Thanks.

Supposedly, the flash of light and colour instinctively scares them as its similar to the flash of a bigger birds eye.

However, creatures with a lesser life span than ours evolve faster than we can - look how foxes and pigeons have colonised the cities.

Our saving grace is that we do not simply evolve as animals alone, we evolve culturally as well.

Those birds who ignore CD`s will tend to survive (statiscally) and pass on their genes to their offspring.

Its an arms race, as all flora and fauna is.

alisong_2

I'll tell you what's eating mine........it's the **@@!! dog!

Valli

tanith wrote: »

I used to find woodlice in my strawberries... disgusting things..

The slugs make the holes then the woodlice move in...

Humpty4u

grrmich wrote: »

The squirrels are the worst culprit at my plot. I net my strawberries but the net has to be really secure to stop the squirrels getting in. This probably won't look pretty in your garden, but I dig a shallow trench around my strawberry bed, and use large bottles of water (recycled bottles) to weigh the netting down in the trench. The bottles are postitioned around the bed so that there are no gaps between them. You could use bricks or paving slabs for a garden.

:mad:We Have the same problem with squirrels they seem to prefer them B4 they are ripe, we also are now using netting :eek:

chelms38

I have been getting some good crops over the last few weeks,but the odd one seems to attract ants.