Grow Your Own Magazine

I have found the top bushy parts of my carrots all chewed off not sure if it is rabbits or pigeons I have it fenced off should i put netting over the top they have not touched beetroot tops or very young peas or broadand runner beans
thanks in advance

Matt

Hi Matt,
i'm growing my carrots in a tub, i found a few that were munched off, found the culprit on the side of the tub, a big fat snail! i heard once that if you spray the tub with wd40 it stops them, not much use in a bed i know but handy if you do have anything in tubs.

Another problem the pigeons have found the runner beans they have stripped four plants of all leafs will they come back or should I take tham out and use the space for something else? I can feel the air rifle about to come out if this carries on.

If the growing tip is still there they'll come again. If that's been nipped off I think they've had it. I net most crops when young to keep pigeons off.

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Earth laughs in flowers. Ralph Waldo Emerson

www.vegheaven.blogspot.com

Updated November 17th - The Big Dig

We have a cat which keeps the pigeons off but the problem is then I have to keep the cat off.....

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Happy Gardening,
Shirley

http://www.honeyjukes.co.uk

My cats are rubbish. The have not stopped the pigeons from stripping the cherry tree, and they wee on the strawbs.

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Hazel
www.hazelandjanesallotment.blogspot.com
update Sat 15/11/2008......there's gold in them thar...compost bins!......

Are you sure it's pigeons? They usually go for brassicas - cabbage plants to you and me. You would be surprised the amount of damage to leaves and shoots that snails do - they're worse than slugs because they actually climb the stems of plants to get at the tender new shoots. You could try beer traps sunk into the ground, sitting on the lottie at the dead of night, torch in hand, ready to pick them off your plants and transplant them to pastures new, or you could just try using the little blue pellets. Plants can be protected from pigeons (and other birds) by using netting, but that won't stop slugs and snails.

I am pretty sure that it is pigeons as it happened in about 2 hours and four plants were stipped bare with some leafs left on the ground.