Grow Your Own Magazine

I bought two more big bags of compost yesterday and when I looked out this morning, they have been savaged! there are foot long rips and soil all over the place. I am assuming it is foxes although there are squirrels, wood pigeons, magpies, jays etc in the garden. Three questions...

Is it foxes?

Will I need to protect my newly planted veg from further trouble as I plant them?

If they pee on the veg and or compost, it is unhygenic isn't it?

More likely badgers after the worms or whatever they thought they could smell. If it is badgers you have a problem. Foxes eat slugs and things but badgers for all that they are fascinating to watch are often destructive just for the fun of it! They are very mischievous creatures. Check all round your garden etc for egress and that should tell you what it is. Good luck.

It won't be badgers as I am in Central London-I wish it was!

At the same time, I don't see why foxes would do it except for the same reason....just to be naughty.

This article disagrees
Badgers about, June 2005 - The Londoner

Hello Kitty, I'm in Harrow and often get my compost and manure bags ripped open by foxes on my allotment. They seem particularly fascinated with manure! One even left its calling card on top of one of the ripped bags. A vixen used to visit my plot often to sit near me, watch me work and play with my tools. She nibbled my wheelbarrow handles and 'disappeared' a few gloves before she disappeared herself.

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Gardening Gertrude

I run an animal charity and also monitor wildlife and have not heard of badgers around where I am but it is a very interesting article-I know there are badgers further out.

My garden also has 6-7 feet high walls all round and I don't think they are good climbers! The foxes though, are always running and leaping up the walls!

It does seem like it was foxes having fun-I've just been out clearing up the mess and they have had a rare old time ripping the bags to shreds and digging! Mind you, when I gave the squirrel it's monkey nuts this morning, it looked a bit shame-faced-they are always digging too but i don't think a gang of them could have done that much ripping!

I didn't find any 'calling cards' but I think I could detect the faint whiff of 'eau de fox'..they had better not dig up my potatoes! Do I need to protect things and with what?

I might leave a jam sandwich put for the foxes as a bribe-they love them!

I liked your story of the vixen.

foxes can jump 7 foot walls?

Perhaps its the same bl**** wild boar that have just ripped up my potato/onion patch....the speed the river is running they could have got on a raft and been with you in a few hours.......

I opened a bag of multi-compost the other day and found three mice in it- alive and now free.

Yep-sure can!