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| My Fava beans are sprouting and a few were peaking through the dirt yesterday. When I got home from work today the crows were having a feast. GGGGGRRRRRR!
They seemed to be taunting me, standing there with beans as big as their head in their mouths. I nailed 4 with my shotgun (3 in the air) before the rest got away. I probably would have gotten more but I only had 4 shells. It may seem gruesome to some but I have 4 crows hanging on poles to hopefully scare the others away. The deer are next................... HEE HEE! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Maybe cover up the rows with a light mulch? If they can't see the sprouts from the trees they'll be less likely to go after them, IME. They sure can do a lot of damage. Sounds like you need a scarecrow, maybe one holding a shotgun, aye? |
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| Chicken wire tunnels aka pea guards work well. The problem I get is wood pigeons eating pea seedlings. Mice eat the favas but only the beans, not the shoots. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Pea guard
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| "Sounds like you need a scarecrow, maybe one holding a shotgun, aye?" LOL The real scare crows, dead hanging on the poles, seems to be working. But they smell pretty bad! LOL I haven't saw a crow or any other bird in the garden after I hung them up! |
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- Posted by susanzone5 z5NY (My Page) on Sat, Oct 6, 12 at 11:47
| i put shiny cd discs all around the plants, some swinging from twine and others lying on the ground shiny side up, around the plants. works everytime. |
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- Posted by aftermidnight Z8 V. Island B.C. (My Page) on Sat, Oct 6, 12 at 12:35
| I second using cd disks, works like a charm for me too, that is when I remember to do it :). Annette |
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| Sadly, I haven't found CDs very effective against my pigeon predators. Only a physical barrier stops them. Even netting must be high and taut or they just sit on it, weighing it down until the plants poke through the holes! |
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| I've had success with camouflage. Birds just sit right next to the spinning, shining disks and peck away. I just sprinkle anything green- grass, leaves, etc. down the row after planting, making the new sprouts less obvious. Repeat until sprouts are bigger and less tempting. |
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| oldpea - I think you have something there. I tried using bolted kale plants laid over a row of pea seedlings last year. It was quite effective. And now I have a row of baby kale plants growing which I didn't need to sow. |
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| The survivors are about 8" tall now. The crows got about 1/3 of them or I had some that didn't sprout. Enough to eat. |
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