Crop Nibblers — Who Else is Eating Your Plants?
By Alice Ambler from the James Hutton Institute.
Human animals aren’t the only creatures that love to munch on your garden’s bounty. Many of our Living Soils experimenters have told us that their radishes, beans and spinach are being eaten — but not by them! Culprits include birds, mice, squirrels, and slugs, while some are also dug up by cats.
If pests have been pesky, do nevertheless try to carry on with the Experiment if you’ve started. It’s all useful data, and part of the real life experience of doing citizen science. There is space on the harvesting results form to tell us about any problems like this.
We will run a short series on articles for growers everywhere on how best to deal with all manner of pests — on mammals, on birds and on all manner of spineless pests. First up, mammals, as written by Alice Ambler from the James Hutton Institute.
Mammals
Small, and larger mammals (such as mice, and cats) can be a nightmare when it comes to growing vegetables. For small mammals, gardens are a haven, providing safety and a readily available food source — mainly your crops and seeds. When it comes to cats, gardens are the ideal place to lounge let it all out. Yes our feline friends can eat, poop and leave…..
Let’s begin with the smallest of the culprits — rodents such as mice, voles and rats. Rodents love stored seeds, newly sown seeds (particularly beans, peas, and corn), and fruits (such as strawberries). Signs of them include: gathered materials for nests (such as torn paper) in garden sheds, small gnaw marks on your fruit, and dug up soils where seeds or bulbs have been planted, as well as droppings.
There are numerous steps you can take to help deter mice from your growing space. Firstly, try to eliminate nesting possibilities. If you have a shed, close up all points of entry to prevent them from nesting inside. Mice can squeeze through tiny gaps (as small as 1–2 cm), so be thorough. Keep your plot clean and tidy to remove any potential nesting places or nesting materials (piles of wood, grass clippings, etc.). Avoid using deep and cosy mulches (such as straw, or any fluffy material).
Secondly, try to remove easy food sources. Cover compost heaps, and ensure that your bins remain closed. Rather than scattering bird feed on the ground, try using a bird table or feeder. Thirdly, deterrents. There are large ranges of deterrents in most home stores and garden centres, as well as humane live traps — although you will need somewhere to transfer them to and mice can travel several hundred metres in one night. Finally, attract predators! How about planting catmint in your garden to attract local felines to fend off the mice?
Use a enclosed bird feeder rather than a tray to avoid encouraging rodents in your garden
However attracting cats to your garden may have its advantages when it comes to small rodents, but it comes at a price. Loose soil is the perfect kitty litter substitute. This can result in cat faeces in your garden, and dug up vegetable beds in their attempt to cover their crime. If you see any evidence of cat fouling, remove it immediately, or it will attract more fouling cats to the same location. If you don’t mind cats in your garden, but don’t appreciate all of the consequences, there are a few things you can try.
Try minimise areas of exposed soil. You could do this by: mulching with stone chippings; keeping the soil well mulched with moisture retentive material (cats like dry litter); or you could invest in some ground cover plants. These may not always work. As I was walking to the shop last week, I saw a cat suspiciously trying to burrow its leavings in someones brand new gravelled garden. One of the most effective treatments is sharp sticks. Short sharp sticks that stick up 2–3 inches (about 5 cm) above the soil and are spaced close enough together that cats can’t squat to do their business. It is potentially the cheapest and most effective solution to the ‘litter tray’ issue.
If you want to deter them from your garden all together, there are numerous methods you can try. You could try blocking gaps to your garden or allotment with prickly plants or cuttings (e.g. holly, brambles). If you have a fence, try fitting a wire or a string 1–15 cm above the top to make it difficult for cats to sit or balance. Cats, and many other animals are troubled by light reflections. Try dangling old CDs around bare soil areas. Ensure they can dangle and spin in the wind, on the end of a string. You can also pick up cat deterrents from garden centres and home stores.
Next up — birds.
