What eats onions apart from us

[laurieuk]

I HAD a nice bed of autumn planted onion sets until yesterday. I went out to pick some broccoli for lunch only to see all the tops have been eaten. The whole plot is wirenetted against rabbits and I have checked all the way round for gaps. We have some very healthy pigeons but they have not bothered before. Any one had similar problems

[laurieuk]

[shirlton]

The Alium moth usually gets mine or the birds pull them up if they aren't covered but never been eaten

[Jeanbean]

Can some one tell me if we need to keep our onions netted until we harvest them? We were advised to cover them when we planted them to stop the birds from flicking them about. They are now about 8 inches high so wondered if we would be able to remove the netting. Any advice gratefully received. :-\ :-\

[Deb P]

We have pigeons the size of barrage balloons on our site, but I have never suffered any onion damage from them. The tops look cleanly snapped or nibbled off, which I think rules out  bird damage. Sure no rabbits got in? Any evidence of any poo of any kind around ?  :-\

I have never had to net my onions, I understand some people net with very fine netting against the allium moth, or that new onion fly they mentioned on Gardener's World, but once sets have started into good growth the birds seem to leave them alone so it should be safe to un- net them! ;D

[Eristic]

Slugs.

[Deb P]

You think so? I thought it looked a bit too neat for slimies, perhaps I just have very sloppy ones up here..... ;D

[davyw1]

Voles will also nibble of the top of your onions

[zigzig]

It looks like those rabbits are getting in to me.

They can jump quite high, I have seen them do a running jump and clear a fence nearly 3 feet high.

Just check that fence you have for gaps too.

[realfood]

I have never seen slugs attack alliums so do not use slug pellets on them. I can well believe that voles might attack at this time of year, as they are very hungry. Last year they ate most of my shallot sets in March, I could see their tooth marks!!

[Tee Gee]

Certainly an animal in my opinion, so I would go for rabbits.

Have they dug/burrowed under your wire netting by any chance?

[Pescador]

Eristic,

never seen slugs with legs before!!

[laurieuk]

I have checked and double checked the fencing, what ever it is has not touched cabbages etc. just the onions. I will spray with grazer tomorrow which will rule out rabbits. I cannot think that in one night slugs could eat the whole lot about 45 plants, if it is slugs I AM WORRIED>

[chriscross1966]

It's a wierdy.... most big fur or feather creatures would have had your cabbages before the onions I'd have thought....

chrisc

[laurieuk]

I think the mystrey is solved we have a "friendly" thingy pheasant who may not be as friendly as we thought 

[OllieC]

I have never seen slugs attack alliums

They love mine!

[OllieC]

I think the mystrey is solved we have a "friendly" thingy pheasant who may not be as friendly as we thought 

Hmmm, pheasant goes well with onions!

[Hyacinth]

I'm interested in this, cos some of my leeks and onions looked/look just like this (I'm growing in my suburban garden remember, so I can discount rabbits or even voles.) Slugs were discounted cos they were eaten from the top. Gotta lotta pigeons tho, pigeons and magpies, and my bets were on the former. :-\

[chriscross1966]

I think the mystrey is solved we have a "friendly" thingy pheasant who may not be as friendly as we thought 

Hmmm, pheasant goes well with onions!

And this one will come pre-stuffed with onions.... should save time....

[froglets]

Pheasants make a right mess of any plant they find nearby.  They nip the tops of all sorts of plants.  OH  had one decide his raised lawn was perfect for displaying & while it was very impressive, the damage he was doing to the borders was not on.  The cat just took one look & retreated to the conservatory so it was up to us to chase him off.  Weird when they roost in trees nearby -
just doesn't look right.

Another culprit may be mice or voles.  We are having trouble with them tunnelling up inside the netting and munching away safe from predators outside the nets.

[Hyacinth]

...but again..would mice & voles eat only the tops when all of the emerging stalk is equally flavoursome and tender ??? And although Laurie posed the original question, the damage is so similar to mine, I'm able to discount them for me.

btw. something I'd like to ask..do pigeons rootle about for worms or are they so suburbanised they only eat fish'n'chips'pizza these days? ::) cos back to my leek'n'onion patches, although there's frequent ground disturbance round there by magpies looking for worms, I'd always put the damage to the crops down to pigeons which are also active in that area (mainly because they nick the seed put out for smaller birds)..