What gets pecked by pigeons and what doesn't?

Started by Toshofthe Wuffingas, July 14, 2012, 01:01:56

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Toshofthe Wuffingas

I know that most brassicas and peas and lettuce gets attacked and thus need protection but am I giving myself needless work by netting bush French beans? Neither do I want to waste useful cage space.
The curcubits and carrots and onions, runner beans, climbing French beans and broad beans didn't get touched. The mizuna and rocket got picked at a bit but the parsley and coriander didn't.

Toshofthe Wuffingas


Ru1

The only things which have been "pigeon proof" on my allotment have been beetroot and leeks.  I haven't had to cover them at all.

Everything else has been "pigeoned" at some point.

Hope that helps

chriscross1966

I lost a load of beetroot this year, I assuem to pigeons... no slime so don't think snails or slugs.... would blackbirds take it?.... I've had pigeons trim leeks too, as well as onions....

chriselst

Everything on my allotment this year has been eaten by something apart from beetroot, parsnips and salad leaves.

Went yesterday, and all the spring onions have been savaged since the last time I was there having miraculously survived up til this point.

Something is even getting at the peas despite them being wrapped in several layers of ever more fine mesh.  No signs of trails or slugs everywhere.

Occasionally see smaller birds hopping out from under netting, saw a rabbit in a plot two down from mine yesterday.

Was having a walk around a week or two back and there was a small bird flying around inside someone's fruit cage.

The weather has been terrible this year, but the damage done by things eating almost everything is far more demoralising.

Even with so much netting on the things even light weeding becomes a massive chore.

Robert_Brenchley

It's a pain in the backside, I couldn't agree more. I hate using slug pellets, but I've been reduced to it as otherwise transplants don't stand a chance. The pigeons are at their knavish tricks as well.

Vinlander

Quote from: chriselst on July 16, 2012, 09:55:15
Everything on my allotment this year has been eaten by something apart from beetroot, parsnips and salad leaves.

Went yesterday, and all the spring onions have been savaged since the last time I was there having miraculously survived up til this point.

Something is even getting at the peas despite them being wrapped in several layers of ever more fine mesh.  No signs of trails or slugs everywhere.

Occasionally see smaller birds hopping out from under netting, saw a rabbit in a plot two down from mine yesterday.

Was having a walk around a week or two back and there was a small bird flying around inside someone's fruit cage.

The weather has been terrible this year, but the damage done by things eating almost everything is far more demoralising.

Even with so much netting on the things even light weeding becomes a massive chore.

Peas under mesh? Almost certainly mice - especially if whole pods disappear - you should find a nook or hole somewhere that's stuffed with peapod parchment.

As someone said - the price of peas is eternal vigilance - well, actually that was me... but Jefferson definitely nearly said it and he was a gardener after all!

Cheers.

With a microholding you always get too much or bugger-all. (I'm fed up calling it an allotment garden - it just encourages the tidy-police).

The simple/complex split is more & more important: Simple fertilisers Poor, complex ones Good. Simple (old) poisons predictable, others (new) the opposite.

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