|
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. The pears are
still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. They said "aren't you going to wash it?" I said "why?" The quinces are marvellous, truly the prince of cooked fruits, pink and luscious. The medlars are a few weeks away yet. Such rewards make all the fuss with nets and such worthwhile. David |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message ... I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. The pears are still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. They said "aren't you going to wash it?" I said "why?" Jealous I am, I truly am. The quinces are marvellous, truly the prince of cooked fruits, pink and luscious. The medlars are a few weeks away yet. Such rewards make all the fuss with nets and such worthwhile. I in days gone, long gone would steal (not borrow) quangers from grandma's quince tree, a prince of fruit eaten straight from the tree. Mouth watering & doubly jealous. David |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
David Hare-Scott wrote:
I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. The pears are still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. They said "aren't you going to wash it?" I said "why?" The quinces are marvellous, truly the prince of cooked fruits, pink and luscious. The medlars are a few weeks away yet. Such rewards make all the fuss with nets and such worthwhile. David David, where did you get your quince tree from? I'd love to grow one, but haven't seen any available in N'cle. -- Trish Brown {|:-} Newcastle, NSW, Australia |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
David Hare-Scott wrote:
I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. The pears are still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. They said "aren't you going to wash it?" I said "why?" Yes a fresh apple off your own tree is fantastic and makes the best of bought apples look average. Are your apples free of codling moth or do you use a non-spray method of control? We used to have a great Granny Smith apple crop but ut has been very poor in recent years. Recently I was told that possums eat apple blossum which could well be the cause, so we will net much earlier next year. We also have a fuji apple but it has never had more than a few apples on it (maybe the possums have been eating the fuji blossum since day one). Interestingly, possums don't seem to eat nectarine blossums (we get a great crop of them - no spray - just buggerising around with nets to keep out possums, birds, rats and bats). We also have a problem with possums eating the leaves off trees (eucalypts, apples, and they nearly 100% stripped the apricot). When we first planted the apples, we had no problem with codling moth but it has progressively got worse. We have a new Ballerina "Polka" apple tree in a large pot so it is away from the Granny Smith planted in the garden and doesn't have a large problem with codling moth - although we are going to have to do something to control them next year as we have already had the odd codling-moth- affected fruit fall off. Haven't yet picked a Polka apple to see what a good one like. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Trish Brown wrote:
David Hare-Scott wrote: I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. The pears are still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. They said "aren't you going to wash it?" I said "why?" The quinces are marvellous, truly the prince of cooked fruits, pink and luscious. The medlars are a few weeks away yet. Such rewards make all the fuss with nets and such worthwhile. David David, where did you get your quince tree from? I'd love to grow one, but haven't seen any available in N'cle. Anselines at Raymond Terrace, Gloucester Garden Centre has them too. David |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Tom N wrote:
David Hare-Scott wrote: I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. The pears are still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. They said "aren't you going to wash it?" I said "why?" Yes a fresh apple off your own tree is fantastic and makes the best of bought apples look average. Are your apples free of codling moth or do you use a non-spray method of control? I haven't seen the moth in the area but there are not many orchards. What is a non-spray method of control? We used to have a great Granny Smith apple crop but ut has been very poor in recent years. Recently I was told that possums eat apple blossum which could well be the cause, so we will net much earlier next year. The little beggars were crossing 150m of paddock patrolled by a kelpie to get to mine. We also have a fuji apple but it has never had more than a few apples on it (maybe the possums have been eating the fuji blossum since day one). Interestingly, possums don't seem to eat nectarine blossums (we get a great crop of them - no spray - just buggerising around with nets to keep out possums, birds, rats and bats). They were lifting the net to get to my stone fruits even with bricks every metre along the bottom. We also have a problem with possums eating the leaves off trees (eucalypts, apples, and they nearly 100% stripped the apricot). When we first planted the apples, we had no problem with codling moth but it has progressively got worse. We have a new Ballerina "Polka" apple tree in a large pot so it is away from the Granny Smith planted in the garden and doesn't have a large problem with codling moth - although we are going to have to do something to control them next year as we have already had the odd codling-moth- affected fruit fall off. Haven't yet picked a Polka apple to see what a good one like. David |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
David Hare-Scott wrote:
Tom N wrote: David Hare-Scott wrote: I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. The pears are still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. They said "aren't you going to wash it?" I said "why?" Yes a fresh apple off your own tree is fantastic and makes the best of bought apples look average. Are your apples free of codling moth or do you use a non-spray method of control? I haven't seen the moth in the area but there are not many orchards. What is a non-spray method of control? I have only used spray but IIRC you can wrap several layers of cardboard around the trunk at the right times of the year to catch the grubs and I have some vague memory of there being other methods (maybe biological controls or other traps). We used to have a great Granny Smith apple crop but ut has been very poor in recent years. Recently I was told that possums eat apple blossum which could well be the cause, so we will net much earlier next year. The little beggars were crossing 150m of paddock patrolled by a kelpie to get to mine. Our possums just leap from tree to tree mostly. Rarely go on the ground. We also have a fuji apple but it has never had more than a few apples on it (maybe the possums have been eating the fuji blossum since day one). Interestingly, possums don't seem to eat nectarine blossums (we get a great crop of them - no spray - just buggerising around with nets to keep out possums, birds, rats and bats). They were lifting the net to get to my stone fruits even with bricks every metre along the bottom. I hold my net down with garden stakes with bricks on them. You might find that if you built a fence around the bottom with welded wire mesh (like chookwire but stiffer) that it would keep them out (at least until they discovered they could climb it). Wouldn't work for my place as they aren't on the ground to start with. I'm told possums don't like climbing wobbly wire mesh fences so if you build a fence that tips over a bit when they climb it, you might keep them out. Our possums would just jump onto the net from another tree and then lie on it like a hammock. They'd stick their paw through and eat nectarines through the net. But with a net there they don't eat much and they choose ripe fruit by smell I suppose and they eat the whole fruit. Other pests take a bite to see if it is ripe and rarely eat all of the fruit so in the end they damage a lot more fruit than possums do. Bats are farely easy to keep out with nets as they are fairly clumbsy unless flying. We have a rat or two which is too smart for rat traps or poisons. It gnaws a hole in the net. The birds (particularly introduced thrushes) patrol around the net looking for holes and will find any little hole to get through. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Tom N wrote:
I have only used spray but IIRC you can wrap several layers of cardboard around the trunk at the right times of the year to catch the grubs and I have some vague memory of there being other methods (maybe biological controls or other traps). Forgot to say that codling moths spend part of their lifecycle in a cocoon under bark or in the ground, hence the wrapping of the cardboard around the trunk which catches them on their way down from the fruit. Quite a lot on google if you look for "codling moth organic control" e.g. http://www.greenharvest.com.au/pestc...moth_info.html It talks about the cardboard method, parasitic wasps (commercially available), home-made traps, and covering fruit with exclusion bags. You can yse Lebaycid spray (which I have used), but you are supposed to use it every 2 weeks until 2 weeks before picking (when I used it, I didn't do it more than a few times a season). http://www.yates.com.au/problem-solv.../codling-moth/ |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Whats missing is a shot gun and a wild tempered Tom cat.
Or maybe a Dingo or two.... Tom N wrote: David Hare-Scott wrote: Tom N wrote: David Hare-Scott wrote: I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. The pears are still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. They said "aren't you going to wash it?" I said "why?" Yes a fresh apple off your own tree is fantastic and makes the best of bought apples look average. Are your apples free of codling moth or do you use a non-spray method of control? I haven't seen the moth in the area but there are not many orchards. What is a non-spray method of control? I have only used spray but IIRC you can wrap several layers of cardboard around the trunk at the right times of the year to catch the grubs and I have some vague memory of there being other methods (maybe biological controls or other traps). We used to have a great Granny Smith apple crop but ut has been very poor in recent years. Recently I was told that possums eat apple blossum which could well be the cause, so we will net much earlier next year. The little beggars were crossing 150m of paddock patrolled by a kelpie to get to mine. Our possums just leap from tree to tree mostly. Rarely go on the ground. We also have a fuji apple but it has never had more than a few apples on it (maybe the possums have been eating the fuji blossum since day one). Interestingly, possums don't seem to eat nectarine blossums (we get a great crop of them - no spray - just buggerising around with nets to keep out possums, birds, rats and bats). They were lifting the net to get to my stone fruits even with bricks every metre along the bottom. I hold my net down with garden stakes with bricks on them. You might find that if you built a fence around the bottom with welded wire mesh (like chookwire but stiffer) that it would keep them out (at least until they discovered they could climb it). Wouldn't work for my place as they aren't on the ground to start with. I'm told possums don't like climbing wobbly wire mesh fences so if you build a fence that tips over a bit when they climb it, you might keep them out. Our possums would just jump onto the net from another tree and then lie on it like a hammock. They'd stick their paw through and eat nectarines through the net. But with a net there they don't eat much and they choose ripe fruit by smell I suppose and they eat the whole fruit. Other pests take a bite to see if it is ripe and rarely eat all of the fruit so in the end they damage a lot more fruit than possums do. Bats are farely easy to keep out with nets as they are fairly clumbsy unless flying. We have a rat or two which is too smart for rat traps or poisons. It gnaws a hole in the net. The birds (particularly introduced thrushes) patrol around the net looking for holes and will find any little hole to get through. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
David Hare-Scott wrote:
David, where did you get your quince tree from? I'd love to grow one, but haven't seen any available in N'cle. Anselines at Raymond Terrace, Gloucester Garden Centre has them too. David Thanks for that! ;-D -- Trish Brown {|:-} Newcastle, NSW, Australia |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Tom N wrote:
Interestingly, possums don't seem to eat nectarine blossums (we get a great crop of them - no spray - just buggerising around with nets to keep out possums, birds, rats and bats). They were lifting the net to get to my stone fruits even with bricks every metre along the bottom. I hold my net down with garden stakes with bricks on them. You might find that if you built a fence around the bottom with welded wire mesh (like chookwire but stiffer) that it would keep them out (at least until they discovered they could climb it). Wouldn't work for my place as they aren't on the ground to start with. I'm told possums don't like climbing wobbly wire mesh fences so if you build a fence that tips over a bit when they climb it, you might keep them out. I have 40 trees all up so this is too hard, I am making more wire pegs for next year to peg down the bottom Our possums would just jump onto the net from another tree and then lie on it like a hammock. They'd stick their paw through and eat nectarines through the net. But with a net there they don't eat much and they choose ripe fruit by smell I suppose and they eat the whole fruit. Other pests take a bite to see if it is ripe and rarely eat all of the fruit so in the end they damage a lot more fruit than possums do. Bats are farely easy to keep out with nets as they are fairly clumbsy unless flying. Yes but wait til one gets tangled in the net, you will find getting them out quite entertaining unless you use the shovel anesthetic method (I don't). For vegetarians they have a very fine set of teeth and are not shy about using them. Some are disease carriers too. We have a rat or two which is too smart for rat traps or poisons. It gnaws a hole in the net. The birds (particularly introduced thrushes) patrol around the net looking for holes and will find any little hole to get through. I buy ratsak in 3kg boxes and put it out all round the buildings in the warmer weather. I will coexist with them out in the garden but they are just too destructive in the house or shed. David |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. The pears are still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. They said "aren't you going to wash it?" I said "why?" The quinces are marvellous, truly the prince of cooked fruits, pink and luscious. The medlars are a few weeks away yet. Such rewards make all the fuss with nets and such worthwhile. We too have had wonderful apples this year but I lost all but a couple of my quinces because I ran out of bird netting so could only cover a few of them. My peaches are jsut about to be right for harvest. I've had a few and they are stunning. Nectarines were also good this year. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"SG1" wrote in message
I in days gone, long gone would steal (not borrow) quangers from grandma's quince tree, a prince of fruit eaten straight from the tree. Mouth watering & doubly jealous. ???? Never heard of eating uncooked Quinces. Arse puckeringly tart when raw, IMHO. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
David Hare-Scott wrote:
Tom N wrote: Interestingly, possums don't seem to eat nectarine blossums (we get a great crop of them - no spray - just buggerising around with nets to keep out possums, birds, rats and bats). They were lifting the net to get to my stone fruits even with bricks every metre along the bottom. I hold my net down with garden stakes with bricks on them. You might find that if you built a fence around the bottom with welded wire mesh (like chookwire but stiffer) that it would keep them out (at least until they discovered they could climb it). Wouldn't work for my place as they aren't on the ground to start with. I'm told possums don't like climbing wobbly wire mesh fences so if you build a fence that tips over a bit when they climb it, you might keep them out. I have 40 trees all up so this is too hard, I am making more wire pegs for next year to peg down the bottom The pest problem just gets worse in my experience. When we first planted fruit trees, we had no problems with insects or animals or birds. Apart from the fruit trees planted in the ground, I also have berries bushes and an apple in pots. I have made a wire cage to keep out the assorted buggers. Works well. Bit expensive for 40 trees though. Was once at a farm where they had an old orange orchard and a problem with sulphur crested cockatoos destroying the fruit just for the seeds. The cockies could recognise someone with a rifle and would stay out of range, but would ignore people without a rifle. Our possums would just jump onto the net from another tree and then lie on it like a hammock. They'd stick their paw through and eat nectarines through the net. But with a net there they don't eat much and they choose ripe fruit by smell I suppose and they eat the whole fruit. Other pests take a bite to see if it is ripe and rarely eat all of the fruit so in the end they damage a lot more fruit than possums do. Bats are farely easy to keep out with nets as they are fairly clumbsy unless flying. Yes but wait til one gets tangled in the net, you will find getting them out quite entertaining unless you use the shovel anesthetic method (I don't). For vegetarians they have a very fine set of teeth and are not shy about using them. Some are disease carriers too. When were down to the last ten nectarines on the tree, a brush-tailed possum got inside the net somehow and was trapped there until the next day. It charged around flinging itself into the net when we went out to allow it out. Got a bit tangled at one point but I can imagine a bat being worse. We have a rat or two which is too smart for rat traps or poisons. It gnaws a hole in the net. The birds (particularly introduced thrushes) patrol around the net looking for holes and will find any little hole to get through. I buy ratsak in 3kg boxes and put it out all round the buildings in the warmer weather. I will coexist with them out in the garden but they are just too destructive in the house or shed. This rat we have is purely a garden rat. Too smart for ratsak or traps or the wax poison blocks. It used to get into the compost bin until we buried the edge of it down 15cm (it is one of those commercial plastic bins with no bottom). We did have a rat or two in the garage at one point and it ate a whole packet of snail bait (the one with the bitter additive to deter children and pets). The rat ate half one the packet one night and I saw the half empty packet and thought the culprit would be dead and wouldn't come back, and the next night it came back and ate the rest! I reckon a lot of wild animals like foxes and rats and probably feral cats live on pet food and scraps given to pets outside. I occasionally see foxes around here and I am sure they patrol back yards for food scraps. The garage rat used to bring in lamb chop bones and nectarines and I was cleaning out secluded parts of the garage and the carport behind some boxes and other stuff, and I found dozens and dozens of nectarine stones and chop bones. The nectarines were from our tree but the chop bones must have come from someone else's yard. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"FarmI" ask@itshall be given wrote in message ... "SG1" wrote in message I in days gone, long gone would steal (not borrow) quangers from grandma's quince tree, a prince of fruit eaten straight from the tree. Mouth watering & doubly jealous. ???? Never heard of eating uncooked Quinces. Arse puckeringly tart when raw, IMHO. You just never got to my grandma's at Maryborough Vic. Tart yes but also like my apples b4 they are ripe & stone fruit you cud have a game of cricket with. Only stuff U eat when ripe are oranges & grapes. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Tom N wrote:
Apart from the fruit trees planted in the ground, I also have berries bushes and an apple in pots. I have made a wire cage to keep out the assorted buggers. Works well. Bit expensive for 40 trees though. The $^#% rat found some way to get inside the cage last night and nibbled a couple of apples. Spent a while today applying some more wire clips and chookwire to hopefully keep the bugger out. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Tom N wrote:
Tom N wrote: Apart from the fruit trees planted in the ground, I also have berries bushes and an apple in pots. I have made a wire cage to keep out the assorted buggers. Works well. Bit expensive for 40 trees though. The $^#% rat found some way to get inside the cage last night and nibbled a couple of apples. Spent a while today applying some more wire clips and chookwire to hopefully keep the bugger out. Having excluded them from the fruit trees now the satin bower birds are eating my tomatos. I may have to net them too! David |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
David Hare-Scott wrote:
Tom N wrote: Tom N wrote: Apart from the fruit trees planted in the ground, I also have berries bushes and an apple in pots. I have made a wire cage to keep out the assorted buggers. Works well. Bit expensive for 40 trees though. The $^#% rat found some way to get inside the cage last night and nibbled a couple of apples. Spent a while today applying some more wire clips and chookwire to hopefully keep the bugger out. Having excluded them from the fruit trees now the satin bower birds are eating my tomatos. I may have to net them too! David Remember a few years ago when someone got rid of her brush turkeys by leaving a few lengths of garden hose lying around ('snakes')? I wonder whether a cutout shape of an eagle might work to keep marauding birds away. You could cut it out of fridge carton material and hang it from a tree or fencepost. I'm only half joking. It *could* work... y'never know until you try! OR What about a scarecrow??? Now *that* would add a talking point to your garden! ;-D -- Trish Brown {|:-} Newcastle, NSW, Australia |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Trish Brown wrote:
David Hare-Scott wrote: Tom N wrote: Tom N wrote: Apart from the fruit trees planted in the ground, I also have berries bushes and an apple in pots. I have made a wire cage to keep out the assorted buggers. Works well. Bit expensive for 40 trees though. The $^#% rat found some way to get inside the cage last night and nibbled a couple of apples. Spent a while today applying some more wire clips and chookwire to hopefully keep the bugger out. Having excluded them from the fruit trees now the satin bower birds are eating my tomatos. I may have to net them too! David Remember a few years ago when someone got rid of her brush turkeys by leaving a few lengths of garden hose lying around ('snakes')? I have real snakes but no turkeys. I wonder whether a cutout shape of an eagle might work to keep marauding birds away. I have the real thing there too. They have a nest on the mountain but don't spend much time here. You could cut it out of fridge carton material and hang it from a tree or fencepost. I'm only half joking. It *could* work... y'never know until you try! Maybe so, perhaps a searchlight with and eagle cut-out, like the Batman call sign. OR What about a scarecrow??? Now *that* would add a talking point to your garden! ;-D You'll be suggesting gnomes soon. David |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
a_nonny_mouse wrote:
David Hare-Scott wrote: Trish Brown wrote: snip I wonder whether a cutout shape of an eagle might work to keep marauding birds away. I have the real thing there too. They have a nest on the mountain but don't spend much time here. You could cut it out of fridge carton material and hang it from a tree or fencepost. I'm only half joking. It *could* work... y'never know until you try! You may wish to hang some old cds around the trees / fence as appropriate. A neighbour has pinched a few "coasters" from me in the past. Says they help keep the 28s (parrot species) away from his plum tree and other birds from his fig trees. Haven't had the need myself as our fruit trees are of the citrus variety. Oh, with the one exception of a self sown apple tree. We did not know what it was, but for years it looked OK and kept the summer sun off the end of the shed (west facing). Then a couple of years ago it sprouted forth with a nice crop of sweet apples. As with the citrus, bugs are the major problem. Maybe so, perhaps a searchlight with and eagle cut-out, like the Batman call sign. lol Can just picture it Made my day! What about a scarecrow??? Now *that* would add a talking point to your garden! ;-D You'll be suggesting gnomes soon. Too much. David keep smiling annonnymouse A model plane to buzz em off? |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
David Hare-Scott wrote:
Trish Brown wrote: snip I wonder whether a cutout shape of an eagle might work to keep marauding birds away. I have the real thing there too. They have a nest on the mountain but don't spend much time here. You could cut it out of fridge carton material and hang it from a tree or fencepost. I'm only half joking. It *could* work... y'never know until you try! You may wish to hang some old cds around the trees / fence as appropriate. A neighbour has pinched a few "coasters" from me in the past. Says they help keep the 28s (parrot species) away from his plum tree and other birds from his fig trees. Haven't had the need myself as our fruit trees are of the citrus variety. Oh, with the one exception of a self sown apple tree. We did not know what it was, but for years it looked OK and kept the summer sun off the end of the shed (west facing). Then a couple of years ago it sprouted forth with a nice crop of sweet apples. As with the citrus, bugs are the major problem. Maybe so, perhaps a searchlight with and eagle cut-out, like the Batman call sign. lol Can just picture it Made my day! What about a scarecrow??? Now *that* would add a talking point to your garden! ;-D You'll be suggesting gnomes soon. Too much. David keep smiling annonnymouse |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
David Hare-Scott wrote:
snip What about a scarecrow??? Now *that* would add a talking point to your garden! ;-D You'll be suggesting gnomes soon. David OH! Of *course*! Now, why didn't I think of that? I have two: Gregoire and Grenouille. (Actually, they belong to my son, who is 33 and autistic and has a bit of a 'thing' for garden gnomes). Once, years ago, I went to a rather dressed-up 50th birthday breakfast for a bloke who *hated* garden gnomes with a passion. On the invitations, it was stipulated that each guest must bring at least one (1) garden gnome as a gift. LOL! A great laugh was had by all, and the gnomes were all raffled off for charity. Except for mine. I tooled it on leather and painted it gnomishly, framing it in an old-gold celtic-style frame. AFAIK, it still sits on the bloke's grand piano these thirty-odd years later. LOL! -- Trish Brown {|:-} Newcastle, NSW, Australia |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
On Mar 12, 12:36*pm, "David Hare-Scott" wrote:
Trish Brown wrote: David Hare-Scott wrote: I have been pulling apples, pears and quinces this week. *The pears are still hard, hopefully the timing is right and they will ripen off the tree this time. The Granny Smith apples are beautiful; crisp, sweet and slightly tart. We had some visitors and I pulled one off the tree and offered it around. *They said "aren't you going to wash it?" *I said "why?" The quinces are marvellous, truly the prince of cooked fruits, pink and luscious. *The medlars are a few weeks away yet. *Such rewards make all the fuss with nets and such worthwhile. David David, where did you get your quince tree from? I'd love to grow one, but haven't seen any available in N'cle. Anselines at Raymond Terrace, Gloucester Garden Centre has them too. David I've held off planting a quince because of the fruit fly problem. How do you manage to keep your quinces (and apples!) free of fruit fly? Tish |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
|
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Tom N wrote:
Tom N wrote: Apart from the fruit trees planted in the ground, I also have berries bushes and an apple in pots. I have made a wire cage to keep out the assorted buggers. Works well. Bit expensive for 40 trees though. The $^#% rat found some way to get inside the cage last night and nibbled a couple of apples. Spent a while today applying some more wire clips and chookwire to hopefully keep the bugger out. The $^#% rat still made it inside last night. Nibbled or chomped on 3 apples. Since this is the first year for this tree, the rat has nibbled on most of the crop so far. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"Tom N" wrote in message ... The $^#% rat still made it inside last night. Nibbled or chomped on 3 apples. Since this is the first year for this tree, the rat has nibbled on most of the crop so far. Yes, same here, is it the year of the rat or what? I've had fruit trees for years and Never had rats going near them except for this season. They are the only critter that has defeated the nets! They got just about all the apples, because unlike the birds, possums & bats, they have figured out that it's no problem to chew holes in the net. Think I'll have to get a puddytat. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Trish Brown writes:
The $^#% rat found some way to get inside the cage last night and nibbled a couple of apples. Spent a while today applying some more wire clips and chookwire to hopefully keep the bugger out. The Yanks often talk of "tanglefoot" traps for rats. Is that stuff available here? It's a sticky pad critters get their feet stuck to, something like industrial-strength fly-paper. (Stepping on it would probably give the neighbour's cat a few anxious moments, too.) Remember a few years ago when someone got rid of her brush turkeys by leaving a few lengths of garden hose lying around ('snakes')? A suggestion I've heard is to place rubber snakes among the tree branches. But as some birds soon suss out fake snakes, I'd try moving the snakes around under cover of darkness, so they are seen to be in a different spot each day. Bats might not see the snake in the dark, but an electronics whiz might be able to modify a solar light to give the plastic snake some internal LED lighting during darkness. I have previously mentioned the idea of a large teddy bear in a fruit tree to repel possums. Possums, being territorial, see that the tree has already been claimed, and so avoid a fight by moving on. Well, that's how I've heard it explained, but I have not tried it. -- John Savage (my news address is not valid for email) |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Tom N writes:
We did have a rat or two in the garage at one point and it ate a whole packet of snail bait (the one with the bitter additive to deter children and pets). The rat ate half one the packet one night and I saw the half empty packet and thought the culprit would be dead and wouldn't come back, and the next night it came back and ate the rest! I found it very frustrating to spread snail bait and next day find not a single pellet anywhere, and no dying snails either. Finally I sighted a rat, around midday, skipping around the garden bold as brass collecting each pellet of snail bait. I replenished the bait each day, hoping it would spell the end of the rat, but no such luck and I had to resort to rat bait before I could lay out snail bait. I reckon a lot of wild animals like foxes and rats and probably feral cats live on pet food and scraps given to pets outside. I occasionally see foxes around here and I am sure they patrol back yards for food scraps. You forgot Indian mynahs! The garage rat used to bring in lamb chop bones and nectarines and I was cleaning out secluded parts of the garage and the carport behind some boxes and other stuff, and I found dozens and dozens of nectarine stones and chop bones. The nectarines were from our tree but the chop bones must have come from someone else's yard. You ruled out the possibility that the rats had progressed to slaughtering sheep? -- John Savage (my news address is not valid for email) |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"John Savage" wrote in message
... Trish Brown writes: The $^#% rat found some way to get inside the cage last night and nibbled a couple of apples. Spent a while today applying some more wire clips and chookwire to hopefully keep the bugger out. The Yanks often talk of "tanglefoot" traps for rats. Is that stuff available here? It's a sticky pad critters get their feet stuck to, something like industrial-strength fly-paper. (Stepping on it would probably give the neighbour's cat a few anxious moments, too.) finding a bunch of live rats stuck onto paper would also give any decent human a few anxious moments as well. the yanks don't exactly have a reputation for civilised behaviour toward living creatures and this would be one example. if you want to kill vermin, i'd suggest just killing them, rather than leaving them to die of thirst stuck onto sticky paper. kylie |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"0tterbot" writes:
"John Savage" wrote in message m... The Yanks often talk of "tanglefoot" traps for rats. Is that stuff available here? It's a sticky pad critters get their feet stuck to, something like industrial-strength fly-paper. (Stepping on it would probably give the neighbour's cat a few anxious moments, too.) finding a bunch of live rats stuck onto paper would also give any decent human a few anxious moments as well. the yanks don't exactly have a reputation for civilised behaviour toward living creatures and this would be one example. if you want to kill vermin, i'd suggest just killing them, rather than leaving them to die of thirst stuck onto sticky paper. Your strawman has not a leg to stand on, but nice try. I don't believe instructions accompanying the use of tanglefoot would say to leave any trapped animal to die of thirst; and I don't believe any user would -- no more than they would with other live-capture traps. I'd expect users would check the trap daily and dispatch any captured pests quickly and humanely. Draw a comparison of this with a death drawn out over 2 to 4 days by internal bleeding that the anti-coagulant type bait brings on if you wish to balance your view. There is nothing to be boastful of in the baiting methods used for controlling rats, rabbits, foxes, pigs or dingoes, other then their demonstrated effectiveness. Do people who set live-capture cage traps really leave the rats in the cage until they die of thirst? I can't imagine it. -- John Savage (my news address is not valid for email) |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"John Savage" wrote in message
... "0tterbot" writes: "John Savage" wrote in message om... The Yanks often talk of "tanglefoot" traps for rats. Is that stuff available here? It's a sticky pad critters get their feet stuck to, something like industrial-strength fly-paper. (Stepping on it would probably give the neighbour's cat a few anxious moments, too.) finding a bunch of live rats stuck onto paper would also give any decent human a few anxious moments as well. the yanks don't exactly have a reputation for civilised behaviour toward living creatures and this would be one example. if you want to kill vermin, i'd suggest just killing them, rather than leaving them to die of thirst stuck onto sticky paper. Your strawman has not a leg to stand on, but nice try. it wasn't a strawman, it was just a statement. I don't believe instructions accompanying the use of tanglefoot would say to leave any trapped animal to die of thirst; and I don't believe any user would -- no more than they would with other live-capture traps. I'd expect users would check the trap daily and dispatch any captured pests quickly and humanely. Draw a comparison of this with a death drawn out over 2 to 4 days by internal bleeding that the anti-coagulant type bait brings on if you wish to balance your view. but i don't have an unbalanced view - i just think snap traps are the best way to go with rodents, in the absence of predators. and just lately my dog has been stepping up to the plate re our mice (which makes a nice change :-) how would one kill the rodents on a sticky trap? drowning? if there's only one stuck onto the trap & you drowned it, wouldn't that just be a waste of the trap? or does the stickiness remain, so after you unstick the dead rat & dry off the trap, you can use it again? There is nothing to be boastful of in the baiting methods used for controlling rats, rabbits, foxes, pigs or dingoes, other then their demonstrated effectiveness. Do people who set live-capture cage traps really leave the rats in the cage until they die of thirst? those traps are designed for the user to release the rodents, er, elsewhere (thus making it someone else's problem). at any rate that's what they say. I can't imagine it. can't you? why do you think rabbit & dingo traps were banned? it's not because the setters of the traps would thoughtfully do the rounds twice a day checking if they caught anything. kylie |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"0tterbot" writes:
I just think snap traps are the best way to go with rodents, in the absence of predators. and just lately my dog has been stepping up to the plate re our mice (which makes a nice change :-) I find rat traps to be too impractical. They are difficult to place in position when set to a hair trigger. how would one kill the rodents on a sticky trap? drowning? if there's only one stuck onto the trap & you drowned it, wouldn't that just be a waste of the trap? or does the stickiness remain, so after you unstick the dead rat & dry off the trap, you can use it again? Tanglefoot is a sticky resin that you apply using a caulking gun to bits of scrap timber, old paint-tin lids, tree trunks, or whatever. Apparently it is not water-soluble. can't you? why do you think rabbit & dingo traps were banned? it's not because the setters of the traps would thoughtfully do the rounds twice a day checking if they caught anything. We were talking about rat traps set around the house. Now you are talking about animal traps set kilometres or tens of km from the house. Big difference. The old rabbit trap was banned because the trap is cruel, not the trapper. Its steel jaws crush the leg, causing the animal to needlessly suffer. My understanding is that rubber-jawed traps are still allowed; maybe I'm wrong. As for trapping wild dogs by the leg, some dogs will gnaw the leg off to effect an escape, so leg trapping of dogs is not only cruel but can be self-defeating if it leaves a maimed dog to survive on the only food it can now catch -- slower-moving sheep or calves instead of roos or rabbits. Besides, foot traps are so indiscriminant that they can catch and maim untargetted animals, including the grazier's own dog. It was not uncommon for pastoralists to set rabbit traps around lamb carcasses to catch eagles, too, before the eagles' real worth was appreciated. -- John Savage (my news address is not valid for email) |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"John Savage" wrote in message
... "0tterbot" writes: I just think snap traps are the best way to go with rodents, in the absence of predators. and just lately my dog has been stepping up to the plate re our mice (which makes a nice change :-) I find rat traps to be too impractical. They are difficult to place in position when set to a hair trigger. true, and also rats are very smart. you may not be able to catch them all before they've observed good reasons to stay away from traps. Tanglefoot is a sticky resin that you apply using a caulking gun to bits of scrap timber, old paint-tin lids, tree trunks, or whatever. Apparently it is not water-soluble. erg. right. interestingly, we all perhaps have a tendency to get a bit either emotive or ruthless here. i find the idea of drowning them once trapped on sticky stuff a little distressing, whereas i don't find my method (outlined below in response to ymc's new mouse problem) at all problematic. i also find the idea of forgetfulness about the trap a little bothersome. then again "humane" traps are likely to create the same problem. We were talking about rat traps set around the house. Now you are talking about animal traps set kilometres or tens of km from the house. Big difference. true, but there IS that tendency in humans to be neglectful about following through, in either case. we DO know this is a strong tendency in many people. The old rabbit trap was banned because the trap is cruel, not the trapper. Its steel jaws crush the leg, causing the animal to needlessly suffer. My understanding is that rubber-jawed traps are still allowed; maybe I'm wrong. As for trapping wild dogs by the leg, some dogs will gnaw the leg off to effect an escape, so leg trapping of dogs is not only cruel but can be self-defeating if it leaves a maimed dog to survive on the only food it can now catch -- slower-moving sheep or calves instead of roos or rabbits. Besides, foot traps are so indiscriminant that they can catch and maim untargetted animals, including the grazier's own dog. It was not uncommon for pastoralists to set rabbit traps around lamb carcasses to catch eagles, too, before the eagles' real worth was appreciated. i just think it's fair to say that leg-traps are just unacceptable all around. the idea of catching mice/rats by the feet is probably just too similar for my taste.. and i don't like the idea of not following through. having said all that, we HAVE in the past resorted to poison for smart rats that refused to be caught any other way. as well as the fact that it is most unkind as you pointed out previously, it creates problems of it's own (bad smells & maggots from dead rats in walls, etc.) ime, there's a variety of instant karma that results from poisoning things. kylie |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Try this :
Shallow pans or bowls baited with corn meal, brown sugar, and plaster of Paris. The mixture is most effective when it consists of 2/3 of corn meal and a sixth each of brown sugar and plaster of Paris. First, mix the corn meal and plaster of Paris to ensure that plaster of Paris is spread evenly throughout the mixture. Soft brown sugar makes mixing easier. Instant Karma will get you, but you will most likely get the rats. As well you can sell these furry little blokes at the local market PS leave plenty of water. 0tterbot wrote: "John Savage" wrote in message ... "0tterbot" writes: I just think snap traps are the best way to go with rodents, in the absence of predators. and just lately my dog has been stepping up to the plate re our mice (which makes a nice change :-) I find rat traps to be too impractical. They are difficult to place in position when set to a hair trigger. true, and also rats are very smart. you may not be able to catch them all before they've observed good reasons to stay away from traps. Tanglefoot is a sticky resin that you apply using a caulking gun to bits of scrap timber, old paint-tin lids, tree trunks, or whatever. Apparently it is not water-soluble. erg. right. interestingly, we all perhaps have a tendency to get a bit either emotive or ruthless here. i find the idea of drowning them once trapped on sticky stuff a little distressing, whereas i don't find my method (outlined below in response to ymc's new mouse problem) at all problematic. i also find the idea of forgetfulness about the trap a little bothersome. then again "humane" traps are likely to create the same problem. We were talking about rat traps set around the house. Now you are talking about animal traps set kilometres or tens of km from the house. Big difference. true, but there IS that tendency in humans to be neglectful about following through, in either case. we DO know this is a strong tendency in many people. The old rabbit trap was banned because the trap is cruel, not the trapper. Its steel jaws crush the leg, causing the animal to needlessly suffer. My understanding is that rubber-jawed traps are still allowed; maybe I'm wrong. As for trapping wild dogs by the leg, some dogs will gnaw the leg off to effect an escape, so leg trapping of dogs is not only cruel but can be self-defeating if it leaves a maimed dog to survive on the only food it can now catch -- slower-moving sheep or calves instead of roos or rabbits. Besides, foot traps are so indiscriminant that they can catch and maim untargetted animals, including the grazier's own dog. It was not uncommon for pastoralists to set rabbit traps around lamb carcasses to catch eagles, too, before the eagles' real worth was appreciated. i just think it's fair to say that leg-traps are just unacceptable all around. the idea of catching mice/rats by the feet is probably just too similar for my taste.. and i don't like the idea of not following through. having said all that, we HAVE in the past resorted to poison for smart rats that refused to be caught any other way. as well as the fact that it is most unkind as you pointed out previously, it creates problems of it's own (bad smells & maggots from dead rats in walls, etc.) ime, there's a variety of instant karma that results from poisoning things. kylie |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"0tterbot" writes:
having said all that, we HAVE in the past resorted to poison for smart rats that refused to be caught any other way. as well as the fact that it is most unkind as you pointed out previously, it creates problems of it's own (bad smells & maggots from dead rats in walls, etc.) ime, there's a variety of instant karma that results from poisoning things. Blood thinner poisons seem to make the dying rodent cold; how else to explain that it is not uncommon, after setting out poison, to find a dead or dying mouse or rat lying on the lawn or a garden path in the sunshine, in turn posing a danger to a kookaburra or cat. Probably more do so than I realise, with most already having been snapped up by a higher order predator. -- John Savage (my news address is not valid for email) |
Quote:
Interesting point about the instructions there, because for the most part they tell people to simply "discard trap with animal", presuming that one just throws a live animal stuck on the trap into the bin. You point out how other traps are banned for being incredibly cruel, when the glue trap works on exactly the same principle. The glue meshes to their skin, causing self mutilation due to the struggle of self-preservation, something that would not happen with a cage trap. They are like your other snare trap that captures the animal, holds it in place but doesn't kill it - though the means of the capture forces injury. That includes gnawing their own legs off to escape, and this is something that animals regularly do on glue traps. Glue traps, in the end, cause as much needless suffering as a steel-jawed leghold trap for rabbits would due to the design of the trap alone. These traps should not be condoned in any way, in fact, they should be banned. The level of suffering these animals go through on these things when more humane alternatives could be used is simply unacceptable. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
John Savage wrote:
Tom N writes: We did have a rat or two in the garage at one point and it ate a whole packet of snail bait (the one with the bitter additive to deter children and pets). The rat ate half one the packet one night and I saw the half empty packet and thought the culprit would be dead and wouldn't come back, and the next night it came back and ate the rest! I found it very frustrating to spread snail bait and next day find not a single pellet anywhere, and no dying snails either. Finally I sighted a rat, around midday, skipping around the garden bold as brass collecting each pellet of snail bait. I replenished the bait each day, hoping it would spell the end of the rat, but no such luck and I had to resort to rat bait before I could lay out snail bait. You could try coffee as it deters and kills slugs and snails apparently (not tried it myself). http://www.lensgarden.com.au/hintsNtips.htm I reckon a lot of wild animals like foxes and rats and probably feral cats live on pet food and scraps given to pets outside. I occasionally see foxes around here and I am sure they patrol back yards for food scraps. You forgot Indian mynahs! And those imported doves we get in Melbourne. They both tend not to be a problem for fruit though (in my experience). The garage rat used to bring in lamb chop bones and nectarines and I was cleaning out secluded parts of the garage and the carport behind some boxes and other stuff, and I found dozens and dozens of nectarine stones and chop bones. The nectarines were from our tree but the chop bones must have come from someone else's yard. You ruled out the possibility that the rats had progressed to slaughtering sheep? Yes, until I see one with a saw to cut through the bones neatly. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
Ed wrote:
"Tom N" wrote The $^#% rat still made it inside last night. Nibbled or chomped on 3 apples. Since this is the first year for this tree, the rat has nibbled on most of the crop so far. Yes, same here, is it the year of the rat or what? I've had fruit trees for years and Never had rats going near them except for this season. Rats have been a steadily worsening problem for us over the last few years. They are the only critter that has defeated the nets! They got just about all the apples, because unlike the birds, possums & bats, they have figured out that it's no problem to chew holes in the net. Think I'll have to get a puddytat. I've been thinking about an electric fence. It would be relatively easy to set up the fence to keep rats from climbing the trunk, though they'd likely search for other ways. So perhaps a chook wire fence around the circumference of the tree (not electrified, since it is in contact with the ground), then an insulated and electrified section, with a net above that. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
John Savage wrote:
"0tterbot" writes: having said all that, we HAVE in the past resorted to poison for smart rats that refused to be caught any other way. as well as the fact that it is most unkind as you pointed out previously, it creates problems of it's own (bad smells & maggots from dead rats in walls, etc.) ime, there's a variety of instant karma that results from poisoning things. Blood thinner poisons seem to make the dying rodent cold; how else to explain that it is not uncommon, after setting out poison, to find a dead or dying mouse or rat lying on the lawn or a garden path in the sunshine, in turn posing a danger to a kookaburra or cat. Probably more do so than I realise, with most already having been snapped up by a higher order predator. Not specifically about dead rats but apparently insecticides are a problem for birds: http://www.ozarkwild.org/pp.php Some very fine nets that used to be sold for fruit trees are a problem for wildfile of many kinds. Wildlife gets entangled in the net and then struggles so much to escape that they either get strangled or entangle themselves even more, doing a lot of damage to themselves. http://www.wildlifefriendlyfencing.c..._solutions.htm http://www.sydneybats.org.au/cms/ind...=17,22,0,0,1,0 The good news is that the knitted white nets you now buy are ok provided they are stretched tight. In fact, the possums at our place climb over them and sit on them like a hammock. Barbed wire can be a problem for wildlife too. http://www.wildlifefriendlyfencing.com/index.htm I've only ever had one animal trapped and injured in our fruit tree nets. It was a bird I believe a young wattlebird which strangled itself trying to escape. Curiously the older wattlebirds never seem to go near the fruit trees - it has always been the young ones (but they are a minor bother compared to the introduced animals and birds). We've had a few other animals that have got inside the net (not tangled in the net) and couldn't get out without assistance - birds (mostly introduced) and once a brush tail possum. We have some of the grey plastic mouse traps, which are supposedly more humane than the old-fashioned wire spring traps. A couple of times we've caught mice in these traps, and the mouse has only be caught by the foot, and has then struggled so much it's leg is twisted and broken in multiple places. |
Defeat for the bats, birds and possums.
"GavinB" wrote in message
... John Savage;837279 Wrote: I don't believe instructions accompanying the use of tanglefoot would say to leave any trapped animal to die of thirst; and I don't believe any user would -- no more than they would with other live-capture traps. I'd expect users would check the trap daily and dispatch any captured pests quickly and humanely. A glue trap isn't intended to be a catch and release trap. They are designed to hold the animal in place so it dies of thirst/starvation because it has no access to food or water. (snip) john is a nice guy so he wouldn't - but yes, my point in the remarks i made was that, well, it's just "easy" for people to leave them there & tidy up weeks or months later.. and that is what some of them would do. ugh. i even went off the sticky yellow glue traps (for white fly, that one uses in the greenhouse or veggie patch) because i was catching little skinks. the little skinks wanted to eat the trapped bugs but got caught themselves. after our second afternoon of spending several hours unsticking all the lizard's little tiny feet & whatnot with a blunt pin, & trying to wash off all the sticky, i just decided i'd rather have white fly than stuck lizards. i think i agree with you - that perhaps such things are best off banned entirely. anything that is marketed to lazy people is probably a problem. :-) i mean, i am very lazy myself, but i try not to indulge it overly. kylie |
| All times are GMT +1. The time now is 11:45 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
GardenBanter