My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and purple
finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their garden. What can
be done to keep them from doing this?

Thanks!

Carol

Gravelle wrote:
My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and
purple finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their
garden. What can be done to keep them from doing this?

How do those little birds peel back the husks?

--

Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8
Sunset Zone 5

My parents haven't quite figured that out yet!! But they see them flying in
and out of the rows of corn all the time, so most likely they are the
culprits! At first they thought it was the raccoons eating it, but the
'coons pull down the stocks when they eat the corn. As the corn is still
standing, it's not the 'coons.

Carol

"Travis" wrote in message
news:kc8Je.478$1S.20@trnddc04...
Gravelle wrote:
My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and
purple finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their
garden. What can be done to keep them from doing this?

How do those little birds peel back the husks?

--

Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8
Sunset Zone 5

Do the golden finches eat the yellow kernels and purple finches eat the
purple ones or does it make a difference?

More likely they are eating the kernels off the ears that have already been
damaged by another critter first.

Where was the Scarecrow during all this drama?


"Travis" wrote in message
news:kc8Je.478$1S.20@trnddc04...
Gravelle wrote:
My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and
purple finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their
garden. What can be done to keep them from doing this?

How do those little birds peel back the husks?

--

Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8
Sunset Zone 5

"Gravelle" wrote in message
. ..
My parents haven't quite figured that out yet!! But they see them flying
in and out of the rows of corn all the time, so most likely they are the
culprits! At first they thought it was the raccoons eating it, but the
'coons pull down the stocks when they eat the corn. As the corn is still
standing, it's not the 'coons.

Sounds like they may be eating what's eating the corn.

Gravelle said:

My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and purple
finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their garden. What can
be done to keep them from doing this?

In my garden, the worst offenders seem to be cowbirds and starlings.
They start pecking at the ends of the ear and slowly shred the husks back.

(Tiny scratch marks and bird poo are pretty convincing evidence that it's
the birds, even if you haven't caught them in the act.)

I take heavy duty paper lunch bags and pull them down over the ears
(after the silks have started drying). The only problem is that when
the bags get wet, the birds can tear through them. This is less likely to
happen if you leave a good 'air gap' above the ear. I have small 'tents'
made of hardware cloth which I use to protect sunflower and squash
seedings from birds, which I've had to use to supplement paper bags
when the birds have been very persistent.

I'm toying with the idea of making cloth bags from old sheets...

A local sweet corn grower (for a farm stand) uses those 'terror eye'
balloons you see in some seed catalogs, with lots of flash tape streaming
from them. Don't know if that is truly effective, or just a sign of
desperation.

(I don't want to chase all the birds out of my garden, just stop them
from eating my corn.)

--
Pat in Plymouth MI ('someplace.net' is comcast)

Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.
(attributed to Don Marti)

Pat Kiewicz wrote:
In my garden, the worst offenders seem to be cowbirds and starlings.
They start pecking at the ends of the ear and slowly shred the husks back.


Sounds like a lot of work.

It's probably too late for this year, but if there were an easier desirable
food source available they might never start working so hard.

--
Warren H.

==========
Disclaimer: My views reflect those of myself, and not my
employer, my friends, nor (as she often tells me) my wife.
Any resemblance to the views of anybody living or dead is
coincidental. No animals were hurt in the writing of this
response -- unless you count my dog who desperately wants
to go outside now.
Have an outdoor project? Get a Black & Decker power tool::
http://www.holzemville.com/mall/blackanddecker/

My bet is that another critter is doing the peeling and the finches are
cleaning up afterward.
Deer, squirrels or coons likely doing the peeling, look for tracks.

Kate
OH, and a feeder for the finches might work ;¬D


"Gravelle" wrote in message
. ..
: My parents haven't quite figured that out yet!! But they see them flying
in
: and out of the rows of corn all the time, so most likely they are the
: culprits! At first they thought it was the raccoons eating it, but the
: 'coons pull down the stocks when they eat the corn. As the corn is still
: standing, it's not the 'coons.
:
: Carol
:
: "Travis" wrote in message
: news:kc8Je.478$1S.20@trnddc04...
: Gravelle wrote:
: My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and
: purple finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their
: garden. What can be done to keep them from doing this?
:
: How do those little birds peel back the husks?
:
: --
:
: Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
: USDA Zone 8
: Sunset Zone 5
:
:

Starting to sound like a conspiracy.

Maybe the pigs are them masterminds behind it all?


"SVTKate" wrote in message
ink.net...
My bet is that another critter is doing the peeling and the finches are
cleaning up afterward.
Deer, squirrels or coons likely doing the peeling, look for tracks.

Kate
OH, and a feeder for the finches might work ;¬D


"Gravelle" wrote in message
. ..
: My parents haven't quite figured that out yet!! But they see them
flying
in
: and out of the rows of corn all the time, so most likely they are the
: culprits! At first they thought it was the raccoons eating it, but the
: 'coons pull down the stocks when they eat the corn. As the corn is
still
: standing, it's not the 'coons.
:
: Carol
:
: "Travis" wrote in message
: news:kc8Je.478$1S.20@trnddc04...
: Gravelle wrote:
: My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and
: purple finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their
: garden. What can be done to keep them from doing this?
:
: How do those little birds peel back the husks?
:
: --
:
: Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
: USDA Zone 8
: Sunset Zone 5
:
:

Plastic garden netting might work, if you can figure out a way to suspend it
from the tops of the corn. Clothespins, maybe. Birds don't like getting
their wings & feet tangled in this stuff - makes them nervous about being
able to make a quick escape.

"Gravelle" wrote in message
. ..
My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and purple
finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their garden. What can
be done to keep them from doing this?

Thanks!

Carol

No, it's the SQUIRRELLS!!!
Murri
"Cereus-validus......." wrote in message
.. .
Starting to sound like a conspiracy.

Maybe the pigs are them masterminds behind it all?


"SVTKate" wrote in message
ink.net...
My bet is that another critter is doing the peeling and the finches are
cleaning up afterward.
Deer, squirrels or coons likely doing the peeling, look for tracks.

Kate
OH, and a feeder for the finches might work ;¬D


"Gravelle" wrote in message
. ..
: My parents haven't quite figured that out yet!! But they see them
flying
in
: and out of the rows of corn all the time, so most likely they are the
: culprits! At first they thought it was the raccoons eating it, but the
: 'coons pull down the stocks when they eat the corn. As the corn is
still
: standing, it's not the 'coons.
:
: Carol
:
: "Travis" wrote in message
: news:kc8Je.478$1S.20@trnddc04...
: Gravelle wrote:
: My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and
: purple finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their
: garden. What can be done to keep them from doing this?
:
: How do those little birds peel back the husks?
:
: --
:
: Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
: USDA Zone 8
: Sunset Zone 5
:
:

Its just like you people not to give the COONS any credit.


"Lady Blacksword" wrote in message
news:1123601265.4e7e59a8463d93e958c5dbbbfae1a7c4@t eranews...
No, it's the SQUIRRELLS!!!
Murri
"Cereus-validus......." wrote in message
.. .
Starting to sound like a conspiracy.

Maybe the pigs are them masterminds behind it all?


"SVTKate" wrote in message
ink.net...
My bet is that another critter is doing the peeling and the finches are
cleaning up afterward.
Deer, squirrels or coons likely doing the peeling, look for tracks.

Kate
OH, and a feeder for the finches might work ;¬D


"Gravelle" wrote in message
. ..
: My parents haven't quite figured that out yet!! But they see them
flying
in
: and out of the rows of corn all the time, so most likely they are the
: culprits! At first they thought it was the raccoons eating it, but
the
: 'coons pull down the stocks when they eat the corn. As the corn is
still
: standing, it's not the 'coons.
:
: Carol
:
: "Travis" wrote in message
: news:kc8Je.478$1S.20@trnddc04...
: Gravelle wrote:
: My parents are having problems with both the golden finches and
: purple finches eating the sweet corn they have growing in their
: garden. What can be done to keep them from doing this?
:
: How do those little birds peel back the husks?
:
: --
:
: Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
: USDA Zone 8
: Sunset Zone 5
:
: