On 5/5/2013 1:44 AM, Gus wrote:
"Todd" wrote in message
...
On 05/04/2013 10:27 PM, Gus wrote:
"Todd" wrote in message
Oh my!

Hopefully, this year I will not have: lions and tigers and bears...
Squirrels are bad enough.


I would love to know what finally works


I did have some good luck with vinegar last year and will try that again
when the plants start to produce. Soaked some old socks every few
days. No one had mentioned vinegar, but accidently noticed on the
bottle: "protect garden from unwanted pests... soak rags every 7 to 10
days" on the back of a Kroger bottle. I think it did work. I assume if
it rains, soak the rags more often. Not sure, but maybe the vinegar
smells close to predator urine to a squirrel, or just unpleasant?

Building a cage around the plants is probably the only sure fire thing
to do, but I went to do that at Home Depot last year and it started to
get kinda expensive to do it right. Last year, I did get quite a decent
crop of tomatoes; but the year before literally 2-3 puny tomatoes and
then gave up as the squirrels ruined all the rest. Ended up uprooting
the plants... Hopefully, vinegar will deter them this year at least so I
get some fresh tomatoes. Nothing better than fresh tomatoes. The ones
in store here are so bland, but garden ones full of flavor.



What kind of vinegar?

--
Natural Girl

On 5/5/2013 11:23 AM, Gus wrote:
"Natural Girl" wrote in message
...

My husband calls them 'tree rats'!

After what happened two years ago, that is how I see them. One morning,
I opened my back door and there was a ripe tomato in front of the door,
with one bite out of it. I looked around and there was a squirrel
looking at me. Sitting on top the deck, smirking.

OMG!!!!!!!!!! That's histerical!!! smirking?? LOL

I live in the city and cannot shoot or trap tree rats. I would build a
cage but I'm not terribly good at building things. And to do it right,
it was more than I wanted to spend on supplies. After what happened two
years ago, I am willing to use biological or chemical warfare. I have
tried cayenne pepper and animal repellant from the vegetable stand, but
it had no aeffect. Vinegar soaked rags were somewhat successful last
year, but I may need a two or more pronged defense. Yond, this year the
squirrels have look like Cassius...

hahaaahaha I'm only laughing because I totally understand just how
frustrating those tree rats can be. One year I had some gorgeous
tomatoes that were nearly ready to pick. I told myself I'd pick them
tomorrow... when I went out to get the ... EVERY tomato was gone on that
bush!!!!!!!! I was livid. Now, I don't wait to pull them!
--
Natural Girl

"Natural Girl" wrote in message
...

What kind of vinegar?

White vinegar, gallon jug from Kroger.

"Natural Girl" wrote in message
...

hahaaahaha I'm only laughing because I totally understand just how
frustrating those tree rats can be. One year I had some gorgeous tomatoes
that were nearly ready to pick. I told myself I'd pick them tomorrow...
when I went out to get the ... EVERY tomato was gone on that bush!!!!!!!!
I was livid. Now, I don't wait to pull them!
--
Natural Girl

When I had the serious problem two years ago, I started started to pull
green ones, but they aren't as fun to pick. And then you have to wait for
them to ripen indoors, just sitting there. The squirrels starting biting
and taking the green ones on the plants, even small ones. They don't have
much sense. Or, maybe they are just very vindictive jerks. They may look
cute, but they are not good neighbors. I had a couple get into part of my
roof last year and had to get an exterminator. Cost a couple hundred
dollars to eradicate them.

On 5/5/2013 2:14 PM, Gus wrote:
"Natural Girl" wrote in message
...

What kind of vinegar?

White vinegar, gallon jug from Kroger.

I just may try that! thanks.

--
Natural Girl

On 5/5/2013 2:20 PM, Gus wrote:
"Natural Girl" wrote in message
...

hahaaahaha I'm only laughing because I totally understand just how
frustrating those tree rats can be. One year I had some gorgeous
tomatoes that were nearly ready to pick. I told myself I'd pick them
tomorrow... when I went out to get the ... EVERY tomato was gone on
that bush!!!!!!!! I was livid. Now, I don't wait to pull them!
--
Natural Girl

When I had the serious problem two years ago, I started started to pull
green ones, but they aren't as fun to pick. And then you have to wait
for them to ripen indoors, just sitting there. The squirrels starting
biting and taking the green ones on the plants, even small ones. They
don't have much sense. Or, maybe they are just very vindictive jerks.
They may look cute, but they are not good neighbors. I had a couple get
into part of my roof last year and had to get an exterminator. Cost a
couple hundred dollars to eradicate them.




I bet it was satisfying tho! 2 down ... a zillion to go! DIE TREE
RATS! DIE!

--
Natural Girl

On 05/05/2013 12:35 PM, Natural Girl wrote:
On 5/5/2013 2:14 PM, Gus wrote:
"Natural Girl" wrote in message
...

What kind of vinegar?

White vinegar, gallon jug from Kroger.

I just may try that! thanks.


The animal supply stores have some really strong stuff

Gus said:


What non-lethal methods work best to keep city squirrels away from
tomatoes?
It is a serious problem here. I wouldn't mind sharing some tomatoes, but
the squirrels here are very rude and do not share. And actually taunt.
Taking a bite out of a perfectly good tomato and then leaving it.

Building a wire cage probably is the best method, but I hear they can even
get through those. And I'm not all that handy at building things.

Last year, putting soaking a rag with vinegar about every 3 or so days
seemed to work for a while. Though at the end of the summer, even that
was not deterring them that well.

Late to the party, but...

1) Provide a source of drinking water for the squirrels, birds, etc. They may
be going after the tomatoes mainly for the water content.

2) My daughter ran an experiment as an assignment for one of her zoology
classes. She offered various 'flavors' of peanuts to hungry winter squirrels,
including smoked, two levels of hot pepper seasoned and wasabi flavored
peanuts.

Their obvious preference was for plain or salted peanuts. They would eat
the hot pepper and smoked peanuts. They mainly ignored the wasabi
flavored. Which suggests that wasabi (similarly, horse radish or mustard oil)
could be worth looking into as a squirrel deterent.

3) When all else fails, a cage of 1" hex wire netting ("chicken wire") will
exclude squirrels. You need to bend the wire out at the bottom (to prevent
them going under) and either let the top flop outward or put a cap on the
cage (to prevent them going over). I've used panels of 48" chicken wire
stapled to 1" x 2" strapping. The panels can be moved around as needed.
Tie them using temporary stakes. You can make circles, triangles, etc. They
should be rolled up and stashed out of the weather when not needed .

4) A sturdy 4' fence which is lined with chicken wire (bent out or buried
several inches deep at the bottom) and topped with a shock wire or two will
keep out a whole lot of potential pests.

--
Pat in Plymouth MI

"Yes, swooping is bad."

email valid but not regularly monitored

"Pat Kiewicz" wrote in message
...
Gus said:


What non-lethal methods work best to keep city squirrels away from
tomatoes?
It is a serious problem here. I wouldn't mind sharing some tomatoes, but
the squirrels here are very rude and do not share. And actually taunt.
Taking a bite out of a perfectly good tomato and then leaving it.

Building a wire cage probably is the best method, but I hear they can even
get through those. And I'm not all that handy at building things.

Last year, putting soaking a rag with vinegar about every 3 or so days
seemed to work for a while. Though at the end of the summer, even that
was not deterring them that well.

Late to the party, but...

1) Provide a source of drinking water for the squirrels, birds, etc.
They may
be going after the tomatoes mainly for the water content.

2) My daughter ran an experiment as an assignment for one of her zoology
classes. She offered various 'flavors' of peanuts to hungry winter
squirrels,
including smoked, two levels of hot pepper seasoned and wasabi flavored
peanuts.

Their obvious preference was for plain or salted peanuts. They would eat
the hot pepper and smoked peanuts. They mainly ignored the wasabi
flavored. Which suggests that wasabi (similarly, horse radish or mustard
oil)
could be worth looking into as a squirrel deterent.

3) When all else fails, a cage of 1" hex wire netting ("chicken wire")
will
exclude squirrels. You need to bend the wire out at the bottom (to prevent
them going under) and either let the top flop outward or put a cap on the
cage (to prevent them going over). I've used panels of 48" chicken wire
stapled to 1" x 2" strapping. The panels can be moved around as needed.
Tie them using temporary stakes. You can make circles, triangles, etc.
They
should be rolled up and stashed out of the weather when not needed .

4) A sturdy 4' fence which is lined with chicken wire (bent out or buried
several inches deep at the bottom) and topped with a shock wire or two
will
keep out a whole lot of potential pests.

--
Pat in Plymouth MI


Thanks Pat in Plymouth. Good suggestions. I had read they bite the
tomatoes for the water content, that they not intentionally trying to ****
off the gardener by only taking one bite... Not sure about water source.
There is a major problem with mosquitoes in the summer around here, so not
supposed to leave standing water around. I suppose I could use put
something out though and dump the water every 2-3 days. But I don't think
it's water that is a problem around here, but maybe they just prefer water
from tomatoes or are just lazy squirrels. They will bite even green ones
that aren't that watery. I think I will try leaving water out.

Are you suggesting leaving peanuts out, but away from the tomatoes? I don't
have a big yard, but could maybe put some at the other end. Or in the front
yard. How do you know if the squirrels have a peanut allergy. (Actually,
that might be a good thing!)

I didn't mess with chicken wire too much because to do it right was getting
kinda involved. I had read that cheap chicken wire with larger hole they
can still get through. Though I did have some lying around and I did kinda
lay it around the plants. I think it did dissuade them a bit but not too
much. I didn't stake it thinking maybe if it was flimsy and gave way some
when they stepped on it maybe they would be skittish?

My SMIL suggested plastic snakes. But those are worthless. I've seen the
squirrels step right over a couple on the deck railing. I tried to tie a
couple with string so they should move a bit but that didn't have any effect
either. Not on the squirrels. I also put out some tinfoil. That may have
kept away some birds, but not squirrels.

I don't like wasabi, so afraid that would get into the tomatoes, but maybe I
can try spreading some around one of the plants and experiment. Maybe in
conjunction with the white vinegar.... What do you mean by mustard oil? I
like mustard so would try that. Spicy mustard??

On 5/9/2013 7:56 AM, Pat Kiewicz wrote:
Gus said:


What non-lethal methods work best to keep city squirrels away from
tomatoes?
It is a serious problem here. I wouldn't mind sharing some tomatoes, but
the squirrels here are very rude and do not share. And actually taunt.
Taking a bite out of a perfectly good tomato and then leaving it.

Building a wire cage probably is the best method, but I hear they can even
get through those. And I'm not all that handy at building things.

Last year, putting soaking a rag with vinegar about every 3 or so days
seemed to work for a while. Though at the end of the summer, even that
was not deterring them that well.

Late to the party, but...

1) Provide a source of drinking water for the squirrels, birds, etc. They may
be going after the tomatoes mainly for the water content.

2) My daughter ran an experiment as an assignment for one of her zoology
classes. She offered various 'flavors' of peanuts to hungry winter squirrels,
including smoked, two levels of hot pepper seasoned and wasabi flavored
peanuts.

Their obvious preference was for plain or salted peanuts. They would eat
the hot pepper and smoked peanuts. They mainly ignored the wasabi
flavored. Which suggests that wasabi (similarly, horse radish or mustard oil)
could be worth looking into as a squirrel deterent.

3) When all else fails, a cage of 1" hex wire netting ("chicken wire") will
exclude squirrels. You need to bend the wire out at the bottom (to prevent
them going under) and either let the top flop outward or put a cap on the
cage (to prevent them going over). I've used panels of 48" chicken wire
stapled to 1" x 2" strapping. The panels can be moved around as needed.
Tie them using temporary stakes. You can make circles, triangles, etc. They
should be rolled up and stashed out of the weather when not needed .

4) A sturdy 4' fence which is lined with chicken wire (bent out or buried
several inches deep at the bottom) and topped with a shock wire or two will
keep out a whole lot of potential pests.


Someone sent me this this morning:

http://tinyurl.com/cgprqsp

"Frank" wrote in message
...
Someone sent me this this morning:

http://tinyurl.com/cgprqsp


I feel happy and sad at the same time... emotional dissonance.

Frank wrote:
On 5/9/2013 7:56 AM, Pat Kiewicz wrote:
Gus said:


What non-lethal methods work best to keep city squirrels away from
tomatoes?
It is a serious problem here. I wouldn't mind sharing some
tomatoes, but the squirrels here are very rude and do not share. And
actually taunt. Taking a bite out of a perfectly good tomato
and then leaving it. Building a wire cage probably is the best method,
but I hear they
can even get through those. And I'm not all that handy at building
things. Last year, putting soaking a rag with vinegar about every 3 or
so
days seemed to work for a while. Though at the end of the summer,
even that was not deterring them that well.

Late to the party, but...

1) Provide a source of drinking water for the squirrels, birds,
etc. They may be going after the tomatoes mainly for the water
content. 2) My daughter ran an experiment as an assignment for one of
her
zoology classes. She offered various 'flavors' of peanuts to hungry
winter squirrels, including smoked, two levels of hot pepper
seasoned and wasabi flavored peanuts.

Their obvious preference was for plain or salted peanuts. They
would eat the hot pepper and smoked peanuts. They mainly ignored the
wasabi
flavored. Which suggests that wasabi (similarly, horse radish or
mustard oil) could be worth looking into as a squirrel deterent.

3) When all else fails, a cage of 1" hex wire netting ("chicken
wire") will exclude squirrels. You need to bend the wire out at the
bottom (to prevent them going under) and either let the top flop
outward or put a cap on the cage (to prevent them going over). I've used
panels of 48" chicken
wire stapled to 1" x 2" strapping. The panels can be moved around
as needed. Tie them using temporary stakes. You can make circles,
triangles,
etc. They should be rolled up and stashed out of the weather when
not needed . 4) A sturdy 4' fence which is lined with chicken wire (bent
out or
buried several inches deep at the bottom) and topped with a shock
wire or two will keep out a whole lot of potential pests.


Someone sent me this this morning:

http://tinyurl.com/cgprqsp

ok .. I have to say that discussion is histerical!!!!!!!!

--
Natural Girl

In article ,
"Natural Girl" wrote:

Frank wrote:
On 5/9/2013 7:56 AM, Pat Kiewicz wrote:
Gus said:


What non-lethal methods work best to keep city squirrels away from
tomatoes?
It is a serious problem here. I wouldn't mind sharing some
tomatoes, but the squirrels here are very rude and do not share. And
actually taunt. Taking a bite out of a perfectly good tomato
and then leaving it. Building a wire cage probably is the best method,
but I hear they
can even get through those. And I'm not all that handy at building
things. Last year, putting soaking a rag with vinegar about every 3 or
so
days seemed to work for a while. Though at the end of the summer,
even that was not deterring them that well.

Late to the party, but...

1) Provide a source of drinking water for the squirrels, birds,
etc. They may be going after the tomatoes mainly for the water
content. 2) My daughter ran an experiment as an assignment for one of
her
zoology classes. She offered various 'flavors' of peanuts to hungry
winter squirrels, including smoked, two levels of hot pepper
seasoned and wasabi flavored peanuts.

Their obvious preference was for plain or salted peanuts. They
would eat the hot pepper and smoked peanuts. They mainly ignored the
wasabi
flavored. Which suggests that wasabi (similarly, horse radish or
mustard oil) could be worth looking into as a squirrel deterent.

3) When all else fails, a cage of 1" hex wire netting ("chicken
wire") will exclude squirrels. You need to bend the wire out at the
bottom (to prevent them going under) and either let the top flop
outward or put a cap on the cage (to prevent them going over). I've used
panels of 48" chicken
wire stapled to 1" x 2" strapping. The panels can be moved around
as needed. Tie them using temporary stakes. You can make circles,
triangles,
etc. They should be rolled up and stashed out of the weather when
not needed . 4) A sturdy 4' fence which is lined with chicken wire (bent
out or
buried several inches deep at the bottom) and topped with a shock
wire or two will keep out a whole lot of potential pests.


Someone sent me this this morning:

http://tinyurl.com/cgprqsp

ok .. I have to say that discussion is histerical!!!!!!!!

And she can't spell either.

--
Remember Rachel Corrie
http://www.rachelcorrie.org/

Welcome to the New America.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hA736oK9FPg

Billy wrote:
In article ,
"Natural Girl" wrote:

Frank wrote:
On 5/9/2013 7:56 AM, Pat Kiewicz wrote:
Gus said:


What non-lethal methods work best to keep city squirrels away from
tomatoes?
It is a serious problem here. I wouldn't mind sharing some
tomatoes, but the squirrels here are very rude and do not share.
And actually taunt. Taking a bite out of a perfectly good tomato
and then leaving it. Building a wire cage probably is the best
method, but I hear they
can even get through those. And I'm not all that handy at
building things. Last year, putting soaking a rag with vinegar
about every 3 or so
days seemed to work for a while. Though at the end of the summer,
even that was not deterring them that well.

Late to the party, but...

1) Provide a source of drinking water for the squirrels, birds,
etc. They may be going after the tomatoes mainly for the water
content. 2) My daughter ran an experiment as an assignment for
one of her
zoology classes. She offered various 'flavors' of peanuts to
hungry winter squirrels, including smoked, two levels of hot pepper
seasoned and wasabi flavored peanuts.

Their obvious preference was for plain or salted peanuts. They
would eat the hot pepper and smoked peanuts. They mainly ignored
the wasabi
flavored. Which suggests that wasabi (similarly, horse radish or
mustard oil) could be worth looking into as a squirrel deterent.

3) When all else fails, a cage of 1" hex wire netting ("chicken
wire") will exclude squirrels. You need to bend the wire out at the
bottom (to prevent them going under) and either let the top flop
outward or put a cap on the cage (to prevent them going over).
I've used panels of 48" chicken
wire stapled to 1" x 2" strapping. The panels can be moved around
as needed. Tie them using temporary stakes. You can make circles,
triangles,
etc. They should be rolled up and stashed out of the weather when
not needed . 4) A sturdy 4' fence which is lined with chicken wire
(bent out or
buried several inches deep at the bottom) and topped with a shock
wire or two will keep out a whole lot of potential pests.


Someone sent me this this morning:

http://tinyurl.com/cgprqsp

ok .. I have to say that discussion is histerical!!!!!!!!

And she can't spell either.

yeah .. you got me. {{hangs head in shame}}

--
Natural Girl

"Natural Girl" wrote in message
...
Someone sent me this this morning:

http://tinyurl.com/cgprqsp

ok .. I have to say that discussion is histerical!!!!!!!!

And she can't spell either.

yeah .. you got me. {{hangs head in shame}}


I thought you misspelled it on porpoise. ("histerical" since a
male-oriented discussion. Like some say "herstory" when talking about women
in "history".)