Nature is beautiful, but sometimes it can destroy a garden. Insects and wild animals have to eat, and if we make a real buffet, who can blame them for making a mess?
This is the natural order, and we should be happy to see monarch caterpillars eating milkweed or birds eating dogwood berries in our gardens. But other creatures can also damage plants we don't want to share, such as crops, precious flowers, precious trees and shrubs, even grass.
The first step to protecting your plants is to identify the culprit.
Hurry
Rabbit damage causes cutting off of stems, branches, flowers, and leaves near the ground (except in winter when snowdrifts provide height; if damage is not noticed until spring, it can be up to 3 feet high).
Rabbits will also pick bark under logs, especially in the winter, and as soon as you ask, "How's it going, doc?" they paid for the meal by leaving a "gift" of round, dull brown peas. - Lime size.
The application of commercial insecticides or blood meal, bone meal or cayenne provides some benefit, but requires frequent reapplication, especially after rain. The most effective deterrent is a 30 to 36 inch mesh fence with mesh less than 1 inch. As rabbits like to dig, add 20 cm of soil under the fence.
deer
Deer, on the other hand, tear the plant mass, causing jagged lesions on the leaves. Because of their height, they can crush plants and trees up to 6 feet (1.8 m) above the ground. Deer dung is elongated, shiny and darker than rabbit dung.
Deer repellents work to some extent, but constant reapplying to large trees and shrubs can make them prohibitively expensive, especially in large areas with large deer populations. As with rabbits, fencing is the only safe solution.
But one fence is not enough. Deer can jump up to six feet, so you need one 8-foot barrier, a 6-foot fence at a 45-degree angle to the outside, or two fences 3 feet high and 4 feet apart. (a deer cannot do this). both scales. ).
You can also consider growing deer-resistant plants, but keep in mind that hungry deer will eat just about anything, so no plant is considered deer-resistant.
moles and mice
Moles and mice are often confused, but they are very different animals.
Think of the M in Moles as short for meat eaters. These insects feed on worms, larvae and other insects.
Their tunnels form a cone-shaped mound above the ground. Although you may think that moles are ruining your lawn, they are not. They are present in the yard because there is food underground. Also, if your grass is dead or has light spots, it is caused by grubs, not warts.
Moles are solitary creatures that spend most of their lives underground and out of sight. As a rule, only two or three moles live on one hectare of land.
"V" stands for rat and vegetarian. You may know them as prairie voles, voles or voles. These rodents feed on plant roots, grasses, seeds, leeks, tubers and the underbelly of trees and shrubs.
Rabbits breed like rabbits and give birth to five to ten litters of three to six each year. They dug a hole the size of a golf ball in the ground, which led to a long, narrow tunnel.
They also attacked the chaotic plot. Prevent rats by removing vegetation and other debris that provides them with food and shelter.
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Jessica Damiano writes the award-winning weekly Dirt Newsletter and writes a regular garden column for The AP. Sign up here to receive weekly gardening tips and tricks by email.
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