Problem Bird

Jenny_Aster · May 2023

Had a lovely half hour this morning watching antics of fledglings demanding to be fed on the lawn. But this afternoon some naughty bird has dug up seedlings in the veg patch, especially my thrice sown dwarf French beans and carrot seedlings which are just emerging! I hotly suspect it's the fat pigeon.

I've ordered some reflective tape so small bits of it can fly over the veg to scare off the culprit from being destructive (or doing what pigeons do).

Is this going scare the birds away from all of the garden? Can I hope it's going to be just the area where the tape will be?

I've also ordered more garden twine to stretch over the area.

Some defunct CDs I suppose could be used, but I think that's a bigger sledgehammer that may stop all birds visiting.

Wondering what other gardener's tricks are, cos I'm presently fed up now of trying to get vegs growing after a raging battle with the slugs, and seemingly the slow growth this season.

CatDouch · May 2023

Last year pigeons pulled up all my beetroot seedlings so this year I have netted them with a net wired tunnel thingy. All my beetroot are now growing fine so the pesky pigeons were definitely the culprit.

Jenny_Aster · May 2023

CatDouch said:

Last year pigeons pulled up all my beetroot seedlings so this year I have netted them with a net wired tunnel thingy. All my beetroot are now growing fine so the pesky pigeons were definitely the culprit.

Thank you. Thinking about it more clearly, think netting would be much better, why should 'innocent' birds suffer.

imintaunton · May 2023

Jenny - netting is great - pea and bean netting.

It's cheap and you get quite a large chunk in a pack but actually you don't even have to cover the whole area.

Just the hint of netting is enough to keep bigger birds such as pigeons away generally - because they get scared of not being able to fly away quickly, i.e., of being trapped underneath it - should they be disturbed.

I had actually planned to cover a largish area with netting (rows of salad plants) but all I had left in my shed was a little piece about 2 metres square - so I used that, just strung up on bamboo canes.

Not one pigeon has been near it (our trail camera tells us of the time when we can't be on guard) whereas they're quite happy to come down onto our lawn despite our cats.

*Then again, if your worms are becoming intelligent, are your birds learning too!

Best of luck,

Chris

bertrand-mabel · May 2023

When we plant out veg seedlings we always have to put out "sticks" to stop the flight path of the pigeons. It does work but then you have to keep track of the "sticks" when harvesting unless you want to get stapped!

Jenny_Aster · May 2023

imintaunton said:

*Then again, if your worms are becoming intelligent, are your birds learning too!

now you've got me paranoid

Jenny_Aster · May 2023

Thank you all. Netting it is. I guess they're afraid of nets incase they get tangled up on it.

bédé · May 2023

I decided that a fully enclosed cage was the only way to grow vegetables. I tried just a low netting over strawberries, but a blackbird got tangled up in it. Happy ending.

Or ... not to grow them. I now buy all the veg except runner beans.

Janie B · May 2023

Pigeons chewed all the new foliage off my young cherry trees, so I have now covered the trees in protective bags. I see there are some cherries developing, so will leave the bags in place until I can harvest the fruit, but in the meantime I fear the growth of the tree is being compromised by these bags! May have to try a different plan next year...

KT53 · May 2023

If you use netting it is vital that it is kept taut. Birds are far more likely to get hooked up in the netting if is it laid loose.

bédé · May 2023

I also tried the trick of a thin black cotton thread to stop the heron from walking to the pond. A blackbird got tangled in this. Again, happy ending. But now three ugly wooden frames with stretched netting. Not as minimalist, but functional.

Problem Bird

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