I think the Springwatch night camera revealed that there was one badger in particular who had developed a taste for the eggs of waders and gulls nesting on the islands in the Scrape - it was thought to be that individual who made a strong attempt to dig his way under the fence - fortunately the fence proved effective
Growing up in rural East Anglia the sight of a badger was very rare indeed - nowadays wherever I travel around here I see evidence of both of living badgers and sadly of them as roadkill as well. I see at least one dead badger on most journeys through the countryside. There are very few dairy farms in this area nowadays , so they're not perceived to be causing problems around here.
Every cloud has a silver lining I suppose.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Certainly causing problems for dairy farmers here - my neighbour gave up milk production a couple of years ago - it was costing him more to produce than he was being paid for the milk. He decided to have a few heifers, as he missed the cattle so much. No more - unfortunately - as they've "reacted" to the TB test and have had to be destroyed, so he's given up heifers too. I really miss seeing the dairy cattle - grew up on a dairy farm - so am glad I took a few pics some years ago of the dairy cows grazing just a few feet from my back door. The garden's quite shallow at that point, so I got some good shots!
I am now really concerned that dairy farming is so difficult these days - can sympathise with those who took the milk from supermarket shelves and gave it away. Do you think that people would really object to paying a few extra pence per litre if they understood just what was going on? I know that I'll probably be accused of being provocative if I mention "townies" ! !
I too started my life on a dairy farm - this was in Bedfordshire, Pa kept Red Polls and Dairy Shorthorns Then the family moved to Suffolk - we then had a mixed arable farm with pigs and poultry.
Pa had three dairy farms and a milk bottling plant - supplied the local towns & villages. Before all that, the milk was delivered twice daily, direct from a churn via a pony & milk-float. Some ancient family pics of my sister and I when we were toddlers, sitting on the pony's back whilst she was still standing there "put to" the float at the end of the milk round. The pony was called Girlie, and died in 1947 having reached a great age - a bit like me now! Initially the cattle were shorthorns and Ayrshires but I the 1950s Pa changed to Friesians. We grew most of what the cattle were fed - so in some ways it was what nowadays you'd call "mixed farming". Eventually had a combine harvester etc. but I still have (in the shed) Pa's scythe and the huge hay knife which was used to cut the hay from the stack before Jones Balers started making the machinery to bale it.
My land has been used these past two years by a contractor who grows potatoes for McCains frozen chips - it was fascinating seeing the modern machinery in action - I remember how it was done when the only things available were carthorses!
My OH and I were dairy farmers until we retired. I cannot grasp the point of clearing the shelves of milk. If you ask most people whether they would pay more for milk they would say 'No.' If they are honest.
Unfortunately all Governments encourage a cheap food policy. Always have, always will.
I don't want to get embroiled in a pro- anti- badger argument, but I suspect the pro-badger people never stop to think how much badgers suffer if they get TB.
We live in a residential area established 60 years ago. About seven years ago the badgers moved into a garden nearby that is left wild. We have sighted them wandering the side roads nearby. Some four years ago they began raiding our garden. We have tried to deter them by blocking all gaps and had some success. We have been away for a year. The garden has been kept in reasonable order, but the badgers have returned with a vengeance. They have dug the flower borders to eat the bulbs, dug the lawn to eat the bugs and established a latrine by the side of the path, which is full of faeces. God knows what damage they will do to the vegetable garden when we re-establish it. They are a pest and really should be in the countryside. I guess overpopulation has caused them to become more urban in search of food. We have read all your suggestions with interest and will try them out in order of difficulty and let you know how well they have worked. The order will be Scotch Bonnet Chilli, some form of repellent, stock proof fencing on top of our 5' to 8' stone walls and finally a DEFRA suggestion of an electric fence.
To KBAFJF and anyone else driven mad like me by badgers, may I suggest a slightly new tech cunning plan. I live in a bungalow, the area was established some 60 years back and my garden is 120 foot long and mossy as it slopes and backs onto a steep railway embankment with badger sets all along the bank. The result is constant badger activity mostly over late Summer and Autumn over the 2 years since we moved in. I tried most things, blocking up any obvious holes, even used a bottle filled with my own vintage to scent the area with some limited success. Apart from the hassle, the rain tends to wash this away. Some weeks ago I laid freshly new grass and over consecutive nights this was dug up religiously by hopeful badgers. I finally hit upon the idea of employing modern tech on the problem. A well known DIY store H...B..., were advertising portable inside and outside infra red LED light units for about £8. The light can be placed on its base or wall and consists of about 8 LED lights triggered by an infra red sensor all in the same unit. I placed this near the bottom of the garden where the new turf had been dug up, I tried a dry run by triggering the light, the multiple LED lights really dazzled the area, especially at badger height. The next day I drew open the curtains with some trepidation. It was the first morning I woke up to not one dig or mark on the lawn. That was 2 weeks ago and my lawn has had no disturbance since. With the low cost of infra red LED lights it's certainly worth a try.
To Rob49. Turning to Gardener's World in despair over Badger attacks on my garden, I came to your idea about LED lights. Th odd thing being I had wondered if a motion activated alarm light might help.
As your idea is more affordable and easier to set up I shall definitely try it and will report back.
To Rob49. I turned to Gardener's World in desperation to find out how to stop Badgers attacking my garden which has now become so distressing and expensive.
Finding your idea about LED lights was interesting as i had been wondering about motion activated Alarm Lights. Your idea sounds easier to put in place and a lot easier on the pocket.
I am definitely going to try it and will come back with result. Hopefully GOOD!
Posts
That's good!
I think the Springwatch night camera revealed that there was one badger in particular who had developed a taste for the eggs of waders and gulls nesting on the islands in the Scrape - it was thought to be that individual who made a strong attempt to dig his way under the fence - fortunately the fence proved effective
Growing up in rural East Anglia the sight of a badger was very rare indeed - nowadays wherever I travel around here I see evidence of both of living badgers and sadly of them as roadkill as well. I see at least one dead badger on most journeys through the countryside. There are very few dairy farms in this area nowadays
, so they're not perceived to be causing problems around here.
Every cloud has a silver lining I suppose.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Certainly causing problems for dairy farmers here - my neighbour gave up milk production a couple of years ago - it was costing him more to produce than he was being paid for the milk. He decided to have a few heifers, as he missed the cattle so much. No more - unfortunately - as they've "reacted" to the TB test and have had to be destroyed, so he's given up heifers too. I really miss seeing the dairy cattle - grew up on a dairy farm - so am glad I took a few pics some years ago of the dairy cows grazing just a few feet from my back door. The garden's quite shallow at that point, so I got some good shots!
I am now really concerned that dairy farming is so difficult these days - can sympathise with those who took the milk from supermarket shelves and gave it away. Do you think that people would really object to paying a few extra pence per litre if they understood just what was going on? I know that I'll probably be accused of being provocative if I mention "townies" ! !
I too started my life on a dairy farm - this was in Bedfordshire, Pa kept Red Polls and Dairy Shorthorns
Then the family moved to Suffolk - we then had a mixed arable farm with pigs and poultry.
We get our milk from this local farmer http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/10433359/Marybelle-the-local-dairy-farm-raising-the-food-bar.html who supply the farm shop on the edge of the city where my OH works. It costs a bit more than milk from the supermarket, but you can taste the difference - even if you only use skimmed milk as we do. And the yoghurt and creme fraiche is superb
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Pa had three dairy farms and a milk bottling plant - supplied the local towns & villages. Before all that, the milk was delivered twice daily, direct from a churn via a pony & milk-float. Some ancient family pics of my sister and I when we were toddlers, sitting on the pony's back whilst she was still standing there "put to" the float at the end of the milk round. The pony was called Girlie, and died in 1947 having reached a great age - a bit like me now! Initially the cattle were shorthorns and Ayrshires but I the 1950s Pa changed to Friesians. We grew most of what the cattle were fed - so in some ways it was what nowadays you'd call "mixed farming". Eventually had a combine harvester etc. but I still have (in the shed) Pa's scythe and the huge hay knife which was used to cut the hay from the stack before Jones Balers started making the machinery to bale it.
My land has been used these past two years by a contractor who grows potatoes for McCains frozen chips - it was fascinating seeing the modern machinery in action - I remember how it was done when the only things available were carthorses!
Unfortunately all Governments encourage a cheap food policy. Always have, always will.
I don't want to get embroiled in a pro- anti- badger argument, but I suspect the pro-badger people never stop to think how much badgers suffer if they get TB.
Well I have those little buggers in me garden..
I've pegged tin foil to string, Pole's each end of me hedge.. just so the string is just off the ground.. the sound I think puts them off...
Try it x
Last edited: 03 June 2016 07:20:30
We live in a residential area established 60 years ago. About seven years ago the badgers moved into a garden nearby that is left wild. We have sighted them wandering the side roads nearby. Some four years ago they began raiding our garden. We have tried to deter them by blocking all gaps and had some success. We have been away for a year. The garden has been kept in reasonable order, but the badgers have returned with a vengeance. They have dug the flower borders to eat the bulbs, dug the lawn to eat the bugs and established a latrine by the side of the path, which is full of faeces. God knows what damage they will do to the vegetable garden when we re-establish it. They are a pest and really should be in the countryside. I guess overpopulation has caused them to become more urban in search of food. We have read all your suggestions with interest and will try them out in order of difficulty and let you know how well they have worked. The order will be Scotch Bonnet Chilli, some form of repellent, stock proof fencing on top of our 5' to 8' stone walls and finally a DEFRA suggestion of an electric fence.
To KBAFJF and anyone else driven mad like me by badgers, may I suggest a slightly new tech cunning plan. I live in a bungalow, the area was established some 60 years back and my garden is 120 foot long and mossy as it slopes and backs onto a steep railway embankment with badger sets all along the bank. The result is constant badger activity mostly over late Summer and Autumn over the 2 years since we moved in. I tried most things, blocking up any obvious holes, even used a bottle filled with my own vintage to scent the area with some limited success. Apart from the hassle, the rain tends to wash this away. Some weeks ago I laid freshly new grass and over consecutive nights this was dug up religiously by hopeful badgers. I finally hit upon the idea of employing modern tech on the problem. A well known DIY store H...B..., were advertising portable inside and outside infra red LED light units for about £8. The light can be placed on its base or wall and consists of about 8 LED lights triggered by an infra red sensor all in the same unit. I placed this near the bottom of the garden where the new turf had been dug up, I tried a dry run by triggering the light, the multiple LED lights really dazzled the area, especially at badger height. The next day I drew open the curtains with some trepidation. It was the first morning I woke up to not one dig or mark on the lawn. That was 2 weeks ago and my lawn has had no disturbance since. With the low cost of infra red LED lights it's certainly worth a try.
To Rob49. Turning to Gardener's World in despair over Badger attacks on my garden, I came to your idea about LED lights. Th odd thing being I had wondered if a motion activated alarm light might help.
As your idea is more affordable and easier to set up I shall definitely try it and will report back.
To Rob49. I turned to Gardener's World in desperation to find out how to stop Badgers attacking my garden which has now become so distressing and expensive.
Finding your idea about LED lights was interesting as i had been wondering about motion activated Alarm Lights. Your idea sounds easier to put in place and a lot easier on the pocket.
I am definitely going to try it and will come back with result. Hopefully GOOD!