Few things in the garden feel worst than walking through it to inspect the crops and find this kind of damage -
The night before they were fine and untouched.
I'm not sure what has done this overnight but my guess is either rats or squirrels (they could have done it early morning before I got up!).
I'm gutted. Need to set some traps really and deal with it.
Anyone else experience much pest damage at the moment?
Share your woes, it won't make me feel better but at least it'll be a problem shared!
Could be foxes or even badgers or deer Kev? I sympathise with you after your squash growing efforts.
ReplyDeleteThe garden is fenced, but I doubt that would stop any of those animals. I could see some little teeth marks and that's why I thought it might be rodents, but they could have come later when it was broken into.
Deletesquirrels do this to all of my pumpkins!
ReplyDeleteArgh! I think the squirrels have been stealing my tomatoes as well as this damage.#
DeleteSo sorry to see all that damage. I had a vole go after a pristine, big squash, but it only made teeth scraping marks on it, not holes like yours have. We have to put a trap line in the garden as things ripen. The resident raven has taken to regular 'fly-overs' of the rock where we put out the trap's catchings, mostly chipmunks this summer, as our resident fox has gone AWOL.
ReplyDeleteYeah, the last few years I've had so much trouble with mice, voles and rats. They seem to eat everything given the chance! We got a few cats a couple of years ago but they haven't made much of a dent.
DeleteThat's substantial damage. Do you have raccoons? It is distressing to find damage after you've worked and waited for your crop to develop. I had a groundhog take up residence under a bridge in my garden and he cleaned out my lettuces and all my broccoli crowns. We terminated him as he started on the cabbages. One day can undo a season of work. For mice and voles, make a water trap. A bucket, half full of water, with a wire strung across the top and a beverage can threaded on the wire so that it can roll. Put peanut butter on the can and set a stick or board so the pest can walk up to the wire. A little taste of the bait on the stick and refresh your bait often as the odor is what draws them. If you have snakes, they're better than cats for keeping the rodents in check!
ReplyDeleteNo racoons here! It's how fast it can all happen. I remember my first time growing a little bed of barley. It was perfect. "I'll harvest that tomorrow" I thought. Tomorrow came and it was gone!
DeleteNo snakes here either unfortunately. I've tried the bucket trick but never had much luck. I think there's too much other stuff they can eat here!
I know your emotion only so well!!! Here in the USA, in my garden, I often have damage like that done by two predators. One: Opossums! and Two: Wild Turkeys. Both seem to be after the seeds, not the fruit meat. They've been running a night by night competition with me over my musk melons. I like mine as vine-ripe as possible, but when I check in the mornings and find what is in your pictures, I feel like screaming!!! Ah well, life on the farm.... Keep planting and never give up.
ReplyDeleteWe have neither of those here. To loose melons must be heart breaking, they take some growing here.
DeleteI had about 7 beautiful cantaloupes in my garden this year and every one got eaten by something (probably squirrels). I even made little cloth bags to put around them and somehow the critters got into them. I am not going to waste the time and space next year.
ReplyDeleteMelons are such hard work as well. I feel your pain!
DeleteMy pumpkins were obliterated much earlier in the season, during the dry weather. I had about twenty, all doing well on an old compost heap and about the size of a ping pong ball (-tennis ball) size. Every single one was eaten, presumably for liquid, by foxes. I have only harvested two :(
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