I have 4 blueberry bushes and would like to know?
Question:how do i keep the birds and squirrels from stealing my blueberries?...they (the berries) are turning blue now and there are scads of them but i dont particularlly want these "thieves" on my bushes.someone had suggested deer netting but it doesnt work.then someone suggested cheesecloth but i dont know so much about this.they arent particularly delicate but im afraid of any weight stunting their growth and/or production.anyone?
Answers:
Found this on the intermanet...
Too many gardeners try to protect their bushes by merely throwing a piece of cheesecloth over the top. Birds happily fly under such protection and gardeners unhappily struggle through it to get at what few berries remain.
Foil the birds by erecting a walk-in cage around the whole planting. Drape commercially available bird netting over a permanent or temporary support made of metal, wood, or plastic pipe. Make sure to secure the net at the ground to keep birds from crawling beneath it.
You could build a permanent cage and enclose it in 1-inch-mesh chicken wire. If you do so, cover only the sides of the cage, not the top, with the chicken wire. Drape a net over the top of the cage when the blueberries start ripening.
You may need a couple of wires across the top of the cage to keep the net from sagging. Leaving the top open when there are no fruits allows birds in among the bushes to pick off insect pests, and avoids the problem of snow on the roof weakening the structure.
Awh i want a blueberry
:(
Hang or post a fake owl near by, change the location every couple days or so
A cat. I'm serious...natural, non hazardous to the environment...
The only way I know is to build a "cage" that the birds cannot penetrate. My neighbor built a wood frame bigger than his bushes and stapled window screen to them. The birds cannot get thru them.
Anything you drape on the plant the birds will be able to eventually get thru.
There is netting that you can buy; it generally is for cherry trees, but I can't see any reason why you can't use it for your blueberry bushes.
To give you an idea of what I am talking about, below is a site so you can see and know what to ask for at a nursery or home and garden store.
cheesecloth is fine for detering birds, doesn't stop the squirrels.
For squirrels. work cayenne pepper powder into mulch around base and under foliage of bush.
For birds. You can buy a flashy ribbon that you tie to various areas of bush. This will keep the birds away.
Go to http://www.1800topsoil.com to find someone local
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