[hoppy]

I wasnt ready for a full blown garden this year at our new house. So i setup 4 tomato plants mainly for the wife who is a tomato freak! Anyway plants are going great and i have lots about to turn and a few already have. They are all in pots so i can move them if needed. MY problem is what i believe to be a rodent.....chipmunk and or squirrel is taking the grape tomatos when they turn red or deciding to leave my 1/2 eaten large tomato's still hanging on the plant. They wait till they start turnig and then its like someone rang the door bell!! they will not touch them when they are green. It really piss's me off. Come home from work to find my first large tomato that was just a few days away from being ready 1/2 gone!! I laugh about it.......however gardens take time and effort and anyone who has a good sized one knows that. I cant even keep them away from four plants. I put chicken wire fencing around them when i first started noticing my grapes were missing when id get home from work. Id be read y to pick.....and they be gone! LOL I can only assume a squirrel got into it today..........if it was a chipmunk then he has a full belly! how the hell do i keep my plants safe from these tree rats? i cant sit around with a BB gun all day.....they arent coming by when im home. any body else have this happen? I want to get to atleast enjoy what i grow.

[SeaDog1]

Hi hoppy,

My cat (rescued NYC street cat) is a great hunter. -> and do mean hunter

All year long he delivers his kills to the back door. (Chpies, Squrrils red and gray, voles, moles, rabbits, even some birds.)

All my neighbors love him as he even keeps their gardens pest free.
My garden is going nuts also -> More of a jungle!
Going to have a bumper crop of Tomatoes, various Peppers, Squash, and Egg Plant. -> May have to open a roadside stand LOL

SeaDog1 "Never Give In ... Never Back Down"

[DirtyDawg10]

I know this doesn't answer your question but at least they are only eating food at your place. The rodents at my house eat lawnmowers!!



On the bottom left is the first hole they ate in my gas tank. I patched it with some JB Weld marine epoxy and then they ate a huge effin hole on the right. I put traps out and caught 2 mice so far. The little bastards!!!

[NorthEastFisherman]

Something sharp or an eletric wire would scare them off. Or a hungry cat .
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[TT]

Same problem here Hoppy. Time to set the rat traps!!!!!

[hoppy]

I married a cat lover. she came with four indoor cats all rescues. dont get me wrong they are all good cats......but nothing gets me hotter then watching them watch these little critters run around right in front of them through windows. we live on a very busy road(near six flags) so they just wouldnt make it as outdoor cats. only a matter of time before they cross the road to the open fields before they would get smacked. so the cat method is out. do they make squirrel and chipmunk traps? Im starting to think a red ryder might be the next gift to myself.

[DirtyDawg10]

A nice pellet gun is always good. They do make chipmunk/squirrel traps. Just make sure you tie it to something so they don't run off with your trap.

[PECo]

My wife puts glass jars over the fruit on her potted strawberries to keep the critters off of them. It works pretty well.
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Don't forget to wear sunscreen and don't litter!

[Zach0208]

Set some good traps and you have some free bass bait。

[Michael]

[knowfish]

Buy some traps and a pellet gun. I also use a .22 loaded with subsonic bullets , also known as CB longs. They are quiet and about as effective as a good pellet gun.

[JustinSolak]

5 gallon bucket with some water, a 2x4 leadin up to it and some bird seed inside. preferebly sunflower seeds, as they float.

plus you can eat em...

cheapest effective trap you can get.
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...of all the liars among mankind, the fisherman is the most trustworthy.

Nothing makes a fish bigger than almost being caught.