last 2 years not a single bird has thanked me for providing FREE blueberries. I would like to harvest my little crop for me this year! Is there a cheap way to keep the birds away from my little BBbush???? I netted it and 1 little bird got in the net and ate every single one. we have had wonderful rainfall and the berries are taking shape. I want to be selfish this year and eat them myself!! any suggestions?!?!?!?
As with most berries, when they ripen, they are up for grabs. A PVC framework to support bird netting that is anchored to the ground is probably a good bet. An alternative is set your alarm clock for 4:00 AM (yawn) and beat the birds to the goodies. A light/motion activated scarecrow would just be an experiment. Jerry
Caging like Jerry suggested is your best bet. Just a wood frame would work too. Anything that will support the netting and held to the ground will work . Our dogs even help ! Last year I tied plastic Walmart sacks on our fruit trees and it worked for a while. But had to rotate with tin pie plates after they figured out the first one. Birds are smart and can outwit you.
If you have room a mulberry tree is a great deterrent as they loooove mulberries, but you'll have much purple poop to wash off of everything. But it works. I keep rubber snakes all around the yard in the summer. I move them regularly to make the birds think they are real. Flash tape or "scare away" bird tape seems to help, too. You need to tie it taut and the wind (any amount) makes it flick back and forth "flashing" as it moves. too much wind sometimes breaks it though. Or the frame around the berries with bird netting. If you build it sturdy enough and use heavier bird netting ( this will not be really inexpensive, but it lasts a LONG time) you will have a fairly permanent solution. If you have enough berries you can sell them and make enough money in return to pay for the bird netting and structure. My cousin did this several years ago and she has about 30 plants. I sold at least 100 pints for her at my farmers markets this past year.
Thanks all This yard stuff is killing me this year! My berry bush is small. MYbe about 2 cups of berries if i don't have to share them!
Joanne I have 2. A front porch cat that belongs to my neighbor to the right. But he lives on my porch. Then the the back porch cat who belongs to my neighbor on the left. Who brings us headless gifts.
DM, I have a plastic owl ballon that i blow up every year and place in the branches. It seems to work pretty good until I forget to move it. This year i purchased an owl statue on sale. (I posted pics of it on 'bunkie doings' thread.) It is solar powered and it's head moves in a circular motion every so many minutes. Will have to let you know how it works later this summer.
Bunkie That sounds like a great idea! I went to the dollar. Tree and they had rubber snakes and i wound one on there. But the owl idea sounds neat!
Maybe its the way you've got your netting set up? Hopefully the snake/owl thing will work. Those are pretty good suggestions! Here are my blueberries with netting on them. So far no birds have got in! My problem is I usually eat the blueberries off the plant and they might not make it to the house. Blueberries June 21 2011 ( photo / image / picture from whistler's Garden )
Whistler,i like your set up. I also understand the ..not making it to the house thing. We have asparagus growing. It very rarely makes it to the house. We eat it right where it grows!
Yup last year the birds got most of our blueberries. That was the first year they bothered them. But we had such a dry spell that the robins couldn't find any worms to eat. Thus the blueberries where goners. Yes my berries have a hard time making it into the house. As well as our asparagus. We have to keep a close eye on our little poodle mix as she loves asparagus and will munch the stalks right off to the ground level. I think the solar owl would be a great deterrent.
I think the solar owl might work. My first try at growing blueberries was a total flop. I planted 7 or 8 bushes over two seasons, and EVERY one of them dropped dead. It claims they like acid soil. Maybe, but they do NOT like black walnut trees nearby. So, I am not yet sure where, but my next blueberry bushes will go in a different location WHEN I can get some more. I do have a few mulberry trees around my yard, and I never get any of them. However, I do beat the birds to my pie cherries, so I guess that makes us even. DMJ, the blueberries for sale in this area recommend more than one variety for proper pollination, and of course MORE blueberries. Just a thought. I am certainly no blueberry expert--YET.
Double A, walnut tree's are indeed plant killers. I'm not certain, but I think the word is aleopathic. (I could very well be wrong and the word only sounds similar) Blueberries love acid soil. A cup of powdered sulpher mixed into the soil at each planting site will do wonders for establishing long term acidity. Scratching the same amount into the soil around established plants works well too.
