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Animals: Feeding on our landscapes
Jan 30, 2012 02:26 PM
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As homeowners, we try to create a landscape that we can spend time with and enjoy. A well-kept landscape may also attract unwanted animals which feed on our shrubs and trees. Some of the most common pests are voles (see blog on voles), squirrels, rabbits, deer, and porcupines.
Squirrels
These animals damage ornamental plants because they regularly gnaw, clip stems and branches, consume buds, and strip bark from trees. Your lawn can be littered with large numbers of twigs that have been nipped off of the trees. To help protect your trees and shrubs from feeding, encircling the tree with a 2-foot- wide collar of metal located 6" off ground should help. You can trap them and take them 5 miles away from the area but where they may cause problems for someone else. Shooting them is an effective method of immediate eliminating a problem ((limited to those so inclined and where legal).
Rabbits
During the fall and winter months, rabbits damage and kill valuable woody plants by gnawing bark or clipping off branches, stems, and buds. When snow covers the ground for a long time they often severely damage some plants by clipping branches off at snow height and larger trees and shrubs might be completely girdled. Damage can be identified by the characteristic appearance of gnawing on older woody growth and the clean-cut angled clipping of young stems. To protect plants, put up a fence, which does not have to be tall or especially sturdy ( the bottom tight to the ground or buried a few inches is sufficient). You can trap, as long the population is not too dense. Shooting is a quick, easy and effective method of control (again where permitted).
Deer
Deer are important game animals with the additional aesthetic value to landowners and vacationers. Over the past decade, deer have become a significant pest. They damage a variety of trees and ornamental plantings. Young trees and shrubs are also damaged when deer rub their antlers on trunks and limbs. A few twigs nibbled on a tree or shrub during the winter by deer will result in little more than a bushier plant or in heavy feeding can cause great plant disfiguration. Feeding damage usually reveals leaves that have jagged or torn surface on twigs or stems. Fences used tp protect trees should be at least 8 feet high and be close to the ground because deer may also slink under a fence. It is possible to spray a thiram-based spray, which make the plants taste bad to the deer. Poisoning deer with any product for any reason is illegal and is unlikely to be tolerated by the public.
Porcupine
Porcupine's teeth grow constantly therefore, they have a great need to gnaw in order to keep their teeth ground to a short enough length. They eat plants, inner tree bark, leaves and twigs. They prefer aspen, willow, cottonwood and ponderosa pine. Their chewing can expose tree roots, girdle and clip trees. Porcupines can climb trees and they will clip branches or even the trunk of the tree to eat them. Winter is often the worst time for porcupine tree damage. Reduce tree damage by banding individual trees with a 2-3" high metal cylinder placed 3’ off the ground to prevent porcupines from climbing. Repellents with capsaisin base chemicals can discourage gnawing on objects. Trapping is an excellent control method and a simple raccoon trap is sufficient.
Pest management is a constant battle for the homeowners. New products are always becoming available don’t give up if one method of control doesn’t work. Keep fighting for the landscape of your dreams.
Animals: Feeding on our landscapes
Squirrels
These animals damage ornamental plants because they regularly gnaw, clip stems and branches, consume buds, and strip bark from trees. Your lawn can be littered with large numbers of twigs that have been nipped off of the trees. To help protect your trees and shrubs from feeding, encircling the tree with a 2-foot- wide collar of metal located 6" off ground should help. You can trap them and take them 5 miles away from the area but where they may cause problems for someone else. Shooting them is an effective method of immediate eliminating a problem ((limited to those so inclined and where legal).
Rabbits
During the fall and winter months, rabbits damage and kill valuable woody plants by gnawing bark or clipping off branches, stems, and buds. When snow covers the ground for a long time they often severely damage some plants by clipping branches off at snow height and larger trees and shrubs might be completely girdled. Damage can be identified by the characteristic appearance of gnawing on older woody growth and the clean-cut angled clipping of young stems. To protect plants, put up a fence, which does not have to be tall or especially sturdy ( the bottom tight to the ground or buried a few inches is sufficient). You can trap, as long the population is not too dense. Shooting is a quick, easy and effective method of control (again where permitted).
Deer
Deer are important game animals with the additional aesthetic value to landowners and vacationers. Over the past decade, deer have become a significant pest. They damage a variety of trees and ornamental plantings. Young trees and shrubs are also damaged when deer rub their antlers on trunks and limbs. A few twigs nibbled on a tree or shrub during the winter by deer will result in little more than a bushier plant or in heavy feeding can cause great plant disfiguration. Feeding damage usually reveals leaves that have jagged or torn surface on twigs or stems. Fences used tp protect trees should be at least 8 feet high and be close to the ground because deer may also slink under a fence. It is possible to spray a thiram-based spray, which make the plants taste bad to the deer. Poisoning deer with any product for any reason is illegal and is unlikely to be tolerated by the public.
Porcupine's teeth grow constantly therefore, they have a great need to gnaw in order to keep their teeth ground to a short enough length. They eat plants, inner tree bark, leaves and twigs. They prefer aspen, willow, cottonwood and ponderosa pine. Their chewing can expose tree roots, girdle and clip trees. Porcupines can climb trees and they will clip branches or even the trunk of the tree to eat them. Winter is often the worst time for porcupine tree damage. Reduce tree damage by banding individual trees with a 2-3" high metal cylinder placed 3’ off the ground to prevent porcupines from climbing. Repellents with capsaisin base chemicals can discourage gnawing on objects. Trapping is an excellent control method and a simple raccoon trap is sufficient.
Pest management is a constant battle for the homeowners. New products are always becoming available don’t give up if one method of control doesn’t work. Keep fighting for the landscape of your dreams.