pickupguy07
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Posts: 253
Joined: Thu May 12, 2011 7:06 pm
Location: GA

crows

So; my first garden. and all seems to be going very well.
I got lots of tomatoes,.. canning most of them as they come ripe.
Now I got crows hanging around beating me to harvesting them.
I canned tomatoes yesterday, but left one or two on the vines for lunch today.
Went out to get one,.. and there isn't much left of either of them.

So here's the question you know has been building..
HOW do you keep crows out of your plants. Maybe you can give me several types of options,.. and I can use them ALL.
I figure if they are hanging out to get tomatoes,.. they'll be in my corn, beans, etc when it all matures also.. No telling what all they'll ruin.
after all this work and careful nursing... I'd kind of like to get as much as possible for my efforts (guess I'm greedy that way... LOL)

Someone suggested something to do with 'strings' in my tomatoes plants,.. but it was in passing and I didn'y quite understand the principle. or how it was supposed to work.

DoubleDogFarm
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sarah-palin-crosshairs. Cute but CRAZY!

[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/Helpful%20Gardener%20Misc/sarah-palin-crosshairs.jpg[/img]

Eric
Last edited by DoubleDogFarm on Wed Jul 13, 2011 12:59 am, edited 1 time in total.

pickupguy07
Senior Member
Posts: 253
Joined: Thu May 12, 2011 7:06 pm
Location: GA

LOL...
yeah thats my currect option.. only it's just a .22 pistol
but maybe the NOISE will scare them away.. lol

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cherishedtiger
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Location: Sacramento, California

LOVE IT! DDF!!!

On another note, have you tried any types of scarecrows? I purchased a watering scarecrow, its motion activated and anything comes near the garden and poof it goes off, just like a regular sprinkler. Gets everything out of the yard.
I have also heard of people using reflective ribbons to keep birds out, the shining in the sun indicates movement that keeps them away.

Just a thought, but I like DDF's idea... and have been tempted to do the same many a time. And I have the arsenal to put to use too!

pickupguy07
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Posts: 253
Joined: Thu May 12, 2011 7:06 pm
Location: GA

something shiney..
hhuumm thats a possibility. Maybe something like a CD disc hanging and swinging round. Not much wind on these dog days of summer.
Wonder what other options we can hear.?? I really don't have anything to hang something like a disc on. I mean, it is a garden.. and thus most are out in wide open spaces where they can gets lots of sun.
The CD Disc would be a great idea in some type of fruit tree.
SO I kind of as still seeking the best way...

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cherishedtiger
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Location: Sacramento, California

Can you get shiny ribbon and tie strands directly to the plants? OR to the tomato cages?

pickupguy07
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Posts: 253
Joined: Thu May 12, 2011 7:06 pm
Location: GA

cherishedtiger wrote:Can you get shiny ribbon and tie strands directly to the plants? OR to the tomato cages?
thats a thought.. good idea.
Now my neighbor has chickens that have gotten loose.. I have THOSE to deal with also.

ruggr10
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Joined: Sun Dec 26, 2010 2:53 pm
Location: Brunswick, Maine

I hang old CD's from string. That has worked to keep crows away from my plants.

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jal_ut
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Location: Northern Utah Zone 5

Chickens make good soup. Not sure about crow?

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rainbowgardener
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Location: TN/GA 7b

Deer netting. My tomato plants are in a complete cage of deer netting, including over the top. I put stakes around the whole bed the plants are in and then wrap the deer netting around the stakes. "Staple" it down at the bottom with earth staples and pull it together over the top.

I have to do that because I have raccoons and groundhogs that would never let me have a single tomato if they weren't protected.

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Fig3825
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Joined: Fri Jun 17, 2011 3:40 pm
Location: Alexandria, Virginia

I saw a video on the web just the other night that I wanted to share here but I cannot find it now. A man somewhere had a paint can lid on a string dragging on the surface of a river next to his garden. The water pulled the paint can lid a bit and then the lid slipped across the surface of the water back to it's start position. The string was suspended from a tree limb above the water, which was connected to a bunch of stuff hanging from strings all over his garden. The motion of the river pulling at the paint can lid moved the tree limb back and forth which, in turn, moved everything hanging in his garden (CD's, streamers, etc). Constant motion all the time. Nothing would go near it.

I don't anticipate you will do something like this, but I really wanted to share the video because it was super clever and ingenious!

If I find it, I'll post it here...

CharlieBear
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Location: Pacific NW

Crows are tenatous and smart, so they get wise to everything fast. They do not like percussive noise, so if you see them go out and clap loudly and yell at them. I do that when I started out here at this place 6 years ago we had 57 crows in the garden one day, because it had been vacant for so long and it is prime breeding area. We tried all of the above, they didn't like whirlly things, but eventually caught on a pecked holes in them, until they worked at scaring them when the wind blew. One crow became aggresive and flew at me at the last minute it flew up and hit the chimney and broke its neck. We hung it upside down in the yard and what a "funeral" for 3 days. After that they were easier to spook.
By the way they will pull up young corn in the spring if they catch on that it is there, they ruined all of mine the first 2 years, so I don't plant it anymore. I have never had them go after beans.
On the tomatoes you may have to resort to bird netting on supports that keep it well away from the plants, a friend of mine resorted to that.



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