Something ate my bell pepper plant OVERNIGHT!!

[CRAllen]

I planted 4 bell pepper plants. They were about 2 1/2 foot tall. Overnight 1 came up missing with a pile of dirt where it stalk was. Earlier I had something take 76 of the 80 onions I planted. It’s like it’s just gone overnight - no nibbling - nothing. Just gone. please help!!!

[Vanisle_BC]

You want to know what ate your pepper and onion plants. Where are you and what critturs inhabit your region - deer, rabbit, moose; neighbours' dogs, cats, chickens; wallabies, coons, polar bears? Sorry I'm being flippant but it has to be something bigger than a caterpillar. I think even cats will eat onions, but 76 at one go?? Are there no footprints, scratch marks, droppings that would provide a clue? Is the garden fenced; with what, how high, how securely?

[rainbowgardener]

could be ground hog/ wood chuck, but usually they leave a nibbled off stalk:



Depending on where you are, it could be deer, armadillo, skunk, rabbit...

But the onion plants disappearing is just weird. Onion is repellent to most animals. Cutworms will eat onion plants and can disappear them over night, if they are just seedlings. Grasshoppers, slugs, snails eat onion plants. Larger animals do not.

[imafan26]

Something made a midnite harvest.

[CRAllen]

Live in OK - have 8 raised beds - no fence. Planted the onions in late March - almost every morning I would Check and several were just gone. I put a netting over them thinking it was a bird or something - but there were still disappearing. In 10 days 76 of them just gone! My bell pepper plant had been doing great until this AM. What’s weird is the entire plant - stalk and roots - everything was gone! And there was a small pile of dirt where the stalk was. We have deer around and turkeys but for the entire 2 1/2 foot plant to just be totally gone is weird! No tracks no rabbit poop - nothing!

[rainbowgardener]

I do think cutworms were the culprit for your onions.

But the large pepper plants are a mystery... Can you set up a light and a nanny cam?

[applestar]

I do think no fence or protection at all where there are wildlife around is not going to work ....

I think you are thinking of a trail cam, rainbowgardener — they take infrared night time videos and photos. I’ve been eyeing them for years and technology has improved from year to year. I have always REALLY wanted one, but now I’ve started looking at security cameras that you can remotely monitor (rather than retrieving SD card as with trailcam) as well....

[CRAllen]

Last night my husband and I talked of the camera as well. We have lived in this rural area for 7 years - put the garden in 2012 - never had a fence around it. However - I do agree after what we are seeing. The interesting thing about the onions - I thought maybe a mole since there would always be a hole - bigger than a golf ball - in the onion area. We do have moles and gophers but I read they don’t eat veggies. I will do some research on the cutworms. Thanx for that! And I see a camera in my future as well.

[CRAllen]

My 5 remaining pepper plants survived the night. Yay! Ha

[jal_ut]

A radio in the corn patch tuned to the local talk station keeps the raccoons outa my corn.