Thursday, May 23, 2013

Bird Proofing the Garden


Good Morning All!
Did you all think I quit blogging??   
To be honest, I thought I had but I do miss everyone so I thought I'd give it another go.
It's finally garden season here after many (too many) months of cold, snowy and frosty mornings. I truly was wondering if spring was ever going to arrive but it has and I've finally got my garden planted. 

Springtime usually brings a few unwelcome visitors to our yard. The flying kind of visitors....the black Starlings.
These birds come each year and build a nest. Once I have my garden planted they dive bomb it and snip the tops off all of my plants.
So my choices are to grab the BB gun and start shooting away at them which will only leave a nest full of babies with no Momma to feed them or to bird proof my garden.
Obviously I choose to bird proof!
I looked around at store-bought netting but didn't really want to pay the price for something that I would only need for a short time. Plus I would need to buy several packages of it to be able to cover my whole garden. (about $25.00)
So being a crafty person and one who loves to work with fabrics and sewing I instantly headed to the fabric department to check the price of nylon tulle which was a cheap $.88 a yard.
Bingo!
For a little under $5.00 I was able to buy 5 yards and protect all 34 plants that I have.
It does take a little more work than just being able to stretch out a sheet of netting but worth it.
I took my tulle and cut it into 34 squares. 
Roughly cut at about 20 x 15 inches. I did not measure so some were smaller and some maybe a bit bigger.
I then cut two small slits in the center of each square. (about a 1/2" apart from each other)
Now just slide the tulle down over your garden stake (through one of the two slits). Take a bread tie or garbage bag twist tie and insert it through both of the slits and then attach it to the stake. 
Now your plants are bird proof!
As your plants begin to grow just untie and slide the netting up a little higher. Once the plants have gotten a good start just remove the netting.
I have used this method for several years. It's cheap, easy and keeps the birds OUT!
The top photo is from three weeks ago when I first planted.
The bottom is now. 
You can see how much the plants have grown. I have removed the netting from the squash and zucchini and raised the netting up on all the other plants. 

It won't be long and I will be able to take all the nets off.

7 comments:

Carmen S. said...

Welcome back! have missed your posts and this is a GREAT idea!!! I have some of the store bought netting I re-use every year for my blueberries and raspberries, it is torn up a bit but like you said the new is not cheap so I make do:) My tomato plants aren't looking too good, I think those couple nights below freezing were too cold even though I had them in the patio:/

Jill said...

Looks like your garden is coming along really well! We haven't gotten one started yet this year. Welcome back to blogging. Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Blessings,
Jill

Unknown said...

Hi Jessica, I have missed you... welcome back to blogging! I have been slow with mine too trying to decide what I want to do. I really do want to give these two up and keep the Kitty blog.
Other things have become more important and time is another thing that's against me. I'm going ahead for now, but I don't know how long. I miss everyone too. Hope it works out for you.
Have a Super Weekend!
Loretta xx

Cheryl said...

That sure is a smart ideal !

Unknown said...

It is really nice blog. The installation of
Pigeon Netting is very effective.

Wyatt Roberts said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Wyatt Roberts said...

Awesome job keeping your veggies safe! I run a pigeon control company in Arizona -- phoenixpigeons.com
-- and I am always on the lookout for good posts by people to see what innovative stuff they come up with when it comes to bird proofing. This is great!