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Step by step: How to keep rodents off your melons with melon cages Get hardware cloth. Cut square-sized pieces of hardware cloth large enough to complete encircle your mature melons. Secure a cylindrical shape with metal string. Create your wire end folds. Close one end of your melon cage. Cage your melon.
What animal is eating my watermelon?
Animals such as squirrels, chipmunks, deer and woodchucks enjoy puncturing and eating melon crops. Coyotes and domesticated dogs also enjoy biting into sweet melons. Raccoons and birds make holes in the tops of melons and scoop or suck juices from the fruit’s inside.
How do I protect my watermelons from squirrels?
You can prevent tree squirrels from damaging watermelons by covering them with freestanding, cage-like covers made of chicken wire. However, as with a fence, bend the bottom edge outward and bury the base of the cages in the soil to prevent them from digging beneath.
How do I protect my watermelons from raccoons?
Here’s what works for folks around here: You can put a radio in a zip-lock bag to keep moisture off of it and put it right in the middle of the melons. An electric fence with two strands, one 4″ off the ground and the other 12″ off the ground, usually deters raccoons.
How do I protect my watermelon from the ground?
Use a cage, plastic mulch, stakes, straw mulch or other materials to protect the fruit from the ground. You can even use a wooden board for the fruit to rest on as it matures.
Will squirrels eat melons?
Squirrels also love bananas, watermelons, cantaloupe (any melon, in general), and cherries! The benefit of eating fruit for squirrels is that it gives them a major sugar-boost and provides lots of energy to keep scrambling around and foraging for more goodies.
Will animals eat my watermelon?
Raccoons and deer also like watermelons, particularly as the fruit becomes ripe. Damage inflicted by these animals usually is less extensive than the handiwork of coyotes. They may make holes in the rind and scoop or chew some of the inside of the flesh, but they don’t usually consume an entire melon.
How do I protect my watermelon seedlings?
Transplanting Seedlings Handle watermelon seedlings with extreme care when you transplant. Their roots are very fragile, so try not to disturb the soil when removing them from pots. After transplanting, cover the plants with row covers to keep pests at bay.
Will rabbits eat watermelon plants?
Finally, rabbits can eat watermelon leaves or plants. It is normal for even wild rabbits to nibble these leaves as they are non-toxic.
Do racoons eat watermelon plants?
Main Attraction: Raccoons are omnivores, meaning that they eat all kinds of plants as well as animals. They’re accurately known as marauders of sweet corn patches, but they also commonly feast on melons, berries, grapes, and a variety of other garden vegetables.
Do rats eat watermelon?
For starters, rats love watermelon. But considering that rats eat just about everything, the simple fact that they’ll eat it doesn’t mean much. But watermelon is actually a good choice for rats. For starters, it’s a low-calorie option with vitamins A and C and plenty of potassium.
What should you put under watermelon?
In order to grow great watermelons, you’ll need to put a barrier between the watermelons and the ground. This is to reduce the risk of rot and disease. Good ground barriers are straw, or even cardboard.
What do you put under watermelon?
Instead, place small patches of plastic sheeting, coarse straw or a piece of plywood directly under melon fruits that have become at least softball sized. As long as the melon doesn’t rest directly atop wet soil or mulch, there’s much less chance for the melon’s underside to rot.
How do I keep coyotes from eating my watermelons?
Over the years, the only deterrent we have found that works is putting a tomato cage over the watermelons as they start to grow. The coyotes have yet to figure out how to move the cages and the melons can’t be pulled through the wire. We manage to save a few watermelons each year using this method.
Do squirrels and birds eat watermelon?
Watermelon is loaded with sugar and should not become a regular part of a squirrels diet. Make sure you’re feeding your backyard squirrels or pet squirrel food that provides them the essential vitamins and nutrients their bodies require.
Do birds and squirrels like watermelon?
Fruit: Windfall or bruised fruit from backyard trees is always appetizing to the birds. Other fruits, such as old berries, raisins, grapes, bananas, oranges, grapefruits and the seeds of watermelons, honeydew melons, pumpkins, and cantaloupes can also be offered to birds.
Will animals eat watermelon rinds?
Yes, squirrels love nuts, vegetables, and fruit. They will eat almost any variety of fruit, and for watermelons, this includes the rind.
Do possums eat watermelon?
Opossums may not be the animal you immediately think of when you picture a “cute” animal. This group of five sibling opossums is thoroughly enjoying their bowl of delicious watermelon. If everyone liked fruit this much, we would be a much healthier world!Dec 24, 2014.
How do I protect my deer from watermelon?
Human hair (such as from a barber or hairdresser) and bar soap, also Bounce fabric softener sheets, are said to keep the deer away. For whatever reason, deer hate the smell of Irish Spring soap. Drive several stakes around the watermelon patch and hang a bar of it from each.
Will Groundhogs eat watermelon?
Groundhogs are herbivores. They like almost all vegetables in your vegetable garden and many herbs, too. In addition to vegetables, they also like fruits, including apples and pears, Watermelons are a favorite meal. They will also eat nuts.
