Pigeons!

[Westi]

Well Peeved! Went down to lottie and looked at the runners and the top growth was all dead - initially thought someone had sprayed them but further investigation found all the stems at the base were severed.

Neighbour then told me when she came down early in the morning it was like a scene from 'The Birds' with over 50 pigeons on my plot. I have a wind break with a little gate all around and strips of plastic tied to the poles as have had the quails in there before. They pecked the tops of some of the onions but didn't touch anything else that was uncovered.

Not for food so obviously for fun...and they only went for the ones in flower with baby beans and ignored the little plants. They now have every childs whirling thing in there as well with more streamers - they will either knock themselves unconscious or strangle themselves - hopefully!

Westi

[glallotments]

We have a wood pigeon that sits on top of the anemometer on my husbands weather station happily twiling round as it move so I'm not convinced that moving objects deter them - hope they do though for your sake.

For some reason the birds seem to be more destructive this year.

[Johnboy]

Hi Westi,
We have a Pigeon problem here this year and although I now have umpteen Pigeon Pies in the freezer they still persist.We have found
that by laying branches of Hazel on the pathways and close to the crops that the pigeons do not like anywhere they cannot land and take off quickly so although until I have another lead session this methods is working quite adequately.
JB.

[Westi]

Thanks Johnboy - haven't any hazel but loads of twigs saved up for next years peas! If I could hit a target I'd have a freezer full as well - side of a bran & all that!

Westi

[Stephen]

I was wondering how much it would cost to have a hawk brought once a week.

[Westi]

Whoop! Went down tonight and a couple of the stems the pigeons nipped off are re-sprouting..don't know if the trauma may affect any beans though; they may be deformed or not set flowers. The other nipped ones are covered in a white sticky powder - do you think this might be contamination from the birds beaks? I'd like to give the other damaged ones a chance to recover but don't want to risk the rest of the crop.

Westi