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I planted out all my sprouting broccoli yesterday and didn't net them as it was getting late and I thought - tomorrow will do. Big mistake! This morning almost every plant has been nibbled by pigeons, ( I know it was pigeons as I caught one of the ***** having breakfast this morning) still got leaves but very skeletal. What I want to know is - will they revive as they still have some green matter left, or do I have to start all over again? Please someone tell me they will be ok.

Depending on the severity of the damage they could come back.

If the growing tip is intact then there is a fair chance they will be OK, they will take a few weeks to get back in the swing of things though.

Jerry

Ok thanks Jerry, you have given me hope! Now all I need is a shotgun!
Polly.

Try string, twigs, CDs, silver foil, ribbons, twirlygigs - anything that doesn't require a licence!

net or fleece cloches is the only thing that works. if youve shot one dont try plucking the complete bird. the only worthwhile meat is on the breast. so cut the breast off pluck that and throw the rest away.

I use fleece for the carrots and net cages to protect the fruit from birds but I have total success with fluttery, sparkly things over cabbages, beans, broccoli, sprouts, etc. Of course - it could be Bert and Mabel, my scarecrows, that are doing the trick, but they seem to be quite lazy. They only move around the veg plot once or twice a year.

Get into the habit of netting straight away,I even net my shallots to stop them being pulled out until they're rooted.I learnt the hard way like you!
PS.you can slit the pigeon skin and cut the breast away without any plucking at all!

Hi All,

I like pigeon. If its freshly shot, rural woody then there's nothing better than a quick minute on either side in a hot frying pan. Leave it to rest, deglaze the pan with some expensive red wine (100ml). This must come from the first pouring from the bottle! Add a bit of garlic, pinch of salt take it off the heat and melt in a knob of butter. Serve sliced over a bed of crushed potatoes and pour on your sauce.

Then drink the rest of the wine (make sure you've locked the gun up).

Shooting Woodpigeons is legal all year round SO LONG AS YOU CAN DEMONSTRATE YOU ARE PROTECTING YOUR CROPS FROM DAMAGE. So make sure you've got some thing worthwhile in the ground.

Excellent source of protein to add to the list of food stuffs your garden produces. Make sure they're woodpigeons tho. There are plenty of lookalikes that are protected E.g. the stock dove. And worse there are feral (town) pigeons that I wouldn't feed to the cat (and I don't like cats).

For the garden, an air rifle at just the legal limit (12 ft/lbs) will do the job at 10-15 yards. Don't shoot anything unless you're willing to despatch it immediately if you only wound it. Only shoot when you have blue sky or a solid surface behind which will stop the pellet. Otherwise go for it. Its the only sure way of knowing it wont come back for lunch and dinner!

My record - veg patch to plate - 17 mins.

If you want to scare them try a Phil Collins CD. I wouldn't hang it over the plot like suggested above. Just play it!

Loz

Also try de-glazing the pan with home made blackberry and apple jelly....a real autumn flavour.
This has turned to a pigeon appreciation society,PH will move us to recipes in a moment.