Kitchen Garden Forum

Over the last two evening several plots on our site have been vandalised.

We suspect four legged culprits with black and white jumpers who have been digging up potatoes and carrots in search of worms...this happens each year but its usually a little later (must be the warm weather) then they target sweetcorn...several sweetcorn patches can disappear in a single night.

Would anyone like a few Badgers....you can have them...no charge!

Dear Weed, badgers cetainly seem to be making a real nuisance of themselves this year on peoples allotments, it must all be very frustrating for the victims.

I take it you are on about badgers and not zebras.

I feel really sorry for you Weed. Is it possible for you to fence your lottie all the way round. I have noticed that a lot of allotments are open plan. We have fencing all round our lottie but it was expensive. But we dont have any problem with rabbits anymore. I dont know if some allotments dont allow fencing because everyone on our allotment has fenced their patch. We have never seen badgers round these parts but funnily enough this morning my OH saw a dead badger in the road on his way to work. We are quite rural.

OH Cant say I've seen any zebras either....

Now I hadn't though of Zebras OH... I think their's is a more grazing action this damage is far more aggressive.

We know we have three active sets on the edge of the site....the Council have no money for fencing plus the cost would be considerable... We will be asking the Council to apply for a moving (should I say eviction) order to get them relocated.

There are a few angry plotholders at the moment

Hi Weed,
I take it that your allotment is in an urban setting.
In the countryside Badgers have been causing damage for many a year. When the law changed my mother who was well over 90 at the time said that to put a preservation order on something that has only one predator (man) was going to end up in tears. She was a true countrywoman and just how right she was, bless her.
On one part of my plot they have actually bitten through pig netting. The vet tells me that if they can get their molars around wire they have so much jaw strength that they can very easily chew through it.
JB.

JB

I have heard stories about the prowess of Badgers in getting through/under wire etc.

The site is fronted by a busy road with about four houses between it and the site, one side is a school playing field, the other side is the Leicester Tigers Rugby Football training ground plus a recycling plant and the rear boundary is the Leicester Racecourse.

A couple of years ago a local pub was demolished to make way for housing...there were Badgers on the old Pub site, they were relocated to a 'secret' location...GUESS WHERE?