After spending months sowing and fertilizing seedlings, watering, and cultivating your plants, it’s fair for you to expect a bountiful garden full of greenery. But, as your harvest witnesses its first batch of fruits and vegetables, birds, rodents, and insects start coming in to destroy your produce right in front of your eyes.
It’s a heartbreaking sight, isn’t it?
Although it is inevitable for birds and animals to be tempted to your fresh garden produce, the good news is that it is avoidable to a great extent. An effective yet affordable way to counter this situation is by installing garden netting. The best thing about netting is that it is a safe and easy way to protect your harvest without harming the animals.
Why Install Garden Netting?
You may think that you have options like insecticides and pesticides. But, these substances have poisons that kill birds and animals, and may even endanger you if you come into direct contact with them. It’s just a risk that you don’t have to take – not to mention the fact that you’re harming the environment.
Garden netting is an excellent solution for protecting your plants. It also allows sunlight, ventilation, and nutrients from rainwater into the plantation area that enhances the growth of your vegetation, while keeping unwanted guests out.
The netting is usually made up of polyethylene, which is a safe and durable material. And, it doesn’t need a regular maintenance provided that you handle it carefully.
When to Install Garden Netting?
Birds will usually not be attracted to your garden until the vegetables and fruits have fully ripened. Thus, you don’t need to worry about installing netting until your plants have matured.
However, the best time to put up netting is right after pollination, while the fruits and vegetables are still unripe and small.
Make sure not to forget netting your trees as well. Birds and animals will more likely reach for your trees before your plants. But, first, be sure that there are no bird nests on the trees as the netting needs to be draped over the entire tree. Try to safely remove nests from the trees without harming the birds in the process.
More Tips to Keep Birds Away from your Harvest
- Take down any bird feeders from the trees. Many people enjoy bird watching, so they put bird feeders in their trees, but if you want your harvest to stay safe, you will have to remove them.
- Consider putting up other types of bird deterrents, as well.
- Remove any water sources from your garden as birds like to bath in the water along with drinking it.
If you are looking for effective netting options for your garden, contact Little Fields Farm. Protect your harvest from birds with Garden Netting Mini Rolls or Superior Fruit Cage Anti-Bird Netting.
