An apple, half-eaten by a possum.
Most backyard fruit is now getting plump and ripe – tomatoes, stone fruits, mangos, citrus, figs etc.
Needless to say, many animals are out for their share of your backyard produce including birds, fruit bats, possums & even rats. What can you do to stop them?
You can protect tomatoes by using a nylon bird mesh available from hardware stores & nurseries. Or you could use galvanized wire mesh attached to a frame. Some people build a huge “anti aviary” over the top of their fruit trees to keep the birds out.
Other people spray their fruit trees with animal repelling (but harmless) sprays like Poss-Off, D-Ter or similar alum based sprays.
You can mix up wasabi (1 teaspoon per litre of water) or use old black tea from the teapot – both of these may taste bad to pests and safely repel them.
Some people just accept that the birds take their share of the produce. Remember that we are blessed with the World’s Greatest collection of native parrots.
Hooroo!