protecting tomatoe plants

[porthos]

i don't have good luck planting tomatoes. this year i circled the plants with plastic screen. i ran out, and one screen is lower than the one with the lower the others (they are 3 ft high) i also have the traditional wire cage that is tapered to larger at the top. the plant that has the lower screen has the tops chewed off. my whole garden is fenced in; but something is getting in. one of the "fixes" that i have read about is soaking apple cider vinegar in cotton balls and tying them around the fence. i did that just now ( my garden is 20 ft x 20ft). any other suggestions that might help; other that posting guard????????????????

[36g]

How high is your outer fence? Here the deer will clean out a garden pretty quick. 5 to 6 ft fences are the norm. A 4' fence is just a small hop for them.

[legend 550]

Dust them with Cayenne pepper every few days. Works for deer and rabbits.

[porthos]

my fence is 4 ft. high. but, in the corners and middle of each side; i have 6 ft. poles to which i have tied heavy string. to the string i have attached flourcent orange "streamers". at about 5.5 ft

[country gent]

Our tomato cages were to keep the plants and tomatoes up off the ground more so than protection. Are you sure its animals and not insects chewing them. Our cages were made from 4" square mesh fence wire 3 foot tall.

The only thing I think of is cutting a dome to set over top of your cages enclosing them.

[porthos]

not insects. anyone ever had luck with ultrasonic units??

[schutzen-jager]

mine is 7 feet + occasionally a deer will jump it - 90 weight gear oil on old socks renewed bi weekly has stopped that - garden centers + farm supplies stock repellent, but are expensive + not long lasting - the pepper only works after they start eating + washes off in rain -

[lavenatti]

I use liquid fence. As long as I remember to keep spraying it on the plants every two weeks I have no issues.

[Adam Helmer]

porthos,

I lightly dust my garden stuff with hydrated lime and the deer, woodchucks and rabbits leave my stuff alone. If rain washes off the lime, the plants benefit so dust them again.

Be well.

Adam

[porthos]

adam: from what you say; it is safe to dust the tomatoes with hydrated lime ??

[country gent]

tomato protection One legged man with a sawed off shotgun

[dale2242]

I have 4' of hog wire and 2 strands of barbed wire atop that for a total of 6'.
The black tail deer that frequent my garden area do not jump 6' of fence.
My granddaughter gave me a powder called REPEL ALL that has kept the deer away from my unfenced strawberries.

[dagger dog]

We (wife and I) bought 4 ultrasound units late last year and set them up this year, the deer were eating our hostas and day lilies, and I planted 10 tomato plants and some cukes and peppers, so far, they seem to be doing their job they are solar, and I kept them on an east facing windowsill over the winter to keep them powered.

[Hogtamer]

Deer mowed my big tomatoes a couple of years ago. Fed ‘em 22 Mag a few days and got a dog. The tomatoes turned out fine though, the deer not so much.

[Iowa Fox]

The varmints have whipped me here after living here for 44 years. Not only digging burrowing crawling walking critters I have them flying in. Can't shoot them out anymore the numbers are overwhelming.

[Tripplebeards]

Just put a taller wire fence around it. I’ve even wrapped screen around the bottom of the fencing to keep the smaller baby rabbits out. it normally last quite a few years until you hit it with the lawnmower.

[waksupi]

I used Irish Spring bars hung from trees and trellises. Worked well for deer, as long as you keep them fresh.

By the way, Irish Spring repels me, too, along with any other stinky perfumes.

[Recycled bullet]

When I was a kid my father used to mix pepper powder with dish soap inside a squirt bottle and spray the Roses to keep the Japanese beetles off, interesting side effect is that the deer quit eating the roses when he did that of course reapply after a major rainstorm.

[CastingFool]

You can make your own liquid fence, instead of buying it. Take 10 eggs, break them and mix them in a gallon of water. Let the concoction sit on your counter for 10 days. Don't worry it won't stink. Some recipes call for the addition of black paper, but I think that would tend to clog up yours prayer, so I don't use it. Just put the mixture in a plastic spray bottle and spray your plants. It won't repel the deer or rabbits, but they won't like the taste. After they get conditioned, they won't return and eat your plants

[36g]

Next concern here is raccoons. Got one on game camera last night in the driveway. Will have to watch closely once garden starts to produce.

We're only 150 yards from the edge of a state hardwood forest so get lots of critters.