I'm going through a learning curve on gardening this year. Glynnis and spent thousands on water troughs for planters, tons of different plants, 15 yards of bark, a crushed granite courtyard, you name it. But my pride and joy are the berries. Blackberry, two varieties of red raspberry, golden raspberry, boysenberry, and marionberry. I could give a fiddler's fart over a tomato, but berries? Me likey berries.
This year we just planted, so any fruit is just a bonus as berries generally take a couple of years. However, we have a smattering of red razzies and quite a few blacks. I built a Jerry-rigged hoop house to try to keep the birds out, but they find the smallest openings (doorway curtains) and destroy the fruit. This is a great learning year, as next year will have (hopefully) lots of fruit and I need to figure out how to keep the little bastards at bay.
This morning there were five in there at daybreak. I'd had it. Got the FX and went full Walter Sobchak from the Big Lebowski. "You see what happens when you %^& a stranger in the @$$? You see what happens?! Huh?!" The birds didn't think I was serious. After the second poof, the remaining birds suddenly became highly motivated to get out of the net dome. It wouldn't even be an exaggeration to say they appeared a bit desperate.
The only collateral damage is a couple of broken net strands surrounded by feathers. The birds are relentless and I'm learning how to play the game. You can tell I'm a sore loser. I'll do better next year with my net job.
This year we just planted, so any fruit is just a bonus as berries generally take a couple of years. However, we have a smattering of red razzies and quite a few blacks. I built a Jerry-rigged hoop house to try to keep the birds out, but they find the smallest openings (doorway curtains) and destroy the fruit. This is a great learning year, as next year will have (hopefully) lots of fruit and I need to figure out how to keep the little bastards at bay.
This morning there were five in there at daybreak. I'd had it. Got the FX and went full Walter Sobchak from the Big Lebowski. "You see what happens when you %^& a stranger in the @$$? You see what happens?! Huh?!" The birds didn't think I was serious. After the second poof, the remaining birds suddenly became highly motivated to get out of the net dome. It wouldn't even be an exaggeration to say they appeared a bit desperate.
The only collateral damage is a couple of broken net strands surrounded by feathers. The birds are relentless and I'm learning how to play the game. You can tell I'm a sore loser. I'll do better next year with my net job.
