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Was this a bad idea?
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Posted by scully931 6 (My Page) on Thu, Nov 5, 09 at 1:43
| Hi,
Last year, many of my tulips failed to come up. I was thinking maybe the bulbs were dug up by critters. This year, after placing the new bulbs in the ground, I put down chicken wire, then covered the whole thing with dirt.
But, I got to wondering if my bulbs will find a way up through the chicken wire??? Should I pull it out? Thank you for any advice. :-) |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Was this a bad idea?
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| I think it will be fine. Sue |
RE: Was this a bad idea?
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| I usually remove chicken wire when the ground has settled or after deep frost. That way things won't get all tangled up. |
RE: Was this a bad idea?
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| I do that with all my beds. As the plants come up I cut the opening larger. The squirrels don't seem to uproot my plants on purpose but rather bury their peanuts where there's soft ground ( which I softened for my plants) |
RE: Was this a bad idea?
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| I do this, but just a bit of mulch or leaves over the wire. Not enough to bury it. I remove it in the Spring when the bulbs start to pop up. |
RE: Was this a bad idea?
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| I was at the hardware store recently asking about the same thing. The person who worked there said squirrels and chipmunks (if they're desperate enough), will bypass the wire and burrow at an angle under the ground to get tulip bulbs. Therefore, I ended up planting my tulip bulbs in pots in potting soil and putting wire cages around them and sealing the top. A neighbor said that would be the only way for me to grow tulips successfully. Daffodils, on the other hand, are squirrel-resistant. |
RE: Was this a bad idea?
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| I have had really good luck with the hardware cloth. This is, however, only the second year. Following instructions I found here in ’07, I bought the green-plastic coated wire type, so it can be reused next year. (I notice that there is now green PLASTIC hardware cloth: don’t buy that by mistake. They could chew through that easily). I laid out clusters of bulbs, then cut it oversize by a couple of inches to make it harder to tunnel sideways. I pinned it down with landscape staples. Then just scattered a little mulch on top so it would look better to me. There is no need to bury it in dirt. Last spring it was very easy to pull it up as soon as I saw sprouts. Since they were the first, my crocuses in the warmer spots made buds before I noticed. For those I waited until they were done blooming. Last year I saw some effort made by the tree rats to dig sideways, but apparently they don’t like to do that, and they did not penetrate far enough sideways. Or maybe the sharp edges of the hardware cloth scratched them (goody). This year I have seen no signs of digging at all, and I have been out there checking daily. Maybe there is still enough other stuff for them to eat, or maybe they recognized the hardware cloth and did not bother |
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