"thoughts?"

Get rid of the RATS!!!!!!!!!

Gross.. that sucks ! !
I would move..... I guess it isn't as bad as that guy who has huge monkeys tearing up his yard, but it is pretty close.
Those things will ruin all of your veggies... even if they don't like what they're eating they will all take a little bite to find out they don't like it..then it's nasty. OY VEY

Rat poison mixed into peanut butter ... in small doses..on a regular basis has kept the rat population under control.
We keep our dogs out of that part of the yard in the week following puting poison out. Poison seems very drastic, but was a last resort, as the rats were boldly running over our patio roof, eating apricots, avocados, and veggies.

Will they eat veggies? Something was eating bites out of my tomatoes and bell peppers ... and it stopped after we started our regular poisoning routine. Our neighbor's yard is rat heaven [piles of building supplies that he will use "someday"] and his danged Alergian Ivy covers my fence.... making a happy home for rats.

Poison may seem quick and clean, but you can't control it. Pets that catch a dying rat can die from the poison.

Traps need more labor, but they're safer.

Below is a link from the UC Davis.

Also contact your local health department. If your neighbor has a Rat Haven, it needs to be dealt with.

And get rid of that ivy!

Sue

Here is a link that might be useful: Managing Rats and Mice

Depending upon which county you live in, it may have a vector control district. If so, contact that agency as it will help you.

Part of the problem with urban rats -- roof rats in your region -- is that they are a *neighborhood* problem. So the best result follows cooperative effort by all concerned.

Unfortunately, roof rats are common in many urban areas. Mild-climate regions are choice because of all the available free food, among them pet food left out overnight, also the many fruiting plants growing in backyards. And yes, they eat veggies, among them tomatoes & peppers.

Also consider snails as they also hollow out citrus fruits.

Jean,
who previously lived & gardened in Long Beach, CA, for 30-some years

Another critter that you'll find a number of are squirrels who will munch on veggies and fruit. you'll see them beween the houses on the fencelines and powerlines.

I grew-up in Long Beach as well.

Greg

Norway rats will enjoy your veggie garden even more than the untended orange tree. If you poison them and they die somewhere and a critter eats it, that critter will die too. I highly doubt CA has enough money for a decent pest response, so you'll be spending 50-60-70 bucks on traps until they hopefully all die. And you'll be spending money on wire mesh too.

I agree with Jean that their territory is wider than one yard, and the neighborhood rats all know where the goodies are, so your investment in mesh is coming.

Dan

Thanks folks. I am trying to do some traps. And we do have a vector control service which I've called... someone is hopefully coming out in the coming week. The folks before us obviously tried too, because I see some old traps on the fence and in the tree itself.

It is, for sure, rats. At dusk, you can go out and watch them like you are watching the Sectret of Nymh up close in 3-D.

While I think traps will help, the extent of the problem is really big... which gives me very little confidence as to the success of eradication efforts. You can literally sit there and watch dozens of them jumping through the trees between yards with impunity. There are a ton of neighborhood cats around, but they don't seem to deter the rats (plus, I'm guessing cats and roof rats don't really get much interaction as kitties don't seem to be hunting at the tops of trees).

Will roof rats "descend" down to the level of a raised bed? Is there any kind of way to keep rats out of a raised bed? I know that determined rats can gnaw through just about anything.

So what's the verdict, do I even try a garden? I'll be incredibly disappointed not to have a garden now that I finally live in a place with all-year gardening weather.

The rat types are commonly confused, as both can run along power lines, fences, beams, etc. Nonetheless, both Norway and roof rats will go to the veggie garden to eat, thus my And you'll be spending money on wire mesh too.

Dan

rats can be common in gardens, they make good source of food and shelter.

we control our rodents, shouldn't say our because they come from other yards and grounds.

we use a block bait called tomcat works very well, so we put bait stations around and replace the block once it has been eaten. we use those square/rectangle plastic 1/2 gallon whatever icecream container, cut an opening about the size of a tennis ball like arched doorway in 2 sides and place of the block bait, with a slight weight on it so the wind doesn't blow it away.

rats need to feed a few times before they die.

len

Here is a link that might be useful: lens garden page

guavalane, that is impressive. I'm curious to hear more of your solar wire... is it electrified or something?

I had the Vector guy out yesterday. He confirmed roof rats and said now was a good time to knock down the population before spring and more breeding. He put two traps along the rat "highway" that connects my yard to my neighbors. They were poison traps, which I was initially against, but he stressed that these were by far the most effective, and it wouldn't harm any pets or anything because 1) it's very rare for a pet to actually consume a rat (rather than just play with it... bring it to the owner to check out); and 2) even if it did, it would take a LOT of rats fully consumed to do any damage to the cat/dog, etc. That said, I'm a bit nervous, but went along with it. The poison was the anticoagulate kind that takes a few days to finish them off.

I asked him about the garden and he said to go for it. He thought I'd be OK and said the plants most likely to be in jeopardy are the tomatoes since rats have a sweet tooth and a fully ripe tomato is irrestible. But given the surplus of other food sources nearby (two orange trees, our neighbors endless supply of bird food, etc.) the guy said our garden probably wouldn't be their first choice of food anyhow.

So, I'm proceeding with the garden, and taking a lot of the recommendations I got here to help. Thanks folks!

I used to live in Phoenix which had a roof rat problem too. But I did not garden then.
Fencing your garden sounds like a good idea, to keep out not just rats but other critters as well.

Hi Adam,
I'm glad you decided to go with the garden. You'll have a lot of fun! I only know very little about how the solar unit works, I'm just glad it does a great job fending off varmints. The solar cells collect energy, when the switch is turned on, it sends electrical pulse through the wire. The unit was around $50.00 from Harbor Freight (wire not included) and one unit protects all my 3 raised beds. Make sure it's off when it rains, or when you're working in the garden. I've been zapped a few times and it felt like a static shock, nothing bad. It doesn't kill varmints, but I guess it presents an educational lesson.
Penny

I'm in Long Beach and the rats are a problem. I've had them get my tomatoes, strip a jalapeno plant, eat my berries. I put out pellets that come in a tray. It works for a few weeks then put out another.

It is supposed to be "first kill" which means if a pet eats the rat they should be o.k. Not sure I believe all that and am very careful when I put it out. I have a spot on the fence they travel on and usually they eat them all within 3 days then the problem goes away.

Of course they can get down to your garden. So don't think they can't.

I had a rat problem last year. My son went out with his pellet gun and within an afternoon of flushing the holes, he had them all taken care of. No poison, no traps, no mess.

If anyone wants to borrow a 15 year old and a pellet gun, just let me know.

guavalane

So, it's war in the garden! I've spent hours and hours and hours pouring over webpages, gardening books, talking to gardeners and it's a funny thingâ¦it's really hard to find a definitive solution.

Folks either say they have never had a problem or a trap solved it. But, I keep the garden clean and protect the fruit treesâ¦so hard to protect tomato plants effectively! Your solution seems like the solution I have been looking for!

I've trapped and trapped but alas the rats are still eating my green tomatoes.

I see the item that you purchased from Harbor Freight and it looks simple enough.

How is it working for you these days!? Any changes you would make?! What wire did you select?

Here is a link that might be useful: Solar Fence Controller