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rehabbingisgreen

All my fruit gone :(

rehabbingisgreen
11 years ago

So I had about 7 peaches on my dwarf and I had 2 asian pears on my s/d tree. First all the peaches came up missing, and I mean gone. Then this week one pear gone and I go out today and the last of my pears is gone. Nothing left to look forward to this year. I think maybe the squirrels are taking the fruit... I don't know what to do but I don't want to go through this every year.

Comments (13)

  • denninmi
    11 years ago

    Trap and dispose of per your state's laws.

    Live traps and birdseed or peanuts in the shell are your friend. Squirrels are really easy to trap that way.

  • daemon2525
    11 years ago

    Mine is gone also. Despite my best efforts I am down to 4 apples on a tree that had about 60 after thinning.
    I still have a peach that has many fruits but I assume they are saving them for dessert after the apples are gone.

  • canadianplant
    11 years ago

    The heat wave in the states is affecting the animals too it seems....

  • calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9
    11 years ago

    My acreage is carved out of the woods, and the woods are full of rats. Last year I was disabled and could not bait for rats, and out of 20 fruit trees only the citrus had any fruit for me. This year I started baiting early and it has taken six weeks to get the population down enough to save my fruit. It has taken 50 lbs of bait, costing about $200. Al

  • ltilton
    11 years ago

    I got three Shiro plums.

  • Scott F Smith
    11 years ago

    I should have started trapping earlier this year, the squirrel population is very high. In past years I would stop trapping from September to April and still come out OK. I have lost about half my ripening fruit thus far. I have four Kania traps constantly set and baited.

    Scott

  • alan haigh
    11 years ago

    Here in southeastern NY it is a once in a decade squirrel epidemic. My baffle systems are working if branches start high enough but at sites where I've never had issues and trees are trained low I'm often losing all but tart and late apples and everything else I can't baffle. Often while fruit is still very, very green.

  • ltilton
    11 years ago

    I'm starting to worry about my ripening melons.

  • foolishpleasure
    11 years ago

    I had 12 peaches on my peach tree and is left now is one. No animals didn't eat my peaches. The peaches dropped down injured by some sort of infection. I sprayed but started late after the damage happened. My yard is surrounded by shade trees and looks like the shade trees spread lots of fungicides. I learned my lessons I am going to start a spray program early and include the shade trees too. I lost every apricot on the three apricot trees may be 100 of it. I am so disappointed my area is invested by fungi and I have to work hard to control it and start early.

  • capoman
    11 years ago

    If you are trapping and releasing, please don't drop them off near a house in a rural area. I live at the end of a dirt road, and people from the nearby town keep releasing animals near my property, then become my problem. Please don't make your problem someone else's.

  • Scott F Smith
    11 years ago

    Do people think the mild winter led to more squirrel survivals? It does seem like an epidemic here, usually I trap in April and get the local guys cleared out, and only a few more show up all summer. This year I have had a constant flow of fresh migrants coming in.

    Scott

  • capoman
    11 years ago

    Possibly, but I find that squirrel populations vary from year to based on predators more then weather. When I have an ermine, hawks or owls in the area, the squirrel population drops pretty quickly, and once they are mostly gone, the predators leave. Then with no predators, they seem so reproduce very quickly.

  • creekweb
    11 years ago

    I attempted no trapping this year, relying only on baiting and so far have had minimal losses to critters. I think this strategy is particularly effective during hot dry weather.