I love growing my own food but I have had to limit the types of plants I grow because rats always come and eat them.

In previous years I have had rats devour my entire beet, carrot, pea, and strawberry harvests each in a matter of one or two nights.

I set snap traps every night with peanut butter (and trip them every morning so I don’t kill any birds). Last year I killed 17, this year I have already killed 5.

I am now growing peas that climb taller so the rats can’t reach them. Next year I plan on hanging my strawberry plants off the ground. I have started removing all the lower branches of my tomatoes so they can’t climb them. I have given up on carrots, beets, and daikon…

Has anyone found any effective methods to manage this? My neighbour won’t do anything about the rats and their property is entirely overgrown.

I have heard spreading hot pepper flakes can discourage them from coming around.

  • Wigglet@beehaw.orgEnglish
    2·
    1 year ago

    Switch up your baits with a hazelnut chocolate spread for a while. Do you have an autoreset trap? Also netting around all your garden beds helps as well.

    • EdibleSource@lemmy.mlOPEnglish
      1·
      1 year ago

      Good point about switching up the bait. I have some old cheese I might try.

      I tried a trap-door bucket trap but they never went for it.

      I have avoided netting because it sounds like it could get tangled. Would you apply the netting around a frame or lay it on the plants?

      • Wigglet@beehaw.orgEnglish
        2·
        1 year ago

        This is probably not local to you but this is an auto reset trap. They’re super effective for mice and rats but quite an investment upfront.

        For the nets, i use sticks to form a fence and hold them up about 40cm then drape a 2nd net over the top forming a cage. It keeps birds out as well. Then i just lift up the top net for access as needed and take it off over the winter but leave the side nets up to keep rabbits out of my cover crops and salad beds

          • Wigglet@beehaw.orgEnglish
            3·
            1 year ago

            Here rodents are all invasive pests so getting rid of as many as possible to save our flora and fauna is very important. Councils occasionally do grants for this and wasp control (also invasive and non native with specialised targeted baits that don’t harm native insects). We’ve been working hard to establish some native bush along both sides of our ridge with the top as a garden so we aren’t going to let the rodents eat all our progress haha