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Thread: Fruit trees and squirrels

  1. #1
    Senior Member catherine's Avatar
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    Fruit trees and squirrels

    After we moved in up here and got acclimated to the property, we saw that the two trees on either side of our outbuildings were fruit trees--one a pear and the other an apple. There were tons of budding fruit hanging. I was so excited! I've been afraid to plant fruit trees because I know they need attention, but seeing they were already there, I'm happy to try to cultivate them!

    But a month or so later, I noticed all the fruit (all the pear, most of the apples) were GONE! At first I thought that maybe I misjudged how many I saw, but I couldn't have made that big a mistake. Plus I had witnesses--my DH and DS. There was no fruit on the ground. There was noting rotting on the branches. They were just gone.

    When I looked it up on the internet I found that squirrels like fruit. Darn! Does anyone else have this problem? How do you keep them away? It's too late for this year, but I'd like to do what I can to prevent those little buggers from getting my fruit next year.
    "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it--every, every minute?" Emily Webb, Our Town
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  2. #2
    Senior Member Teacher Terry's Avatar
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    We have 3 fruit trees and I wish that the squirrels would eat ours. Of the 6 years we have been here only twice did the fruit turn out to be edible. Mostly I pick up fruit endlessly for months at a time. The apricots make a horrible mess. If we get warm too early and then freeze the fruit is not good.

  3. #3
    Senior Member iris lilies's Avatar
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    Yes, squirrels strip fruit trees bare. They love peaches and apricots especially. When that season is over, they start in on our apples.if the apple crop is poor, they move into tomatoes and steal those.

    Wait until you watch them strip a tree of almost-ripe fruit, taking one bite and throwing it down. Gone in 3 days. You will understand that they are nasty, thieving creatures.. Also, they drop their fleas into our yard.

    I would suggest that you get a ❤️ , like we did. Have a heart! https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...l_81unaoj0w7_e

    and then get a pellet gun to send them to squirrel heaven.

  4. #4
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    So, in my quest to find a second use for all these clear clamshells with holes in them (cherry tomatoes for example) I found someone who secures one clamshell over each fruit to protect them from squirrels. (S)he swore it works and I am going to try next year.

  5. #5
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    We have a large, solitary peach tree and the squirrels were going to town on it. We wrapped a short span of the trunk with a couple of sheets of lightweight metal so that they could not climb up it. It worked and we will be harvesting peaches within the week. I noticed a neighbor had draped her fruit trees with some sort of netting.

  6. #6
    Senior Member Simplemind's Avatar
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    At our house it is the plum trees and the culprits are raccoons.

  7. #7
    Senior Member iris lilies's Avatar
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    Our squirrels drop in fromthe squirrel super highway, the overhead wires. Wrapping a trunk wouldnt stop them.

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