Just curious if others have come up with ways to discourage birds from digging around in their bonsai soil. I've seen a definite uptick in activity since applying organics here. Nothing major, I just kind of wince when I see expensive akadama scattered on the ground. Since these are protected songbirds, I'm not interested in lethal control.
Bird discouragement
- Thread starter Arcto
- Start date
sorce
Nonsense Rascal
I guess nonlethal is just not that interesting.
Seriously....it sounds like you should just stop using Akadama!
Sorce
Seriously....it sounds like you should just stop using Akadama!
Sorce
0soyoung
Imperial Masterpiece
Just putting the bonsai in a different place will often do the trick. They rarely mess with stuff that is in open spaces (e.g., away from shrubs in which they like to hide for safety).
jomawa
Shohin
Just saying, thrashed crops or thrashed livestock tends to trump protecting the critter. Take the protected reintroduced wolves for instance, once they start predation on ranchers stock, the rancher has the ok to eliminate the guilty varmit. As for eradicating pesky birds, depending on their size, fastening bird seed or a filbert to a mouse/rat trap can work quite well.
aml1014
Masterpiece
Honestly, the best way (I know you said nonlethal) but kill just ONE, and hang it near your trees. They will stay away for good!
Yeah, yeah I know it sounds awful but it really works, I know quite a few people who do it near their plants.
Aaron
Yeah, yeah I know it sounds awful but it really works, I know quite a few people who do it near their plants.
Aaron
philart
Yamadori
Migratory bird protection laws are quite strict. If you get one pissed neighbor, you could have game and fish on you like white on rice. I do not recommend any action that could harm the birds, penalties are severe.
Paradox
Marine Bonsologist
LOL didnt slow the birds here down. My trees are up on the deck and they waited for me to go inside so they could dig under the moss for bugs. The problem is there were no bugs! These were freshly repotted trees so the soil was clean. No matter how many times I put the moss back, they still dug it up and tossed it around. This went on for a week before I came up with a solution.
http://www.bonsainut.com/threads/damn-birds.23089/#post-348248
I ended up putting wire mesh over the soil. You can see an example in this picture
I am currently making boxes out of PVC that will be covered in thin wire mesh to put over my beech forest and over another tree I have.
Potawatomi13
Imperial Masterpiece
At least partly answered own question. Get rid of organics. No moss on trees until showing. Replace kakadama with pumice
. We get pumice free or very cheap here while great part of USA Bonsai people cannot and since is one of best substrates and does not turn to mud WHY use kakadama at all
? Some on here guaranteed to be scandalized by lack of love for their substrate but pumice is about as good as you can get if not best and is cheap as dirt to us so why not use. Sell any leftover kakadama to someone not so smart
.
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fredman
Masterpiece
Yeah the black birds used to drive me crazy. I layered the top with 1/2"+ pebbles and it worked. Haven't had that problem since. Looks a bit unsightful but what the....
Thanks for the input everyone. It is interesting that two trees, an elm that has maybe 35-45% akadama in the mix and a larch with 20% akadama got all the attention. I did move the elm to a different place. It was still visited. Neither tree has moss, just having been repotted. My ROR with moss have not been molested. I gave all my trees organics this spring, but only those two were worked over. I do have bird netting. My only other experience with it was trying to cover cherry trees. I ended up sending time untangling and releasing birds that still managed to get under it and get tangled. If they are really motivated, it's hard to defeat them. Those two trees will go on a liquid diet until I see if a seasonal progression changes these birds behavior. Philart's point is valid. Ranchers suffering predation need to show good evidence, then get permission to remove problem wolves. Most often the agencies do the lethal control. I don't think I would get much sympathy showing a healthy tree with a little surface soil missing. Thanks for the thread paradox. It didn't come up in my search.
eferguson1974
Chumono
Some birds dont like a few cd's hanging on fishing line. Or a few strands of lines so its hard to fly close, criss crossing. some birds hate that. And not one feather ruffled. Or build a bigass scarecrow with moving parts. Rubber snakes can help. Plastic owls too. Scare them or make flying hard and they should go elsewhere..
augustine
Chumono
How about some regular window screen on top of the soil surface? Will also help reduce weed seeds hitting your soil.
M. Frary
Bonsai Godzilla
Quit using poop.
GrimLore
Bonsai Nut alumnus... we miss you
Dorky_gearhead
Shohin
Get one of those plastic owls to scare them away?
Reflective streamer?
Old CD's (same idea as reflective streamer)
Spike strips (for carpet)?
Reflective streamer?
Old CD's (same idea as reflective streamer)
Spike strips (for carpet)?
watchndsky
Chumono
man those owls dont work at all
i actually tried a coyote decoy to try and keep away the deer and rabbits. came out one day to find a chipmunk sitting on top of it staring me down.
JudyB
Queen of the Nuts
Bird netting sold for fruit trees works well. Just cut into large enough squares to cover the top of the soil, cut a slice from one side to the middle and a circle for the trunk. Lay it on the soil, it is generally heavy enough not to need attachment in any way, but if you live in a super windy spot, you can use bent wire as "staples" to keep it on. It's dark so not too bad to look at.
CWTurner
Omono
or just cut it large enough to tuck under the pot.
CW
JudyB
Queen of the Nuts
Only thing with this, is that it may leave a pattern on the sides of the pot, nothing permanent probably.
eferguson1974
Chumono
You need a scarecrow, but not just any old scarecrow. A bonsai scarecrow!!! The take a long time to make and are very scary. Haha, how about a bit of hardware cloth on top? Cut for going around the trunk. I bet that fixes it and a yard or two is cheap. The decoys have to move to work but still, I think the effect maybe short lived. Only bonsai scarecrows work....
