Keeping off the pidgeons

[shushkin!]

Its coming up to that dreaded time of the year around our allotments
when the feathered pests start to make their presences felt. I would appreciate any easy and cheap tips to thwart the little beggars from descimating my sprouting broccoli and black kale??
These veggies are currently under tents of netting but that doesnt stop em sitting on the top and pushing the netting down to reach the prize!!

[amandaandherveg]

How about draping your nets?

We planted out 100 + assorted brassicas and within a couple of days they had been well and truly pecked by the pigeons that sit in a big sycamore. My gardening buddy Mariell and I built a couple of fab tunnels made of blue pipe, posts, bamboo canes and secondhand Wondermesh. Yesterday we moved the survivors into safety - fingers crossed.

[rustylady]

As well as netting, you could try bird scarers. I've seen CD's strung up (they spin in the wind and upset the birds), and one guy on our site uses old video tapes strung around - they vibrate in the wind and make a strange noise which seems to keep the birds away.

[Two_Sheds]

The best thing I made for keeping pigeons off the PSB was a chimney-shape made of chicken wire.
They land on it, but it won't crush down like netting does

[bubblewrap]

Up turned plastic milk bottles on sticks seem to work for me but.....................this only works when there's wind.

[organic]

Assuming you're not vegetarian...
feral pigeon trap, multi catch feral pigeon trap,The Trap Man humane feral pigeon trap is a multi catch repeating cage trap could be part of a solution... It'd keep a few off your crops and provide you with plenty of nice fresh meat too.
(Bit of a delicacy is pigeon - some big shot French chef I used to work with served pigeon to a load of big shot chefs at some convention or other - his reputation was on the line with that meal and that's what he chose to serve up.)

Cheaper than an air rifle (and more realistic for the confines of an allotment too) and has further benefits added to the main on of keeping them off your crops.


As another possibilty... the allotment holder 3 plots down from me has what looks like a polytunnel with the plastic replaced with mesh. There's about 6 feet of standing headroom at the highest point and I can't see a hundred pigeons being enough to sag that netting enough to get to the crops.

[shushkin!]

Cheers for the input. I have tried the CD trick before and the little beggars took
no notice. I had a chat with one of the old hands yesterday afternoon and he advised
me to put posts along to middle of the net tents. I have arranged some canes
with up turned yogurt pots on the tops to keep the net up in the middle and hopefully the feathered pests wont be able sag the netting down not matter what they do.
A bit obvious really but fingers crossed!
I wouldnt put anything past the pidgeons around here, especially when they are hungry!

I'll let you know if it works.

[organic]

The Shameless Carnivore
You know you want to!

[jogette]

One old timer on our allotments never has any pigeon damage. He builds a square enclosure for his plants and uses either chicken wire or plastic mesh but he then ties a layer of fleece on top. He says that the pigeons land on the netting and know their weight will bring them within reach of the brassica tops but of course they can't and won't peck through fleece. Looks rather Heath Robinson but I'm going to copy him this year. Also he has long and narrow beds probably 2ft by 15ft which makes it easier to keep the top of the cage taut.

[shushkin!]

Cheers for the tip jogette

I will try adding the fleece over the top as well.