If you have a home garden and are thinking of planting strawberries, read on. The strawberry is one of the most desired fruits even by the Royal Horticultural Society, which considers it one of the “easiest and most rewarding” fruits to grow. The problem is that not only do we humans love them, but species such as squirrels and chipmunks are also crazy about them. Agricultural researcher Muhammad Sarwar explains in his study on strawberries that the “foliage, fruit, root and stem of strawberry plants” attract various species of the animal. There are several techniques that are not harmful to the plant or animals that are very effective in repelling strawberry thieving species from our orchards.
As absurd as it may seem, it is to take stones about the size of a strawberry and paint them red, simulating this fruit. It is important to do this before our harvest comes out. What is the purpose of this? The stones are mistaken for strawberries by the animals, which approach the orchard with the intention of eating them. When they see that they cannot (because they are stones), they end up throwing in the towel and understand that they are not going to get food. This technique has spread like wildfire on the internet, and there are many organic farming profiles on platforms such as Reddit, Youtube or Facebook that report their positive testimonies using it.
Organic farming
More and more people are choosing to consume organic products, as opposed to fruits and vegetables that have received chemical treatments. That is why it is very common to see home gardens, with different varieties of fruits and vegetables, according to the preference of its owner. One of the most popular fruits, especially in the summer season, is the strawberry. Not only is it a fruit rich in flavor and properties, but it is also “easy and rewarding to grow,” according to the Royal Horticultural Society of the United Kingdom.
Keeping your strawberry crop safe
It is not complicated to understand that strawberries are also one of the favorite fruits of animal species such as squirrels or chipmunks. That is why home growers have been forced to develop techniques to scare away these animals that take advantage of carelessness to steal the strawberry harvest. According to Muhammad Sarwar, agricultural researcher, the “foliage, fruit, root and stem of strawberry plants attract several species of the animal”. How can this be avoided? Quite simply.
Researcher Sawar recommends the technique of painted stones. It is as simple as taking stones about the size of a strawberry and painting them red to simulate the fruit. The stones should be placed on the strawberry plants before the actual strawberries emerge. This will cause the animals to be confused, and when they peck at the stones, they will see that they will get nothing good out of them. “Of course the birds will be attracted, after a while they get tired of pecking at the rocks and leave the strawberries alone”.
Does it really work?
Many profiles on social platforms corroborate the effectiveness of this technique. The YouTube channel Keeping It Riel with Marilyn & Steve, relate their experience with squirrels, “Both they and the birds ”will only try to eat [the rocks] a few times before they get frustrated” and avoid that area in their garden. On the other hand, on Facebook, Farmer’s Way stated “Everyone laughed at me for painting rocks that look like strawberries, but […] no crows.” Another platform with is Reddit has collected several testimonials in favor of this technique, although also some that have not been so successful. One user stated “It worked for the birds, but not so much for my dog”.
