Comments on: To Catch A Tomato Thief

By: All Filters

All Filters — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 23:26:16 +0000

That’s too funny…a raccoon! All I can picture in my head is that raccoon from Furry Vengeance stealing your tomatoes, laughing the whole time. Have you figured out a solution?? There has to be some natural solution to keep raccoons and other animals away from your garden without hurting them.

By: shannon

shannon — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 06:40:03 +0000

I am in southern California and I’m having the same problem with my first garden. I have orange and grapefruit trees and the squirrels love them, but they haven’t touched my garden. I did find bird feathers around the strawberries (and missing strawberries) when I first planted them, but once everything matured, no problems. I have 12 huge tomato plants, 6 different varieties, planted quite close to each other (note to self: less plants, farther away next year), and one end of the tomato patch is close to a giant hedge that surrounds my yard. The first tomatoes to start to ripen were the Romas, and they have grown quite large (the size of a medium beefsteak). I’ve harvested one Roma and several cherry tomatoes, and have been watching a couple near-ripe Romas every day. I looked at them this morning and they were fine. When I went out to water this evening, the two I’d been watching were both picked! I found them on the ground between my tomato patch and the big hedge, with teeth marks in the ends. Evidently someTHING picked the tomatoes (which were partially inside the cage and not easily accessible), carried them toward the hedge, and dropped them. The only damage to the tomatoes were bite marks on one end of each tomato.

I’m thinking rats or oppussums — both live in the giant hedge.

The only change in my garden is a new hawk family that has nested in the neighbor’s tree. The hawks sit on the electrical wires right above my garden.

My question is, how do I protect my tomatoes from the thieves without hurting the hawks and other birds or my dogs?

By: Mike

Mike — Mon, 24 May 2010 17:32:38 +0000

Great story and I am in the same ol’ familiar boat as well. This is to say that for the last 2 years all of my ripe tomatoes from 5 plants were snatched, half eaten or on the ground right before harvesting. I too thought maybe raccoons were the ones, but after a while some of the tomatoes plants that stood nearly 6 foot tall with tomatoes near the top were being nibble on or were gone! This is away from any fence or table or anything, so now I am really confused.

Anybody want to guess on this one since I do not have a clue. Also, the teeth marks in the tomatoes seem like a larger animal like a raccoon.

Thanks,

By: Keith

Keith — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 18:04:15 +0000

Hanna,
Too bad you let it go. I have a really good recipe for raccoon stew.

By: Jane

Jane — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:39:05 +0000

I thought of Hanna and the original post a few weeks ago. Our grandchildren were visiting and we heard a question we hope to never hear again: “Grandpa, did you know there is a mouse crawling up your tomato plant?” After trapping two aggressive mice, the tomato stealing has finally stopped. Of course at this point in October, tomato production has naturally come to a halt. But what a victorious feeling! Sorry, Mickey and Minnie, wrong garden for you.
(Hanna – missed hearing from you recently)