A bb gun for those cute furry little forest friends? I would prefer something involving at least 220 volts of high amperage - but they squirm so when you try to strap their little arms down. We must remember that they are essentially rats with more fur that have developed 'cute' activities which allow them to come into the light without a hail of screams.
My home and greenhouse are surrounded by pecan trees, so you can imagine the squirrels are dug in well. Luckily, nature has provided its own population control mechanism. Within close proximity I now have two mating pairs of red-tailed hawks taking out about 4 squirrels a day to feed their chicks. There is also a mating pair of owls to work on the nocturnal flying squirrels we rarely see. BTW, I live close to the downtown area of a small city. Decoy crops - things for the rats to eat instead of your orchids - will not work because you will end up with a population explosion from in-migration and breeding. Like most rodents, they will breed to the point of food depletion. Decoy predators work for a while until the evil ones discover that the decoy doesn't move. It might work better if you move the decoy daily. Hot pepper extracts do appear to work consistently well. A few brands are available including "Hot Pepper Wax" which is labeled as a natural insecticide. If you're concerned about spraying oils on your plants during summer (not a great idea on a hot day), you can steep cayenne pepper in hot water, strain & spray. You will need to repeat application after rain or watering. Wear a mask, gloves, long sleeves/pants & stand upwind - or you will be repelled faster than the squirrels. If you know you are sensitive to capsicums (rash or blistering from handling jalapenos, etc), get someone else to do it. _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) [email protected] http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
