Where have our Alliums gone?

Discussion in 'Other Plants' started by machtucker, May 10, 2024.

  1. machtucker

    machtucker Gardener

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    Hi everyone,

    About a week ago I check our small border but the house and saw two big areas of allium foliage. They were looking very healthy with lots of the green leaves showing.

    Yesterday I went out to check them to find no foliage at all. Something has eaten our alliums! They’ve eaten all the greenery and left the bulbs (see photo).

    I’m thinking maybe a deer but not sure how it got in. Can they jump the fence?

    Any ideas?
     

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  2. Punkdoc

    Punkdoc Super Gardener

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    Deer can certainly jump fences.
     
    • Agree Agree x 2
    • shiney

      shiney President, Grumpy Old Men's Club Staff Member

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      It depends on the height of the fence and what it is made of.

      They can also, sort of, climb fences but rarely do so. We've seen them, the other side of the field, grab the top of a fence with their front paws and kick themselves over with their rear ones.

      If it is made of wire they have more difficulty as they have problems actually seeing it as their vision range of colours is limited. We stopped them after a couple got in the garden over our short rabbit fence by adding chicken wire to the top, up to 6ft, with the top tension wire slightly loose. So if they try to grab the top it wobbles backwards a bit and they don't like it.

      I got that wobbly top idea from another admin we used to have on here when he extended his wooden fence to stop his cats getting out and other cats getting in.

      If they are Muntjac deer they can squeeze through a narrow gap, about 15".
       
    • fairygirl

      fairygirl Total Gardener

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      It's the reason deer fences are the height they are. A 6 or 8 foot fence is no problem to them.
      We don't have thsoe muntjac ones here [fortunately] but I'd expect getting through a gap would be the way they'd dget in, as @shiney describes.
       
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