To prevent birds from pecking at strawberries. Ways to protect crops from birds

Garden strawberries are a widespread agricultural crop grown all over the world. Long years of selection (strawberries have been grown since about 1300) have led to the fact that the crop can be obtained even in the most unfavorable climate. Different ones differ in color, size and shape of the fruit, aroma, degree of fertility, the period of flowering and ripening of berries, and the degree of susceptibility to diseases. However, even inexperienced gardeners can grow this crop.

It cannot be said that it belongs to unpretentious plants, but subject to certain rules, it will delight you with a high yield. True, the question arises: "How to keep the crop from birds?" All birds with great pleasure eat ripe and sweet fruits, and sometimes are content with unripe ones. In any case, there is practically nothing left for a person. Therefore, protecting strawberries from birds becomes a paramount task. There are quite a few ways, it remains to determine which one will be the most effective.

How to protect strawberries from birds with a special net

Mechanical protection is the most radical and, perhaps, the most effective method. Bird netting for strawberries is available at any farm supply store. It is made of plastic, most often polypropylene, with square or diamond-shaped small cells. Such a network provides protection of the crop from birds, while not preventing the penetration of water and sunlight to the plants. In addition, such protection does not interfere with the pollination of plants, the net does not need to be removed during spraying.

How to protect strawberries from birds with a scarecrow

Representing a straw bag in a hat and with panicles, today it is practically not used. Birds get used to it very quickly and soon stop responding to it. A much more effective method of scaring away would be thin cellophane tapes swaying from the slightest breath of wind. For the same purpose, you can use old tapes from cassettes, which not only sway, but also shimmer in the sun.

How to protect strawberries from birds with noise

Garden rattles or carbide cannons, firing at regular intervals, work well at first, but over time, birds get used to loud and sharp sounds. You can periodically change the frequency of noise effects, but this technique requires constant human control.

How to protect strawberries from birds with distraction crops

This method of protection is the most humane in relation to birds, and all nature lovers should appreciate it. In order to distract birds from garden strawberries, you can plant several fruit trees on your site: bird cherry, sea buckthorn, wild cherry. The disadvantage of this method is that there is no guarantee that the birds will prefer to eat only the berries intended for them.

The most unsuccessful method was recognized as total destruction, when birds are poisoned or shot. The effect is either zero or leads to the exact opposite result - a lot of insect pests appear on the beds, which destroy all the fruits with even greater speed.

Strawberries ripen earlier than others, so they are in great demand among children, and are also considered an additional source of income for many gardeners. Strawberries can be considered a demanding crop, because in order to obtain good yields and large berries, it is necessary to constantly loosen the beds, remove weeds, fertilize and water the plants. The gardener will be able to do everything right, but ripening strawberries are often damaged by voracious birds. How to save the berry now we will find out.

The fight against birds is considered an urgent problem for many gardeners, so their arsenal is replenished with new and promising means of protection. If earlier summer residents used scarecrows, various rattles, pieces of foil and cassette tape to scare away birds, now they can purchase special bird scaring devices in the store. The main pests of strawberries are starlings, sparrows, and pigeons. In addition to the berries described, they also harm other crops, such as blackcurrant, cherry, raspberry and many others. In large numbers, birds can destroy a crop in a matter of hours, so every gardener should know how to deal with them. Next, we describe the main devices for protecting berries.

Electronic bird deterrent

Such devices are considered one of the most promising, but they are very expensive. An electronic device is capable of making the sounds of birds of prey (hawk, owl) with a certain frequency. Note that it is more expedient to use such a method of scaring away birds on large plantations of berries away from settlements, since loud screams can cause resentment from neighbors. There are also electronic devices that can drive birds away without affecting humans.

The use of cassette film and CD discs to protect strawberry plantations

The use of the described protection methods is considered one of the most economical options. They take old cassettes, remove the tape and fix it on pegs throughout the site. The tape can be attached to the supports in several layers. To enhance the effect, old, unnecessary CDs are fixed on trees growing nearby. You can also hang a multi-colored New Year's rain on threads.

Birds are afraid of shiny objects and noise. In sunny weather, the surface of the discs and tapes will reflect the sun's rays. In case of strong wind, the film will emit low-frequency sounds that scare away birds.

Protecting strawberry plantations with a special mesh

A special mesh made of plastic or polypropylene is considered one of the most popular means of protecting the crop of any berries from voracious birds. The mesh protects strawberries from pests, but allows moisture and light to pass through, as well as bees that pollinate the flowers of this plant. Shelter also does not interfere with various strawberry care work, such as watering or fertilizing with liquid fertilizers.

Covering crops is easy enough. First, wooden pegs are hammered on the site, then the net is stretched and its edges are pressed. You can also mount the shelter on a frame made of branches or metal arcs. Some gardeners make a shelter from a mesh similar to a greenhouse, which allows you to get inside and carry out all the necessary agrotechnical measures to care for the plant.

Scarecrow

A garden scarecrow reminds a feathered figure of a person, so for the first time after its installation, they will not risk flying up to a plot with berries. For the device, the stuffed animals are driven into the ground, the second is fixed a little higher to make a cross. Next, they take a small bag, stuff it with straw and fix it at the top of the scarecrow (this will be the head). Now you need to put on a mannequin, fasten a hat, hang CDs to beat off sunlight and various rattles that will make a sound from a breath of wind.

Strawberries (and more precisely, garden strawberries) are grown by gardeners and gardeners wherever the climate allows. This is a very tasty berry. Unfortunately, this is known to both people and birds. Starlings, thrushes, sparrows, magpies, and even crows will gladly eat both ripe and unripe berries. Summer residents, especially those who do not live on the site permanently, have nothing left. Therefore, it is important to know what can be done to protect the strawberry crop.

How to protect strawberries: mesh and covering material

The most common solution is to cover strawberry beds with a net or covering material. All this can be purchased at construction, agricultural stores or on the Internet. Plastic, polypropylene or metal mesh with cells in the form of rhombuses, rectangles and squares does not interfere with access to sunlight and moisture to plants, as well as the process of pollination of strawberries by insects.

The grid for beds is presented in stores in the widest range

Breathable opaque covering material (Lutrasil, Spunbond, Agril, Agrospan) provides a greenhouse effect. Birds do not see berries, respectively, and do not seek to get into the garden. But pollination in a natural way in this case is impossible. Without the sun, strawberry bushes do not grow well, the berries ripen longer, the yield decreases. With excessive watering, rotting of plantings is possible.

Covering material allows you to hide the crop from birds

Closing the bed, pegs are driven in at intervals of 45–50 cm along the perimeter, onto which the material is fastened so that it descends to the ground. There it also needs to be fixed, for example, with bricks. They are pulled tight enough so that the mesh does not sag in the center. The height of the structure is 15–20 cm higher than the strawberry bushes.

Video: how to fix covering material on the garden bed?

Indeed, it is problematic for birds to get to the berries in this case, but the solution is not without drawbacks:

• It is necessary to find a sufficiently dense fine mesh. Ordinary fishing will not work. Birds freely enter the cells. If the mesh is too thin, it will simply break. Therefore, finding the right material can take a lot of time and effort.
• Question price. If you have a small plot and 1-2 beds, you should not even think about it. And those who grow strawberries on an industrial scale must purchase hundreds of square meters of covering material and netting. It turns out to be quite difficult.
• Planting care becomes much more difficult. It is also impossible to walk through the garden, picking a couple of berries along the way. With any weeding, loosening, fertilizing, watering, harvesting, the mesh and material must be removed, and then the bed should be covered again. Such frequent use drastically reduces the life of the material - holes are formed, which are immediately expanded by birds.
• Birds that see delicious berries do not consider the net a serious hindrance. In an effort to reach them at all costs, they become entangled and stuck in such a way that they cannot free themselves from the cells without outside help. People have to help. Birds do not appreciate this and bite painfully.
• An important factor is aesthetic. The mesh just thrown over the beds looks very messy. So, you need to think about how to fix it beautifully. This means additional expenditure of effort, time and money.

The mesh stretched over the beds interferes with the normal care of strawberries and harvesting

The purchase of a set of special frame arcs made of metal, plastic or bamboo can partially offset the shortcomings. They are quite light, so no foundation is required. Their number depends on the length of the beds. The optimal distance between the arcs is 60–80 cm. They must be installed and the grid must be fixed on top - a structure should be obtained that resembles a section of a tunnel. If you find high enough arcs, you can go inside, like in a greenhouse or greenhouse. This greatly facilitates the care of plantings and harvesting. But the beds are very narrow.

When fruiting is over, the mesh is removed, and the frame is dismantled until next year.

Therefore, the best solution is a mesh made of plastic, fine-meshed (so that birds do not get confused), rather rigid (so that it does not sag), fixed on frame arcs. Separate pieces will be needed to cover the resulting "tunnel" from the ends. Otherwise, the design loses all meaning.

If you decide to use the mesh and arc method, the birds will not be able to get to the strawberries, and it will be convenient for you to take care of the beds.

Video: strawberry bed protection net

Box with mesh lids

Another option for protecting strawberries with a mesh is devoid of the listed disadvantages, but requires certain practical skills. If you have experience in carpentry or joinery, build boxes with mesh covers for planting.

The algorithm of actions is as follows:

1. Choose boards of suitable length and width.
2. Assemble a wooden box with cross lintels every 60-80 cm, fastening the boards with screws and corner bars. It is not necessary to make it very high - ventilation is deteriorating, the berries do not have enough sun. It is enough that the future cover does not touch the landings. Other parameters are determined by the size of the beds.
3. Attach legs from short bars to the box in each corner, sharpening them from below. If the bed is very long, you will need additional legs on the long side. Since the legs will be driven into the ground, treat the tree with a special compound that prevents rotting. You can just burn them.
4. Set the box on the bed and drive the legs into the ground, gently tapping on the corners with a hammer.
5. Protect the structure from the negative effects of natural factors - rain, snow, cold, wind. A primer will help with this. It is sold in hardware stores, but the composition prepared by yourself is no worse. 1 kg of slaked lime should be diluted in 2 liters of water and 100 g of laundry soap shavings should be added. All this is thoroughly mixed and filtered immediately before processing the boards.
6. Focusing on the dimensions of the resulting sections, assemble frames for covers from thin bars.
7. Attach the lids to the frame using hanging loops installed on the outside so that it opens outward.
8. Cut out pieces of mesh of the desired size and fasten it with staples using a furniture stapler, bent small nails, thin slats.
9. Attach a handle, a loop or something else to each lid, allowing it to be opened freely.

The beds in the boxes look very neat and securely protected.

What can scare the birds?

Any methods common to the people are not very useful. In the first few days, the effect may be noticeable, but the birds are not stupid and quickly figure out what they are dealing with. Finding that there is no real danger from something scary-looking, they boldly continue to destroy your berries.

Birds flying into the garden in flocks can destroy your crop in a couple of days

Therefore, the methods described below should be alternated and combined as often as possible. Only in this way will you achieve a more or less permanent result.

Scarecrow

"Grandfather" method, used since time immemorial. At present, the classic effigy of two cross-shaped poles or boards, dressed in old clothes stuffed with straw, with a bag depicting a head, is practically not used for quite obvious reasons. Birds are not at all afraid of him. On the contrary, on the “shoulders” of this structure, they are happy to relax after a delicious dinner. It is also a great position for looking out for the most delicious and ripe berries.

But your children will get great pleasure from the process of building a scarecrow. For them, this is a great opportunity to show imagination and creativity. As a basis, you can use, for example, an old mannequin.

If you still decide to protect your beds with a scarecrow, regularly rearrange it from place to place and change its appearance. The more radical the better. It is also useful to fix the structure so that it rotates on a support.

Scarecrow - a traditional, but ineffective method of scaring away birds

Somewhat more effective are plastic and rubber naturalistic models of birds of prey sold in agricultural stores, made in compliance with dimensions and proportions. Especially if they are “decorated” with something shiny and they are accompanied by a device for reproducing and recording the sounds made by these birds.

An electrified mannequin equipped with a motion sensor would greatly help gardeners and gardeners, which, when birds approach, would begin to make sounds and, for example, wave their “arms”. But the introduction of such structures into production is a matter of the future. And the price will be appropriate. On small personal plots, such a “scarecrow” simply will not pay off.

Video: how to make a scarecrow?

Noise

The hearing of birds is much more subtle than that of humans. Therefore, they do not tolerate sharp loud sounds. Try to save the beds like this:

• Stretch several threads or thin wires over them and hang cans close to each other at different heights. A more aesthetic option is “wind music”. At the slightest breath, the jars and tubes will swing and hit each other, making noise. But you will have to endure it too. This is especially "pleasant" late at night or early in the morning. And every day you can quickly get tired of removing cans and hanging them back. In addition, the wind does not always blow.
• Every day, turn on special audio recordings that reproduce the calls of birds of prey or the cries of feathered "pests", signaling danger to relatives. They are sold in gardening stores and online. If you want to save money, just turn the radio up loud. However, such a soundtrack will most likely not please your neighbors.

Color and shine

High posts are driven into the corners of the beds. A thin rope or wire is stretched along the perimeter and crosswise at different heights. Hang on it:

• Old CDs and DVDs. Fluctuating under the gusts of wind, they reflect the sun's rays, discarding the "bunnies". But in cloudy weather, birds almost do not pay attention to them.
• Unnecessary Christmas decorations, “rain” and tinsel, ordinary foil, as well as polyethylene or cellophane cut into “fringe”. The beds in this case look elegant and festive. But if you overdo it with "decorations", it is almost impossible to care for them.
• A tape removed from an audio or video cassette. It can be hung in the form of a fringe and additionally pulled tight around the perimeter, surrounding the bed several times. The tape not only shines and moves, but also makes a rattling sound unpleasant for birds at the slightest breath. It is almost on the verge of ultrasound, therefore it is almost inaudible for a person.
• Bandages, white ribbons, flags and balloons filled with helium. There is an opinion that birds do not like white color and are afraid of it. The balls can be given an even more intimidating look by painting something resembling an eye in red, blue or black paint.
• Homemade turntables from plastic bottles. Plastic reflects light, and the structure rotates in the wind. It can be a spectacular addition to garden decor.

Birds quickly realize that all this glitter and rustle does not carry any real danger.

Old disks hanging over the garden glare in the sun, scaring away birds.

Special devices

Science does not stand still, so special devices that scare away birds have appeared on sale. Most often, they are equipped with a built-in infrared or laser motion sensor, therefore they turn on only when a feathered landing approaches.

The devices emit high-range sounds that are unpleasant for birds, indistinguishable by the human ear.

The device is equipped with a motion sensor.

There are also devices that periodically make loud sharp sounds, reminiscent of the howl of a siren, claps or shots. Sometimes this is complemented by flashing or glowing. On some, you can adjust the frequency and volume of the sound.

The sonic gun emits loud noises when birds approach

Such devices are certainly effective, but they are quite expensive. Therefore, the owners of small personal plots do not even consider the possibility of such an acquisition. The harvest is not worth it, there are less costly methods to protect it.

Video: how to scare away birds

What to plant for distraction?

Gardeners who sympathize with Greenpeace, IFAW and other wildlife organizations can offer birds an alternative food source.

A row with strawberry beds is planted with berries that ripen at about the same time as strawberries, the loss of which will upset you less. It can be bird cherry, sea buckthorn, shadberry, chokeberry and red mountain ash, wild cherry. The method does not guarantee anything. Birds are not obligated to eat only the berries intended for them. It is very likely that they will destroy both them and the strawberries. But not a single feathered one will suffer. Even morally, seeing the berries and not being able to get to them.

Other ways to protect berries

Cats in the garden will help you deal with uninvited guests

How else can you protect the harvest grown with such difficulty?

• The easiest way is to increase the landing area. So there will be enough berries for both the birds and you. But not all summer residents are ready to share with the "freeloaders" the crop, for the cultivation of which so much time, effort and money have been spent. In fact, almost no one is ready, except for some fanatical nature lovers.
• Get a cat, preferably several. Or at least periodically lure neighbors or stray animals to you. To do this, you can, for example, plant valerian. Hunting, as a rule, turns out to be unsuccessful, but the very fact of the presence of natural enemies on the site will make the birds be less arrogant. A significant disadvantage is that animals that are carried away by the process of catching birds can strongly trample the beds. And not just with strawberries. In addition, the presence of wild cats and small children on the site at the same time means the need for constant surveillance of them by their parents.
• Birds of prey (hawks, falcons) are much better and more effective than cats. Ravens are also useful in this sense. They do not trample the beds and do not eat strawberries. Before visiting your site, a flock of birds sends "scouts" ahead. They will certainly inform the rest about those who protect your plantings, and will fly around the beds on the tenth road. However, the maintenance of one hunting bird costs more than a dozen cats.
• Arrange a small stream, a waterfall next to the strawberry plantings, put a decorative fountain. The hearing of birds is much sharper than that of humans, they will certainly be attracted by coolness and murmuring water. There is a chance that, flocking to the water source, they will ignore the beds. But nothing prevents them from resting in a pleasant place, then destroying your harvest.
• Arrange onions or onion feathers cut into several pieces on strawberry beds. Birds do not like this smell very much. The downside is that you also have to endure it. In addition, berries can also absorb the smell.
• Before the strawberries ripen, scatter bright red wooden cubes, plastic bottle caps, and so on around the beds and next to them. Birds will try to peck at them and find that they are inedible. When the berries ripen, the birds, remembering the absence of anything edible here, will pay less attention to your beds.
• An option for the squeamish and strong in spirit. Find a dead bird somewhere, bring it to your own yard and hang it next to the strawberry beds. This will help you get rid of birds not only for this season, but for the next few years. It looks rather unaesthetic, by no means decorating the rural pastoral, and the smell is appropriate.
• Laying out poisonous baits on the site or total shooting of birds. An extremely unfortunate decision, even if you have the appropriate skills to exclude accidental hits on relatives, guests and neighbors, and there are no pets that can also be poisoned. Few people think about this, but in addition to the visible harm in the form of crop destruction, birds bring significant benefits to the garden. In addition to berries, they feed on insect pest larvae and weed seeds. Now we have to fight them. By destroying the birds, you will deprive insects of natural enemies, increasing their population at times, and also condemn yourself to endless weeding. This will require even more time and effort.

The harvest of juicy strawberries depends not only on timely watering, top dressing, plant transplantation. Another important point in caring for a crop is its protection from birds. Some gardeners, having seen sparrows, ravens and thrushes pecking at strawberries, do not know what to do. However, there are several effective methods that will help scare off intruders.

Culture information

Strawberries are one of the most popular crops in garden plots. Summer residents adore her for excellent sweet berries. Another name for the culture is garden strawberries or pineapple. The plant belongs to the Rose family. The height of the bush varies from 10 to 35 cm. The root system is fibrous. It lies shallow in the ground - approximately at a distance of 15-30 cm. Berries appear in the garden in early summer. They are collected in June. Each berry contains a whole vitamin complex. There are vitamins C, E, group B, as well as iron, calcium, fiber, folic acid, etc.

Note! Garden strawberries are good for the heart, immune system, and digestion. The calcium present in berries strengthens the bones. Thanks to vitamin E, aging stops, tumors do not form.

Breeders have bred many varieties of this plant. Thanks to science, in the gardens you can find not only red, but also white and decorative strawberries.

Known varieties

• ü Avis Delight. Variety of red productive strawberries. One bush can produce 2-3 kg of berries. This strawberry is not afraid of cold summer, temperature changes. The berries are large and very fragrant. Increased sweetness.
• u Pineberry. A white variety with crimson seeds. The berries are quite small. Diameter - about 1-2 cm. The taste is sour-sweet. Usually this variety is used to decorate dessert compositions.
• u Cascade. Decorative variety. The bushes are unusual. They resemble vines. They just do not wrap around the support, but simply hang down, forming a kind of curtain. The fact is that the Cascade puts out a lot of whiskers, buds grow right on the whiskers, from which berries appear. The variety is planted in pots that are hung on the walls. This strawberry is suitable for growing indoors. Also used for garden decoration.

How to protect strawberries from birds

Ripe berries attract a variety of birds. Among the birds that love strawberries are sparrow, magpie, titmouse, thrush, dove, starling. Do not refuse dessert and a raven with a crow. Birds help to fight harmful insects, but in the case of strawberries, they themselves become pests. At the same time, birds prefer to fly into landings in whole flocks. Such an invasion can peck all ripe berries in half an hour, and return again a day later, because a new portion of strawberries will ripen. As a result, the garden bed remains without a crop. Together with the berries, the birds remove other berry eaters, including the slug.

Protecting strawberries from birds (thrushes, crows, magpies)

Experienced summer residents have come up with many ways to save the crop. All methods are quite simple to perform. Applying one of them or a whole complex is not difficult even for a novice gardener. Among the popular methods of protecting landings from birds:

• mesh cover;
• Shiny items;
• Loud rattles, bells;
• Garden scarecrow;
• Electronics;
• Distracting bird culture.

net shelter

Bird netting for strawberries is the ideal protection for the beds. You can buy mesh material at any garden or hardware store. A net made of plastic, metal or polypropylene is suitable. Cells should not be too large, but not small. It is important that plants receive adequate amounts of sunlight and moisture. In addition, pollinating insects should easily fly through the cells. If all these conditions are met, then the farmer has chosen the right shelter.

Advice. You can decorate them with a bed using several techniques. For example, make a mini-greenhouse. Metal arcs are placed at different ends of the beds and in the middle. They need to pull a mesh shelter. The ends of the mesh are pressed to the ground with heavy objects. Usually bricks or heavy metal structures are taken.

In addition, you can drive stakes around the perimeter of the strawberry planting and cover them with a net. Get shelter from birds. At the same time, the bed itself can be watered and fertilized without problems. Berry picking is carried out after the net is lifted. After collection, it must be closed again.

shiny objects

To the question “birds peck at strawberries, what should I do?” you can offer to decorate the scenery with objects that glitter. For example, take unnecessary discs, Christmas decorations, foil, plastic bottles, tape from a video cassette.

The decoration begins to be created by driving stakes in the corners of the beds. They should not be too high. A ribbon or strong thread is pulled over them. It is necessary to arrange the thread in such a way that it is criss-cross over the bed. Next, a disk is tied to this tape, a magnetic cassette tape, then a disk again. You can take all the space only with shiny disks or only with a dark iridescent tape. Optionally, Christmas decorations and foil balls are added.

Blade gluing

A soda bottle can become a spinner. This item can be made in 20 minutes. So, the plastic frame is cut into strips. Then they are bent in different directions. From the wind such an object will rotate. Such decorations will not only save the harvest from annoying birds, but also enliven the garden.

Loud rattles, bells

A loud sound can also scare away birds. Birds react negatively to crackling, ringing, rattling, because they have very sensitive hearing. The gardener has bells and loud rattles near the garden. Such an original item as metal feng shui pendants will reliably protect the garden.

Additional Information. The simplest and cheapest noisy remedy is empty beer cans. They are tied to ropes that are connected to each other. As a result, the banks will hit each other and rattle from the wind. For some time (as long as there is wind), this method will help protect strawberries from the invasion of hungry birds.

garden scarecrow

A scarecrow is an ancient and effective protection against birds. You can make it without problems. Two beams or boards are taken. One should be slightly smaller. Of these, a frame is prepared in the form of a cross. After the frame is dressed up in clothes. A hat or panama is put on the top of the stick. For greater resemblance to a person, clothes are stuffed with straw. Thus, the scarecrow will scare away the birds, which will seem to them the owner of the site. It's a good idea to tie things that make loud noises to the scarecrow. It can be beer cans, rattles, bells.

Electronics

Recently, a large number of unusual garden accessories have appeared on the market. Among them are electronic bird scarers. For example, you can find the following models:

• ü Ultrasonic repeller;
• ü Bioacoustic repeller;
• ü Thunder gun;
• ü Dynamic repeller.

The ultrasonic repeller makes sounds that do not disturb the peace of people, but which are perfectly heard by birds. There are models that do not care about the scale of the garden, they work at high power and are able to fight both birds and mice, moles. If such a device appears in the garden, not a single rodent or bird will linger there anymore.

The bioacoustic repeller offers to save landings with different noises. The device emits sounds and voices of forest predators, birds, which birds are afraid of.

thunder gun

The thunder gun will easily scare away all the crows, sparrows, thrushes, starlings that have flown into the garden. This device beeps suddenly and loudly enough.

The dynamic repeller will come to the rescue day and night. It is an object that actively rotates, and lights flash on it. There are options, both electronic and those that do not need to be connected to the network. In this case, the device is powered by wind, and the lights are reflective elements.

Important! A dynamic repeller is a good answer to the question: “how to protect strawberries from thrushes?”. Since these birds come to the garden from the forest and are rather shy.

Distracting bird culture

You can save strawberries if you plant plants in the garden that distract the attention of birds. These cultures include:

1. Rowan;
2. Wild Cherry;
3. bird cherry;
4. Sea ​​buckthorn;
5. Irga etc.

What is the most reliable way

It is difficult to say which way is the best. All of them are quite reliable. However, each has its drawbacks:

• Some gardeners do not use the grid method, because they do not see the point in it. Birds can get used to the net and eventually try to open it. In this case, they will either get stuck tightly or make their way to the berries. In addition, the aesthetic appearance of the garden will be spoiled by a thrown cover. Another disadvantage of this method is to buy a mesh in a store, spending money on it.
• The minus of the scenery with shiny objects is that the birds quickly guess whose hand made such a repeller. They quickly get used to the shine and begin to attack the landings again.
• Rattles protect landings for a short time. As soon as the wind subsides, the rattles will not make a single sound. Accordingly, they will not be able to drive away berry thieves.
• As in the case of rattles, shiny objects, birds quickly get used to a garden scarecrow.
• The downside to planting distracting crops is that there is no guarantee that the event will be effective. Perhaps the birds will feast on bird cherry, mountain ash, and then fly to strawberries.
• Electronics is, one might say, the most effective way to protect the territory from birds. But he also has disadvantages. For example, cost. Also, such devices can keep birds away from the garden for a long time, and this will be wrong. After all, birds destroy pests (caterpillars, beetles, moths, aphids, etc.).

Additional ways to protect

A folk way to protect strawberries from birds is a cat. The pet actively runs around the garden and scares pests. There are many examples where a cat saved strawberries and other crops from birds and rodents.

Some people practice keeping birds of prey in their garden house. Falcons and hawks will protect landings better than any cats, rattles and stuffed animals. With them, you can refuse the offer to cover the bed with a net. However, maintaining such living creatures is very expensive and time-consuming.

Advice. Experienced gardeners offer to organize an impromptu pond, waterfall or stream in the garden. Then the birds will come to drink. They will satisfy the need for berries in other garden plots.

A terrible and original way of protection is a dead bird, which is tied to a stick stuck in the middle of a strawberry patch.

There are quite a few methods for protecting strawberries from birds. Each gardener decides for himself which one to choose. You can organize several events at once. For example, put a scarecrow, cover the ridge with a net, get a cat. Then no one will get to the juicy berries.

Birds in the country can be both useful and enemies to many cultures. On the one hand, they save plants from the invasion of pests such as caterpillars, and. On the other hand, during the ripening period of berries on fruit trees, shrubs or strawberries, they turn into kites that simply destroy the crop. It turns out that they do not eat insects and they begin to be attracted by the bright juicy colors of ripe berries? No, it's just that this period coincides with the beginning of hot days and the birds need water, they drink it, as you already understood - from berries. How to be, how to protect the crop from starlings, sparrows, wagtails, swallows and, of course, crows?

There are several effective ways to deal with birds for a crop:

• Install drinkers with a branch for the seat, regularly pour clean water and the result will be immediately noticeable - the bite of the crop will be significantly reduced or even disappear.

• A flock of magpies (the more, the better) or a kite (hawk) will well scare away the raven, which must not be forgotten to be fed with waste so that the same magpies do not even think of looking towards the berries.

• Starlings are a great danger, despite the fact that the benefits of them in the spring are enormous. Starlings in an instant can peck at a sea buckthorn or cherry tree. Therefore, it is very effective for fighting birds by hanging Christmas decorations, tinsel, foil or something shiny on a tree. And for you, a reminder of the winter holiday, and the birds do not fly during the ripening of berries.

• An ultrasonic repeller, absolutely harmless to humans and an effective device in the fight for the crop. Sold in specialized stores. And you can turn on very loud music for birds, although not everyone will like this option.
• A net thrown over trees or shrubs (cell no more than 4 cm) will also be an excellent solution to the problem with birds. It is advisable to throw it on a specially made frame around the plant, but it is often unrealistic to do this in the conditions of a summer cottage.
• We must not forget about the centuries-old bird repeller -. It will become not only a means of crop protection, but also a decorative element of your garden. However, it should be noted that the scarecrow in the garden is temporary protection, because. already after 2-3 weeks the birds get used to it and do not see it as a threat.

• Rattle to scare away birds from the site. The material can be cans of beer or drinks. In parallel with this, you will get rid of and. Special air bells are sold, but their melody in calm weather is unlikely to scare anyone away.
• The cat is an excellent hunter of birds, rats and mice.
• The manual method of fighting birds is a slingshot.

When protecting crops from birds, remember that if repellents are active throughout the season, even removing them, you risk losing your crop from pests that are not always immediately visible.