If your succulents are being eaten by birds, you must desire to stop right now! First, you might want to take out any coconut liners from your pots. This is due to the fact that curious birds will flock around your succulents and begin to peck at them. They might be intrigued to taste your succulents as a result.
But thirst is a major factor in why rats or birds attempt to consume succulent plants. Succulents, especially large ones, can hold a lot of water. By adding a birdbath or a waterfall like this, you can try to prevent animals like birds and rodents from drinking water from succulent plants.
Additionally, check to see if there are any insects or pests on your succulents. If your succulents or the soil contain bugs, birds may eat the bugs, harming the leaves in the process. In general, birds may be drawn to bugs. Check the dirt around your succulent to see if you can find any small red, black, or green bugs, slugs, or worms.
Do you notice any fine, white webs? If it’s time to repot your succulent, you can also do it; just check the soil as well. Succulents with a rootball will have roots encircling it, and some of those roots may even stick out of the container holes.
Because they have a nest close by, birds may also consume your succulents for this reason. Many birds search for locations to build their nests, and occasionally one of your pots may be one of them! You can scare off birds to prevent them from getting close to your succulents, devouring them, or building nests in your yard. Spikes, specific bird deterrents, scarecrows, or imitation owl statues like this can all be used for this. Other statues of raptors can also be used. For added deterrence, there are even gadgets that produce owl noises.
Shiny things that cast reflections are another thing that terrifies birds. You can hang something or set something down for this use, especially something that moves and produces reflections. The likes of wind twisting rods and reflective holographic wheels are readily available for purchase. On top of your plant pots, you might even want to experiment with reflecting and/or holographic tape or ribbon.
Birds may consume succulents for reasons other than being thirsty or hungry. If you don’t already have any, you might try putting some in your garden and making sure they are always filled. This may lessen their focus on and desire to consume your succulents.
How to stop birds and other animals from eating your succulents?
Your succulents may be being damaged by other creatures rather than birds if they are being chewed on, bit, or altogether disappear. Your succulents could be eaten by and even stolen by mice, voles, squirrels, and other rodents. Rodents can be stealing or eating your succulents at night if you don’t see anything during the day.
Even while it is upsetting when animals bite and take your succulents, remember that they are only trying to find food to eat. Covering the soil with topdressing or rocks is one method for significantly reducing damage from rats and birds. By doing this, animals like birds and rats won’t notice the soil and might not mistake it for food. Rocks or topsoil will also make it much more difficult for them to dig into the plants.
A sprinkler like this one with motion detection is another easy way to keep animals like rats and birds away from your garden and succulents. Sprinklers that are activated by motion are a terrific method to keep animals away from your plants while doing no harm to them. It constantly sprays water when animals come close to your plants. If you have cats or dogs at home, that is also beneficial. Many succulent keepers also struggle greatly with nighttime succulent eating.
Succulents may be covered at night if nothing else is working to stop birds or rats from eating or even stealing them from your garden. Use a thin net curtain or mesh for this purpose, and weigh them down with bricks or pebbles. To cover your succulents, you can also use wire cages. Make sure a cover has openings for air to flow through and light to get through.
Sprinkle some cayenne pepper around your plant to keep animals from eating your succulents (it might not work for birds though). A natural insect repellent that works best against rodents is cayenne pepper. You might also use repellents like peppermint oil, dish detergent, and garlic cloves, depending on the types of vermin you have in your garden.
You can purchase a mini-greenhouse to safeguard your plants if you have a collection of succulents and perhaps other plants that are vulnerable to harm from birds and rats. A mini-greenhouse frequently features plant shelves, a roof, and a cover to shield the plants from weather and animals. There are many options, ranging from smaller, more affordable portable ones to larger, 2-3 tier ones like this.
Another piece of advice is to temporarily move your plants indoors, if at all possible. When animals see that they are not there, they may cease returning to eat or grab them.
Why do animals eat cacti and succulents?
Succulents and cacti are eaten by the majority of animals in habitats where they are native. Gophers, jackrabbits, woodrats, javelinas, and many other animals consume succulents. There are tales of individuals being lost in deserts and eating succulents to prevent dehydration.
Since cacti and succulents have sharp spines, most animals prefer to consume softer succulents or softer sections of cacti. Succulents are not all edible, however some are incredibly nutrient-dense and provide you water. These include, for instance, barrel and opuntia cacti.
To quench their thirst, camels and alpacas, however, can even consume the most prickly cacti. Inside of their mouths, camels have a unique rough lining made up of papillae. It aids in moving food into their stomachs and shielding their mouth from sharp objects.
What can I do to prevent birds from eating my plants?
Although birds are a pleasant addition to the garden, there are a few things you can do to keep them out of your plants if the crows are eating all of your corn and the jays are eating all of your berries.
How to Keep Birds Away from Your Garden
- Party away! You may buy frightful balloons—vinyl balls with ominous faces—at garden supply stores and online. Create your own using mylar balloons that are sparkly and affix them to garden posts. For greater impact, attach sparkling ribbon (or surveyor’s tape) to the balloons. Also, don’t forget to reposition the balloons every few days.
- erect a wall. Cover weak seedlings with upside-down boxes or disposable cups with the bottoms cut out to deter nibblers. A seedbed can also be covered with chicken wire. (As seedlings develop, slightly lift it with boards or blocks.) A gardener in Maryland claims, “I created a cone out of window screen cloth for my tomato plants. When they got too big for the cones, I moved to netting.
- Set up a net “According to Pippa Greenwood, author of American Horticultural Society Pests & Diseases, netting is the only effective method for keeping birds away. Some gardeners build a cheap structure to cover their plants to prevent catching on thorns or twigs. Take advantage of bamboo poles, fence posts, or high stakes. For wind protection, drape the netting over the framework until it touches the ground. Then, secure it there using bent wire. Consider forming a V-shape in your garden rows if they aren’t too long “a tent over the row to shield seedlings until their roots are strong enough to withstand bird tugging.
- Use technology. Even the boldest of birds can be scared by the sophisticated screech owl that Birdbusters produces. A microchip inside the spinning owl produces the sound of a hawk charging towards it.
- Become low-tech. One traditional remedy was to soak a few quarts of dried grain in whiskey before distributing it to the crows across the fields. They’d end up corned!
- Consider the advantages. Even though certain birds can be a pain, they are also devoted garden companions who eat pesky pests like snails, slugs, and dangerous insects. You could feel more kind to our feathery companions if you keep this in mind. Here are some suggestions for improving your garden’s suitability for birds.
You should be able to prevent birds from damaging your priceless crops and flowers using these straightforward techniques!
Succulents — do they draw birds?
Cindy Davison of The Succulent Perch created an amazing succulent garden for a little area. You don’t need a large yard to have a beautiful succulent garden.
We may receive a commission when you buy something after clicking on one of our links, at no additional cost to you. This enables us to offer you free content.
I had the pleasure of being invited to Cindy Davison’s (of The Succulent Perch) garden on a trip to San Diego.
I have always loved Cindy’s succulent artwork and had the good fortune to commission her to make some for my book, The Idiot’s Guide to Succulents. I knew I wanted to see her newly renovated garden after hearing about it and seeing images of it.
A devoted gardener (or two, or three…) is usually needed to maintain the enormous, much-admired succulent gardens.
Cindy’s garden, on the other hand, is incredibly useful, well thought out, and totally breathtaking. It’s not very big, but it’s really lovely!
Her home’s entrance features lovely gardens filled to the brim with succulents. It’s incredibly inviting. Additionally, you can already detect Cindy’s passion with birds. Take note of the birdbath filled with succulents that gives the succulent display more height.
She also used cork board and greening pins to attach the succulents to a lovely hanging planter, and she covered the remaining area with sphagnum moss. A magnificent focal point is created by the enormous Echeveria ‘Sahara’ plants and driftwood.
The trickling fountain and terra cotta succulent pot that welcome you as you first approach the side yard are both attractive features. You’ll see that the garden makes extensive use of clashing hues. Here, blues and greens go well with the reds and oranges.
She has a keen understanding of how colors complement one another, how to make everything feel proportioned and balanced, and how to add the ideal finishing touches with accents.
To keep these cactus tiny and controlled, they are first planted in pots and then buried in the ground. It resembles a miniature arrangement, but since the pot is covered, the design fits in well with the surrounding environment.
Succulents are scattered around the wood planter boxes, especially around the corners so you don’t approach too closely and run into them.
Additionally, Cindy is fantastic at keeping things natural and organic. She has included a grow box filled with greens that are simple to pick and consume. The “Here, the trellis is actually a table that has had its legs taken off and turned on its side. Genius!
Everywhere you look, you’ll see tiny glimpses of birds and butterflies—some big and prominent, some more inconspicuous—like clues in a treasure map.
She also has a sweet birdhouse, a bird bath, and miniatures if those weren’t enough “garbage can with decorative potential. I’ve been searching for something as entertaining as this wood pail but haven’t come across anything.
The size of this garden is difficult to convey, yet it is not enormous. There is just enough room for two individuals to move along the walkway at once.
That, among other things, is what I believe makes her garden so meaningful to me.
For those of us who grow plants on porch steps and window sills, additional space wouldn’t be necessary.
I adore the addition of the chimenea, which allows you to have a freshly prepared dinner outside among your plants.
Succulents are a big part of the plant selection for the garden, but Cindy also added plants like this milkweed that will draw in birds, bees, and butterflies. There were some Monarch cocoons hanging on neighboring succulents, however we didn’t see any at the time.
Although the plants are absolutely the most interesting aspect of the garden, I am also slightly infatuated with the way Cindy employed gravel to increase the garden’s aesthetic attractiveness.
In the same color family, she used gravel in three distinct sizes. Around the succulents, they were larger, then they were medium in size, and the most of them were the size of gritty sand. It’s similar to having a matted image in your yard instead.
In relation to images… On the side of Cindy’s house, directly over the air conditioner, is a sizable picture. Instead of attempting to conceal the unit, she painted around it.
The big image is very entertaining and gives the impression that the garden is an addition to the house.
She also put a succulent arrangement atop the air conditioner, just like you would on a table inside!
Sedum clavatum is one of my perennially favorite succulents (I have a lot, and it truly depends on the day). Cindy revealed to me that this was her very first succulent as I was taking pictures of this beauty. It’s incredible how one plant can alter everything in your life.
I was very motivated and uplifted when I left Cindy’s garden! I’m very excited to carry this out in my new house. It provided me some suggestions on how to improve any apartment or house we rent, so whenever I implement them, I’ll be sure to show you.
Check out my book, Idiot’s Guides: Succulents, or Cindy’s Facebook page, where she frequently posts images of her arrangements and design advice for making your own, if you want to see more of her stunning work.
What’s consuming my succulent plants?
Succulents are a common food source for bugs and other animals, which is unfortunate. Even though it is not their natural meal, animals appear to enjoy the water-filled leaves of succulent plants, and the harm they cause to our priceless plants drives succulent enthusiasts crazy. What then consumes succulent leaves?
Aphids, mealy bugs, caterpillars, grasshoppers, snails, and slugs are the most prevalent critters that consume succulents worldwide. The list varies depending on where you are in the world.
How can succulents be protected against animal consumption?
Join Succulent Alley’s mailing list!
- Netting and fencing, in 2.1.
- Smell Repellents, #2.
- 3. Purchase a dog.
- Natural Predator 2.4
- Give them their food. 2.5.
- 2.6 Startling Them.
What bird repellent works the best?
- Aspectek Stainless Steel Bird Spikes are the best overall.
- Bird B Gone Enviro-Spike Bird Spike offers the BEST BANG FOR THE BUCK.
- The Dalen Gardener Natural Enemy Scarecrow Owl Decoy is the BEST FAKE OWL.
- Bird-X STS-10-R Stainless Steel Bird Spikes are THE BEST SPikes.
- DE-BIRD: Repellent DisksBird Proof Your House: BEST HANGING