Protecting sweet corn.

[ruralruss]

We have been gardening basically for ever and though we thought we had seen it all but this has us stumped. When our first batch of corn was ready we started getting damage. The shucks were being shredded from the top down, eating the kennels along the way. I'm talking fine shreds like tiny claws, or small beaks. We could never find any clues as to what exactly it was. Now our second batch is coming on and the same thing is happening except that since the kernels are just forming from bottom to top the devils are shredding from the bottom.

We have dealt with raccoon before and they just knock the the whole stalk down. We saw a squirrel going in a out (squirrels love strawberries by the way) so we put 3 foot chicken wire up against our 7 foot chain ling fence (**** deer) and then put a hot wire at the top of that. No change. We think it is either it is small birds or rodents. Here in NW Georgia we have this field rat, I call them wiener rats because their body is the same size front to back verses the brown rats we had up north.

We work hard on our garden. Between 60 to 70 percent of the food we eat comes out of it. We share some of it but what ever this is, it has to go.

I would welcome any ideals.

 

[Snaker]

Could it possibly be crows or something similar?

 

[lockhaven]

I have seen squirrels jump over a hot wire and do the low crawl under, actually spreading out flat on the ground to get under a hot wire to protect a peach tree. They will also climb a tree and leap over the wire. Best thing for squirrels is a shotgun or rat poison

 

[nickel plate]

It might not be too late if you act fast-put up a game camera to identify what is attacking your corn. They mostly all shoot both day and night. Sad fact is the cheap ones tend to break down. Go to chasingame.com for a quick and unbiased primer on the subject.

 

[BeezFun]

Maybe they're parachuting in
Seriously, I ditto the game camera idea. Our friend put one up and has gotten some unbelievable photos of what goes on in their pasture.

 

[ray66v]

I get the type of damage you described from birds.

 

[TedLaRue]

I had a similar problem. If it's birds.....well, I have no solution.

My problem was some animal on the ground. I had purchased 12" plastic tent pegs to hold down tomato cages, and I had some left over. I drove them about 8" into the ground at the end of the middle of each row, and ran aluminum electric fence wire down through the middle of the rows wrapped around the tops of the stakes, and then hooked it to the electric fence. This left a hot wire about 4" above ground running down the length of each row of corn. One year I got really desperate and ran a second wire close to the first and connected to the ground.

It didn't take much effort to do that, and it worked. I did something similar a few years ago when a squirrel or chipmunk was going after my tomatoes.

I usually put a little fish emulsion fertilizer on a cloth and hang it from the electric fence to teach the 'coons a lesson. Sardines or tuna fish would work if you don't have fish emulsion fertilizer. Peanut butter on a piece of aluminum flashing folded over the fence wire will teach deer and squirrels the lesson.

 

[MMagis]

Sounds like crows to me.

 

[ruralruss]

Thanks for all the info friends. My wife went out yesterday and did some close inspection of the corn stalks where the corn was damaged. She fount small claw marks going up the stalks. So I guess it is the wiener rats.

Rats!

 

[jinman]

I know this isn't funny Russ, but I just have this mental picture of a corn field with hundreds of rat traps between the rows.:laughing:

I would go with a game camera. Mine is sensitive enough to be set off by small birds and/or even a water jet from a yard sprinkler, so I'd say something as big as a rat should also trip its "trigger."