crop protection

[Justy]

I have now netted strawberries and broccoli (after birds almost decimated them!) and have strung strings over the peas.  Should I protect French beans too?  If so what is best way - I am finding the netting an absolute nightmare to use so any hints or photos of how peeps do that too would be useful!

[Justy]

[Amazin]

Sorry if this sounds stupid - it's my speciality - but has anyone tried using fine net curtaining? I tried it (with clothespegs!) on my elderberries and it wasn't half as finicky as plastic netting.

[Mrs Ava]

Net curtains are okay, but, the very fine woven nets do not let a great deal of light through and you can end up with leggy growth - not great on radish seedlings I can tell you!  I did use it last year to cover fruit bushes though and it worked a treat, and they were free!  Just put the word out that you are after old nets, and you will be amazed how many people have them in bags in their lofts!

Justy, I don't protect my beans at all.  For the dwarf/short frenchies I  sometimes stick a cane in at the corners, then wrap string around, like you would broadbeans, just to give them a little extra support, but I tend to plant close together and they lean on each others shoulders fine.  Pests, only aphids, slugs and snails, rabbits and deer!

[Merry Tiller]

I hammer a post 3 to 4 feet long of 2 inch by 1 inch timber into each corner of my brassica bed and also one in the middle of each side like this

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I then place an upside down 3 inch plant pot on top of each post and then tie a length of strong twine tightly all the way round from post to post. The pots & twine stop the posts from puncturing the netting.
The netting is draped over the whole contraption, folded at the corners and held down around the edge with pegs, bricks or whatever.
It takes me about half an hour to set up, hope this gives you some useful ideas

[Justy]

ooh - that is beautiful MT!  Mine looks like a dogs dinner compared to that.  Also I only have cheap nylon net stuff which doesn't drape very well.  I will save up and buy some nice stuff like yours! 

[Amazin]

Oh no, I didn't mean for beds, EJ, I've only used net curtains just for fruit bushes.  You're right about people's  net curtain hoarding though!

[Mothy]

This year (my 1st) I've bought some 6m x 4m nylon nets from Wilko's for about £4.50 each. I must admit that they are a nightmare to set up, is the stuff that you buy from more expensive sources any bettter/longer lasting?
If we don't net brassicas, the birds seem to have a feast.

[Mrs Ava]

I have used cheap netting and expensive netting, and they all tangle and make me swear!  Not very ladylike.

MT, good-oh, your brassica patch looks kinda like mine.  Mind you, the pigeons have been known to sit on the top to push the net down and then eat the tender new leaves through it!

[Svea]

MT that looks great. thank you for the instructions and detailed piccie :)
i have already netted mine but with cloche hoops and net, but the things have grown so fast in the last two weeks that that has now become too small. so need to get something like your setup ..erm...set up ;)

svea

[Justy]

have now done something similar with the broccoli (always have to have 2 goes at spelling that  ;D) and they look very cosy.  The strawberries have just got some nasty cheap nylon stuff and blow me if my one and only almost ripe strawberry still got eaten last night...... :'(  Will now try with same cheap nylon net but use some cloche hoops with it.

[Derek]

One of my lottie neighbours has a wonderful row of untouched (by pigeons) cabbages...he has grown them through large bottomless plastic pots directly into the soil with a length of humming wire stretched over them.

It seems to work for him...anyone else tried this method?

Derek

[Merry Tiller]

EJ, yes the pigeons round here are getting pretty good at tightrope walking too.
That was last years effort by the way, this year I've made the posts a bit taller