Devastation

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I went for my usual morning check to the veg patch. My entire row of sunflowers, a cabbage, 2 huge jerusalem artichoke plants, several PFA plants, a squash and a few carrots - all dug up. The peas, beans, salad stuff, tomatoes, asparagus, spinach, herbs, not touched. I don't think it's foxes - we've had foxes here for 30 years and only the occasional worm-search hole in the compost heap. My best guess is a badger, which we've suspected from what we think are badger latrines we found in our field a few tens of yards away from my veg patch. So, has anyone on here any suggestions for deterring Brock? At the moment I feel like returning the whole plot to grass.....I'm thoroughly gutted about it. I've looked on the Badger Trust website, but it doesn't seem feasible to fence them out. Oh, the joys of Nature....

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[galina]

How absolutely infuriating, Small.  At least it wasn't by human vandals.  Hope some can be replanted and thrive, but the idea that it could happen again is troubling.

Just wanted to tell you how sorry I feel about this and what a nasty shock you must have had when you saw the devastation.  Please don't be disheartened.  Hope someone has a solution/deterrent that will make sure it never happens again.

[antipodes]

What a shame. I have never even seen a badger let alone had them on the plot!
It might not be too late to put some of it back, the squash plant might be OK. At worse it's not too late to resow lots of things - beans, carrots, beets. Perhaps there is something they particularly like eating in there (the jerusalemn artichokes?)

[MervF]

A good friend of mine has had badger problems and filled a pop sock with vermiculite and soaked it with vinegar.   It seems that they do not like the smell as no veggies have been touched since.

[Palustris]

They also do not like the smell of Jeye's Fluid. I hung rags soaked in it on the fence where they were digging into our garden. The moved to another part of the fence.
We have 5 Badger setts within a mile of us, we are under siege at present.

[peanuts]

Really sorry, Small, about your devastation.  We've had different devastations a few years ago, and I know what it feels like.  Just hope that some of the suggestions given here will help you when you manage to pick yourself up again.  Do try re-sowing stuff - nature is incredible, and some things will grow back quickly.

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Thanks for all the replies. I don't want to use Jeyes because we have cats. As for it not being human vandals - well they are not protected so I think I could do more about them! What we've done is resurrected our electric fencing from our pig keeping days, and put it round what remains of the carrots, PFAs and JAs. The sunflowers, well who wanted sunflowers anyway..... We may invest in some kit to try and video the intruders - if you can't beat 'em, join 'em!

[Digeroo]

That is very frustrating.  We had some trouble onr year with sweetcorn being devastated on some plots but luckily they did not go digging things up.   

It is very disheartening when this sort of thing happens because you just get the feeling that it might happen again. 

Have the crops been eaten.  What about a mole, they can be devasting, the crop suddenly disappear down holes but you can sometime retrieve them and replant.

I think you have to be pleased somethings are still growing and just replant and resow.

If it is not one things it is something else.

[petefj]

We have them on our golf course and they are causing vast amounts of damage.  The problem I am told is due to a mild and wet winter keeping the worms close the surface and making it very easy for "Brock" to dig them up.  It would seem that worms are a major source of their diet.  As gardeners we encourage worms, and dig rotted manure into the ground which the worms love, and so do the Badgers.
It would seem that we are on a hiding to nothing on this one.
Renardine used to be the solution, but alas it's banned by the EEC.  You can't shoot them, unless your licenced to do so, you can't poison them and their setts are protected, so we're beat I think!

Just grit your teeth and "think of England".

Peter

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I'm Welsh, Peter....! Looking on the bright side, the electric fence (2 strands, on the 2 lowest pole grips) seems to have halted the beastie, the first night one of the poles had been bumped over so I assume something had tried, then last night all seems fine, so it's given me some hope. And the squirrels are having a wonderful time clearing up the JA's.....so maybe I won't concrete the whole lot just yet.

[Jayb]

Sorry to read about the damage, I've seen what our pet dog can do in seconds, so would hate to see the damage caused by Badgers. Using your electric fence sounds an excellent idea, hope it continues to do the job 

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An update for anyone who remembers this from earlier in the year......no sign of any more trouble in the veg, the electric fence seemed to work. (shame my stupid ginger cat had to learn the hard way, though...).  OH built a set up using a raspberry pi, and we've had hours of fun seeing what visits at night - hedgehogs and foxes, bats, voles...and then, last night, set up right outside our conservatory, there was the badger! Just for a few seconds, snuffling around presumably for leatherjackets, but there! Almost makes up for losing those sunflowers....