Plant protection

The 2011 UC Master Gardener Vegetable Demonstration Garden Project has recently finished. A group of certified Master Gardeners and trainees spent time each week from January 27 through December 15 learning vegetable gardening techniques through hands-on experience.

They documented their project so that they could impart lessons learned throughout the2011 project. This article is the seventh in a series to share this knowledge.

Plant protection:

Necessity in protecting plants from vertebrae pests varies depending on location.    

• Seedlings should be protected from animals with cages once planted in the soil.
• When constructing cages for plants, design them so they can be easily removed even if the plants become overgrown. Otherwise, the plants may be injured as the cages are removed.
• Be sure to bury the frame of the frame of the cage to prevent mice from crawling under it.
• Small grocery paper bags make nice collars for corn plants.
• Plants placed in soda bottles for protection from critters will eventually grow out of the bottle making them vulnerable to pests. Cages may provide better protection from rabbits and other grazing animals.
• Don’t leave cages on the plants too long. As the plants outgrow the cages, they will become difficult to remove. Also the stem of the plant will be weak since support provided by the cage does not allow full stem development.

Questions on gardening? Please contact our Master Gardener helpline at 645-1455 or contact them by email at mgventura@ucdavis.edu.

Necessity in protecting plants from vertebrae pests varies depending on location.