How to prevent squirrels from fruit trees?

[andy2019]

I just caught a squirrel eating my guava fruit red handed this morning. Can you suggest ways to keep it away from my fruit trees please? I prefer natural ways

 

[Chuck]

There have been novels posted on this forum about this very thing. Nothing except extermination really works. I think most that have cured the problem use a pellet gun. Myself, I use either a 12 guage or a .22. Or you can chop down all of the surrounding trees.

 

[Tetters]

How about making the squirrels a lovely playground, incorporating super duper tasty alternative foods to tempt them away from your guavas...

Some years ago my brother in law made such a playground for the squirrels in his garden - he made all kinds of ''puzzles'' for them to work out how to reach the tasty stuff inside, and spent more time watching these animals, than watching his tv.

 

[Sean Regan]

You need to put something around the trunk of the tree that they can't climb over.
Like, adapt a large plastic upturned pot saucer. Put it in a position on the trunk where they can't jump up onto it.
"Anti-climb paint," added would be a further deterent.

 

[Tetters]

All they need is some TLC and something to occupy their minds

... ... ...

 

[Sean Regan]

We feed "our squirrel," but only enough to sustain it for a day. So it's mealworms and suet pellets. Stopped giving it peanuts, it just buried them in the lawn and they always forget where.

 

[NigelJ]

Taxidermy as TLC?
I have no real issue with squirrels apart from when they steal the strawberries, and apples. However my new neighbour has decided they are cute and should be fed peanuts. She puts these in an open fronted bird box just above the fence, problem is squirrels are messy and drop peanuts. The local badgers get a whiff of these and start to dig under fence demolishing dry stone wall below fence. Stopping squirrels is one thing, but a badger on the trail of a peanut is another problem altogether.

 

[andy2019]

I’m planning to plant peppermint about 1 foot around the base of my fruit trees since it’s recommended to fertilize 1 foot away from the base trunk of the fruit trees anyway.

it serves two purposes. I eat peppermint with noodle soup and hopefully it will keep squirrels away because of the smell

 

[AuntRose53]

Put poison on the tree honey, pure n simple. Nothing else works trust me, I have an orchard it used to be bare because of the squirles but I just rubbed some rat poisoning all around the trunks and now my orchard is perfect. You could also try bear traps but if you have children or pets that’s a no go.

 

[Chuck]

Put poison on the tree honey, pure n simple. Nothing else works trust me, I have an orchard it used to be bare because of the squirles but I just rubbed some rat poisoning all around the trunks and now my orchard is perfect. You could also try bear traps but if you have children or pets that’s a no go.

what kind of poison? Do your squirrels chew on the trunk?

 

[AuntRose53]

what kind of poison? Do your squirrels chew on the trunk?

the squirrels we have here in Idaho will chew an Apple through a chain link fence.

 

[Chuck]

The squirrels here MIGHT chew on limb tips or very small limbs but they will destroy an entire crop of fruit.

 

[AuntRose53]

The squirrels here MIGHT chew on limb tips or very small limbs but they will destroy an entire crop of fruit.

so why don’t u poison them? If they don’t chew on trunk in your neck of the woods you could put a couple poison apples at the base of the tree. Gotta beat the squirrel to the nut hunny.

 

[Chuck]

so why don’t u poison them? If they don’t chew on trunk in your neck of the woods you could put a couple poison apples at the base of the tree. Gotta beat the squirrel to the nut hunny.

Don't have many apples in Texas but we do have a lot of peaches, plums and citrus. They take a bite or two out of a fruit and knock it to the ground and leave it there. They never take another bite out of it. Ingestible poisons don't work here. I was hoping you knew of some kind of contact poison. Commercial nut growers here hire people to come into their orchards and hunt the things.

 

[AuntRose53]

Don't have many apples in Texas but we do have a lot of peaches, plums and citrus. They take a bite or two out of a fruit and knock it to the ground and leave it there. They never take another bite out of it. Ingestible poisons don't work here. I was hoping you knew of some kind of contact poison. Commercial nut growers here hire people to come into their orchards and hunt the things.

ohh dear that’s terrible, I know that feelin. I don’t know of any kind of contact poison, I just do it the old fashion way like grampy did. I don’t have the patience for shootin or trapping them.

 

[Chuck]

ohh dear that’s terrible, I know that feelin. I don’t know of any kind of contact poison, I just do it the old fashion way like grampy did. I don’t have the patience for shootin or trapping them.

It is a long slow process getting rid of them all by shooting them but, it is the only way to almost completely eradicate them. When I first bought the land where I am now 25 years ago it was undeveloped land and I had no idea how many squirrels there actually were. I have no idea how many I have shot but it has to be in the 100's and I still see them often and shoot one every time I see one. At least I can keep them from my peach orchard now, but I had to cut down all of the trees within 100 feet. Now it is coons and possums I have to fight to get a peach.

 

[AuntRose53]

It is a long slow process getting rid of them all by shooting them but, it is the only way to almost completely eradicate them. When I first bought the land where I am now 25 years ago it was undeveloped land and I had no idea how many squirrels there actually were. I have no idea how many I have shot but it has to be in the 100's and I still see them often and shoot one every time I see one. At least I can keep them from my peach orchard now, but I had to cut down all of the trees within 100 feet. Now it is coons and possums I have to fight to get a peach.
[/QUOt

I’m sure you also get something out of it. Have you ever made squirrel pie? It’s a Shepard’s pie recipe except with squirrel. It’s simple and delicious. Yes ohh my I know all about the coons and possums they are knowledgable on my poisons too. They only come out at night, I also have started putting barb wire round my trunks to insure they don’t get the goods.

 

[Chuck]

I have eaten squirrel in just about every way possible. Nothing better than a young fried squirrel with bisquits and gravy

 

[Tetters]

It seems to me that the motto here is - if it moves and breathes - KILL it. When all this poison is chucked around all over the place do you ever consider what else you might be killing?

 

[AuntRose53]

It seems to me that the motto here is - if it moves and breathes - KILL it. When all this poison is chucked around all over the place do you ever consider what else you might be killing?

there ain’t nothing wrong with the good old fashioned way off getting rid of pests. I’ll poison a squirrel, snake, rabbits, I’m about to do it to the cats now cus they are getting to be bad. I didn’t want it to come to that but sorry my crops are more important.