Sunrise Landscape Designs

    What do we do about this? I set out JB traps.  I have my JB traps set about 10′-15′ down wind from plants that I know are chewed on every year.  The reason for the distance is so the beetles are attracted away from their favorite food and hopefully less damage is done.  Do the traps attract JB from other areas too?  Probably, but I find it difficult to stand by and watch my plants be defoliated.  It is also very satisfiying to watch the beetles fly into the traps!

    Biological control is a great idea.  If you provide a variety of plants in your yard, you will be drawing different types of birds that eat the JB.  Starlings, Cardinals, Grackles, Meadowlarks, Crows, Chickens, Pheasants, Ducks, Geese, and even Guineas are all great predators of the JB.

Do you love tulips but resist planting them because the voles tunnel just below the surface and eat them? Try putting a handful of crushed gravel in the planting hole, right over the top and sides of the bulb. The voles may find it too much effort to dig through the sharp stone and look for food somewhere else.

Another suggestion is to plant your bulbs deeper. Voles tend to tunnel fairly shallow and if you plant the bottom of the tulip at a depth of 10″, the voles may miss them altogether. This technique will cause the tulips to flower a little later (a week, or so depending on the variety) but it will also offer better winter protection.

Q: My problem: My flower beds (two rock walls topped with shredded bark) have turned into mouse motels; they’re full of holes! Any ideas on how to get them out of there? It creeps me out just thinking about it, and I don’t want them trying to get in to my house when colder weather hits.
Bev W.

A: Are you sure those holes are from mice? There are other pests, like ground squirrels that burrow into rock walls. Here are a few tricks to try:

• If you have an outdoor cat, put it to work.
• Rake the bark away from the area, pour gasoline into the holes and light on fire. This sucks away their oxygen.
• Stuff a garden hose into a hole and turn water on full force. Then, watch for a mouse, vole, chipmunk, or ground squirrel to run out of another hole close by and stomp on it.
• Put mouse bait or other poison in the holes. (Be careful if children or pets have access to the area.)

Question: Any tips or ideas for keeping rabbits out of my plant bed? They are eating my tulips, crocus and other bulbs, chewing on my Carex grasses; I’m ready to bring my bb gun over and take em out! Any ideas? Adam, Hudsonville, MI

Answer: Daffodils are going to be your safest bulb that the rabbits won’t eat. Putting up low rabbit fencing works but is not pretty to look at. A dog or cat will hunt the rabbits and keep them away. Also, the BB gun isn’t such a bad idea if you have the time to wait. There are live rabbit traps or poisons you can put down too but it’s best and easiest to put in plants that they don’t like to eat.

Garden Chores: Now that the chance of a hard frost is past, cut back the butterfly bush to 4″ or so. Also, if your boxwood have any winter burn on them, prune it off now and shape them as desired.

Some types of dogs just like to dig holes. I have found a way to stop them from digging too far down but it takes a bit of effort initially and should be done before the perennials come up.
Rake the bark out of the plant bed and lay chicken wire down throughout the entire bed. Chicken wire fencing is bought in rolls about 3′ tall. You may need a few stones or stakes to hold down the wire ends. With wire cutters, cut the chicken wire so it will go around the shrubs. Place the bark back over the top of the wire. Most perennials and bulbs will grow right through the fencing. Now, when the dog tries to dig a hole, he won’t be able to get down to the dirt. Eventually, he will give up and your plant beds will stay neat and tidy.

Are your landscape plants being served as a delicacy to the local deer or rabbits? This has been a mild winter but once the wildlife finds out you’re serving their favorite dish, it’s hard to get rid of them. But how can you tell who’s doing the damage? Well, there is an easy way to distinguish the deer from the rabbits. Deer bites are jagged and torn; they bite and pull. Rabbits have been known to chew around entire stems like other small critters do but if they chew off branches, you will see a distinct 45 degree cut.

There are some favorite plants these animals love but if it’s a cold enough winter, they will eat just about anything. To keep them away from the plants, the best remedy I know of is a good dog. Fencing, such as chicken wire, works well also. There are products such as Deer Away that can be sprayed on the leaves of favorite plants but it does need to be reapplied after the rain or snow melt.

Featured Success Tool:
Finally a safe and effective way to keep herons, raccoons, dogs, deer and other animals away from your garden or pond! The scarecrow motion detector can “spot” intruders up to 35′ away and will release a three second blast of water to scare away the pests. The cost is $75.00 plus tax. If you are interested, send me an email and I’ll reserve one for you for spring.

• Connects to any garden hose
• Detects animals day or night!
• A humane solution to unwanted intruders
• Water conserving design-only uses 2-3 cups of water per time
• Runs on one 9 volt battery for months
• Overall height is 24″ and sprays only over area to be protected

I refuse to let spring go by without having spring flowering bulbs to brighten up my landscape, however, in West Michigan, deer are a common garden pest. One bulb that the deer don’t like are Daffodils. This is a cheery flower that comes in many assorted heights and shades of yellows and white. Order your bulbs now to plant in the fall and be sure to buy quality bulbs for consistent color. I’ve found out the hard way that the cheap bulbs tend to genetically revert back to an original, plainer appearance or they may not return at all.