You’d have to have a heart of stone to harm the little rascals, but lately they’ve been pushing my buttons. I have a family of these little beasties living in my woodshed. Not a big family. It’s just the mother and her two kids.
I’ve watched them grow fat over the last couple of months, and they got that way by raiding my cherry tomatoes. I don’t mind sharing, but what they do is take a little bite out of one tomato, and then another, and another. They never finish off a whole tomato. And that’s just plain impolite. The dog is no help. For some reason he completely ignores them, although he’ll take on a butterfly or a racoon.
I put some peanuts out for them, in the hope that they’ll fill up on those and leave my tomatoes alone, but that didn’t work. Oh, they took them, but they burglarized my tomatoes anyway.
I’m wondering if there’s some kind of anti-chipmunk stuff I could put around the tomatoes. I’d put peanuts out for them as compensation. I don’t want to hurt them, and I don’t want to drive them off, because I’ve actually grown quite fond of them. I just wish they’d be a little more respectful.
Billdo, you know I love ya, so I won’t hurt ya too much. Ah, it’s OK, I knew someone would mention it sooner or later. Slip, the only advice I have is, whatever you do, don’t try to pick 'em up. They’re killers!
Actually, we’ve had similar problems with argyle rats around here (it probably doesn’t help that my yard and my brother-in-law’s, two doors down, have about 800 linear feet of dry-laid stone wall between them. We’re talking rodent condo here).
My attitude to tomatoes is such that, so far as I’m concerned, the argyle rats can dig up the whole vine and drag it in to their hole. Wagimoko and her mother, however, actually like tomatoes, and took steps to protect their valued plants.
The step that they took, unfortunately, was rat traps.
This persisted for awhile, but petered out when I declined to get involved (typically, my mother-in-law would say, “There’s been a chipmunk lying dead in that trap for three days in the August sun; would you get rid of it?” “No,” I would reply; “is there anything else I can refuse to do for you?”).
For a year or so, our cat (who’s named “Patches”, although I’ve taken to calling her Nezumi-chan ) would catch them. Several she actually killed (and once threw up bits of one on my kitchen floor); others she’d leave, stiff and motionless, on the patio, and then come in to get a treat for offing another rodent. After a few minutes the chipmunk would open one eye, see that the cat was gone, and race back to its hole. Nezumi-chan has been retired, however, and is now a strictly indoors cat.
Ok, if you feel that way, next time you can be the chipmunk and I’ll wear the ranger hat. Just remember to be gentle when you’re nibbling on my “thumb”.
In the spirit of previous chipmunk threads and with yet more apologies to Warren Zevon:
Gardners, Guns and Fox Piss
Well, I went out to the garden
The way I always do
How was I to know
It was full of chipmunks, too.
I was digging my tomatoes
They took a little nip
Send gardners, guns and fox piss
Dad, get them out of this
I’m the innocent crop grower
Somehow I got stuck
Between the plant and a chipmunk
And I’m down on my luck
And I’m down on my luck
And I’m down on my luck
Now I’m hiding in the woodshed
I’m a desperate man
Send gardners, guns and fox piss
The 'munk has hit the plant
A hungry, predatory cat will solve the problem quickly but after she’s dispatched …er frightened away the chipmunks you’ll need to have something else for her to kill to keep her happy. Do you have other rodents that need “frightening”.
My tomato plants up on my deck were producing well until those damn chipmunks discovered them. They attack everything and I have to pick the tomatoes while they’re still unripe, before the chipmunks get em. Now they’re even nibbling on my green peppers. I wouldn’t mind it so much if they’d just eat what they spoil and leave some stuff unspoiled for me.
Hi everyone! New to the board here (well, new to posting…LURKER ALTERT )
You OP made me laugh. I’ve never seen a chipmunk so I still have the “cuddly Alvin and Simon” stereotype running through my mind. “Hey Alvin, lets take a bite out of all of them so the lady won’t take them away!” hehe…
Maybe one day a chipmunk will visit my yard to for a snack (although they might turn into rottweiler snacks) I’m not even sure if they are native to this area. On another note, I’ve heard that south-east Texas has moles, but I’ve never seen one of those critters either.
) would catch them. Several she actually killed (and once threw up bits of one on my kitchen floor); others she’d leave, stiff and motionless, on the patio, and then come in to get a treat for offing another rodent. After a few minutes the chipmunk would open one eye, see that the cat was gone, and race back to its hole. Nezumi-chan has been retired, however, and is now a strictly indoors cat.
)
so I still have the “cuddly Alvin and Simon” stereotype running through my mind. “Hey Alvin, lets take a bite out of all of them so the lady won’t take them away!” hehe…