Rodents are so annoying! Yesterday I discovered damage from the voles on my favourite lilac. My lilies are fine, at least for now.

bdgardener - How many lilies got dug up? All of them?

Couldn't we set up a bait station now? Once the rodents have discovered good stuff to eat, won't they stay?

I'd like a bait station where they can't get out again, though. Kind of like when you catch wasps. Is there such a thing, or do we need to come up with a creative idea?

Lilies aren't poisonous to rodents. Mine got eaten one winter too, and my roses were barked. It was the last time I used flax bales. I noticed that fall that the straw had a lot of flax seeds still in it, and I'm sure it attracted the mice. Since then I've used fall leaves and haven't had a problem.

It's a small consolation but if you leave the lily remains you will probably get small plants from the pieces, and in a few years they will recover.

I have hundreds of lilies, so they couldn't possible get them all, but is sure is annoying. I'am going to pot up what I can find and put them in the nursery bed.

These critters are bad!
Remember, when snow is deep, voles love it even more, it's so toasty for them all winter and making babies!

I briefly checked my nursery and orchard with hundreds of tree and it
seems all is fine, even I haven't put out bait stations this winter. This only because I had them in check for the last several years and been seeing 3 or 4 cats too. I also spry my trees, [trunk] in the orchard, [not nursery] with latex paint, this helps too.

I got a call from someone I sold apple trees to, he said the mice destroyed several trees.... I've been telling people all the time that you need protection, otherwise you might loose them one year.

Konrad, just wondering, I have seen people put corrugated plastic piping around trees - does this protect against rodents too or just weed trimmers?

In the years since we've had the farm, I've lost about 6 lilies. Always wondered why, now I know. I've ordered new bulbs but since I don't want to lose them I'm planning to make a wire cage for them when I plant them. I think if I take a ball, softball size, drape the wire over it and form it into a ball, put the bulb in before I close it, I might have a chance. Do you think that might work? I've heard of people using strawberry baskets but I don't think that would work to well. Marg

See the damage at our place on my blog.
Cherry plums, Nankings and even Edible Blue Honeysuckle.

Here is a link that might be useful: A Prairie Journal

>>I have seen people put corrugated plastic piping around trees - does this protect against rodents too or just weed trimmers?It does a better job for weed trimmers,.. I did use some weeping tiles, make a cut length way, spread open and put on, I made mine about 16" tall, I heard that mice can still go in sometimes, I still spray trunk with latex, add 1/2 or 2/3 with water and spray with pump sprayer, good for 2 seasons. Mice can go through wire mesh about 3/8 or 1/4" opening.

cmmwiebe....this looks BAD!...sometimes many years of hard work
goes out the window in one winter...too bad!
Moose did some damage to my trees but voles can do allot more.

I just got back in after cutting back my sage plants and cursing the mice! Guess they needed something tasty after killing several shrubs. I wouldn't have minded if they had done it to the garden sage, this one hardly ever makes it thru the winter, but they chose to go after the purple sage. Luckily that one roots wherever the stems touch the ground! Marg

The mice strike again here too. I just put some sweet peas out into the greenhouse to harden off and sure enough there is not one left. Set traps last night and got one. ERRRRR
Cheryl

Oh boy, I know all about the stinking damage mice can do in a greenhouse,
so many little seedling tops gone, and natch, don't they always seem to eat the ones that you wanted most!!!! I've had to move some of the pots into the pumphouse at night, and cover them with old sheets, etc., because of course, there are mice in the pumphouse too... I will have to break down and make some screening of sorts to cover things. Mice and moles, and all those creatures, can't they mind their own business? elsewhere....

With all that snow we had a mice explosion!

This was close!
I let suckers/side shoots grow for one season, it can also help for added protection.
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