Crows destroying plants

5 years ago

I posted about this last Spring and got a few responses but it's started back up and it is driving me bonkers.
The crows around my house will bite my plants down to the nub, first starting with any buds or flowers they see on the plant and then the leaves and eventually the stems. They seem to focus on smaller plants vs mature plants (or at least I think...example they left larger roses alone but destroyed recently planted roses).
It started in spring with Tulips and Hellebores and then stopped.
It then started back up in late Summer with newly planted roses and has also included Lavender (but not salvia), Hebes (but not parahebes) , violas and violets and probably a few more I'm forgetting. But at the same time they leave many of my other plants alone (camelia, peony, veronica, Hygrangea, Daphne, clematis, gardenia, etc).
I live in the city and this doesn't seem to be effecting any of my neighbors yards. It was suggested earlier that it might be boredom, fun and games. I'm just as a loss and I spend a lot of time and money on my garden so I'm once here again asking for ideas in how to get them to stop.

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Comments (6)

JoJo (Nevada 9A)
5 years ago
Have you tried a fancy, large bird bath to keep them entertained? It will also keep them hydrated (sometimes they are just thirsty and go for "moist" young plants and flowers).

It worked for me with squirrels in my veg garden, but they were not as smart as crows :)
getgoing100_7b_nj
5 years ago
if it were a covered balcony I would have suggested a net to keep the birds out but with a yard you may want to give them alternative feeding options. There are cheap seeds available for all kinds of birds including crows. Hopefully if you give them both water and food they will leave your plants alone.
Hutchae84 Zone 8b/PNW
Original Author
5 years ago
I don't think it is a thirst issue. I live in Seattle and they seem to do this more in our rainy season (fall-spring) vs the summer. it's been pouring here lately so we have lots of water sources. I was thiking it could possibly be them eating aphids? (if crows eat aphids) They aren't eating the plants, since they leave everything on the ground. I could leave food out for them but part of me is hesitant to do that as well, we have so many in our neighborhood. A neighbor a few houses away feeds them too so I know they have a food source close by. But I don't know, it could possibly be food related so I could try that
callirhoe123
5 years ago
Make wire cages for the younger plants they prefer.
getgoing100_7b_nj
5 years ago
They might be gathering material for their nest?

"...crow nests are made mostly of pencil-width twigs. ... After the bulk of construction is complete, they'll line the cup of the nest with soft materials like grass, tree bark, moss, flowers, paper or fur." Everything you want to know about crow nests | (corvidresearch.blog)
HU-855597301
last year
last modified: last year
I feel your pain! I have the same problem. I live north of Seattle, and lately the crows have copped off the flowers on my hollyhocks, echinacea, and yarrow flowers, just as if they took a pair of scissors to the stems. I wake up to find my beautiful flowers cut off and scattered on the ground. They also dig up my potted daylilies and throw them on the ground several times a day, while leaving all sorts of other flowers completely untouched. They snipped off my echinacea and yarrow blossoms before I could even get the plants in the ground! And contrary to some suggestions, I do have multiple birdbaths and put out various kinds of foods such as dried mealworms & seed/nut/fruit blends, as well as peanuts in the shell, so they’re not doing it for a lack of food & water. For the longest time I thought maybe it was the squirrels, but nope, it’s the crows! I haven’t found a solution, either. Sigh.