The best 3 ways to stop birds from pecking holes in your tomatoes – balloons, tape and netting. The birds love our cherry tomatoes and peas so here’s how we kicked them out. These methods work great for protecting corn and strawberries from birds too!
Tell The Birds To Go Away
If we’re not battling rats that are eating our corn, then we’re dealing with birds. If the birds aren’t after our baby bean and pea seedlings then they’re pecking at our cherry tomatoes. You might not see the birds (they’re sneaky sometimes) but you can definitely spot their calling card on your tomatoes.
We grow beautiful cherry tomatoes, so pretty that the birds can’t keep their eyes or beaks off them. You will often spot tomatoes on the ground, pecked away from the plant, or they’ll still be on the plant with beak marks all over the ripe tomato.
Below is our top 3 ways of keeping birds away from our tomatoes, but these methods also work for strawberries, corn and peas too. I hope this helps yo grow lots of tomatoes so you can make an endless supply of stewed tomatoes and cherry tomato sauce!
Best 3 Ways to Stop Birds From Eating Plants
Eye Balloons. These terror eye balloons work really well for keeping birds away. We place them in between our rows of tomato plants, or hang them above our pea seedlings to keep them away.
The balloons work because they imitate the eyes of predators, scaring the birds away. When they blow in the wind they’re even more terrifying. These are great because they are easy to put up and take down, and last for endless seasons.
Scare Away Tape. Reflective tape works great for keeping birds away. The birds don’t like the reflective look, or the sound of the crinkle when the wind blows them. Simply cut off a few pieces and tie them near the tomatoes. Because our cherry tomatoes are close to the ground, we tie them lower on the trellis or support twine, as well as higher up, so we scare the birds away when they are both flying and hopping on the ground.
I have heard from other gardeners that scare away tape also works for keeping woodpeckers away if that’s your problem!
We found that deflated metallic mylar balloons and metallic pinwheels work good too. They have both sound and movement to help scare the birds away. So after the next birthday party make sure to save the metallic balloons for your garden!
Netting. Netting works great, but depending on how many tomatoes you’re growing, and how large the area, it might not be the easiest to apply, not to mention it makes picking tomatoes more difficult.
Netting works great for us for our bean and pea seedlings and strawberries, as we only need a small amount when they’re a few inches high.
I hope these ways help you fighting off the birds! Enjoy your tomatoes!
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