feeling dishearted

Know exactly how you feel. Loaded up at the garden centre a few days ago, spent a small fortune as desperate for some colour in the garden. Next morning woke up and all newly planted stuff had been eaten, just left with chewed stalks. Several lovely colourful lupins and lots of others just gone, think maybe foxes or deer. Not rabbits as some of plants quite tall and not bent over at all. Really disheartening and what a waste of money and back breaking effort.

The sparrows pecked off loads of new leaf buds from one of our little plum trees. DH bought them last year. (Not the sparrows, the plum trees). As soon as he noticed, he put netting over it to keep the birds off. It has put out its leaves now, but the protection stays.

PamelaJ1

Did they shoot JR?

Julia I was also going to suggest pigeons. They’ve had our Dallas.

We have also had problems with small mice nibbling plants, especially around the tops of Carrots, also sometimes we get wild rabbits helping themselves as well, although they tend to prefare the leafy tops rather than the roots themselves, and Pigeons can strip peas off the vines to an extent that there is very little left for us, and not worth growing Tbh.

I have some plants with very carefully chewed leaves. Not snails but leafcutter bees. They seem to cut quite neat half- moon shapes from the edges.
In my garden they seem to prefer thicker more glossy leaves

I try to garden organically and use nematodes if I can, but I put out some little plants and in the morning only one was left. I grew some more and put down slug baits☹️☹️.

Yes, it is annoying. Best thing to do is to get something to take their place as soon as. You can buy plug plants online, still time for them to grow. Maybe put down some netting until they are big enough to fend for themselves? Here its the pigeons that have a good feast, oh and the slugs of course.

It’s really upsetting, isn’t it? There are some plants that I only put in planters, surrounded by organic slug pellets until they get larger.

My marigolds have been eaten by ants, they’re also partial to pansies which I love but won’t grow anymore.

I know the feeling Travelsafar.
I experimented with a carnation cutting that I literally stuck into a pot last year. Last week lo and behold after it had taken root and grown, with a bud ready to open into a cream and pink tinted bloom----it was eaten by a snail---the whole of the flower. I cursed it to kingdom come.

Frost

I grew pansies from seed and crows have destroyed them. I think they were rummaging in the soil for food.

The blackbirds keep throwing the soil onto the path as they rummage but I'll forgive the blackbirds.

ps due to climate change.

Very disappointing travelsafar.
I've noticed over the last few years, in SW France where we used to live, and now in NE England, there's an increase in some insects. and a reduction of others ( eg fireflies).
I don't do much gardening now but guess gardeners will have to make more use of under glass.