To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Bagging apples and deer
Date: Sun, 27 Jun 2010 23:36:37 -0400
On Jun 27, 2010, at 10:22 PM, Karen Kellogg wrote:
>
> Does putting a plastic baggie, or a nylon footie, on a growing apple
> discourage the deer from eating them? I have some apples developing from
> some trees I have not yet tasted and I would like the opportunity to do so.
>
> Karen
Dunno about nylon footies, but deer seem perfectly happy to eat apples in
ziplock plastic bags. After the first couple, they learn to leave the bag
behind. I bagged apples two years ago, and early in the season I found
chewed-up baggies. Later on I found undamaged baggies on the ground. I'm
pretty sure I had a raccoon, too, as something ate _half_ and apple and then
neatly closed up the bag when it was done! But a lot more apples disappeared
than could have been eaten by a raccoon, so I'm pretty sure it was mostly
deer.