I think Mice are eating my buds!

unixpirate

Pitty Party
Ponytail said:
I have 3 tomato plants and 3 pepper plants. I have been trying to figure out why the damn things aren't bearing any fruit. I've had LOTS of buds on all of them, but so far have only seen one tomato.

So, I was looking VERY closely at all of these plants daily, this week, and have noticed that the leaves and buds are slowly disappearing from the bottom up. They are being chewed off. I can see tiny teeth marks. That's the only evidence. There is nothing on the ground. Just disappearing leaves/branches and buds from teh bottom up with tiny teeth marks left behind on teh remainder of teh plants.

I have one pepper plant that hasn't grown since I planted it, but its still alive. Everytime it sprouts a new leaf or branch, its gone within a day.

Any ideas what I can do? spicy pepper spray or somthing? I hate to put mice/rat poison out there, cuz i don't want to smell dead animals out there or in my shed, not in this heat.

PT I am not having problems with my tomater's, but my peppers and bell peppers are starting to flower, then they are GONE!. Little shreds of leaves on the ground below them. The stems are bare at the bottom end and fine at the top. Kinda wierd. :confused:
 

Ponytail

New Member
unixpirate said:
PT I am not having problems with my tomater's, but my peppers and bell peppers are starting to flower, then they are GONE!. Little shreds of leaves on the ground below them. The stems are bare at the bottom end and fine at the top. Kinda wierd. :confused:

Same as me! But my 'maters are bare at the bottom too. But at least there's someone else that's seeing the same thing I am. It's starting to piss me off. I thought maybe my soil was bad and the damn things just weren't growing, till I started looking a little closer!
 

unixpirate

Pitty Party
Ponytail said:
Same as me! But my 'maters are bare at the bottom too. But at least there's someone else that's seeing the same thing I am. It's starting to piss me off. I thought maybe my soil was bad and the damn things just weren't growing, till I started looking a little closer!


I thought the same about the soil, watering to much, something! I'm like wtf Ethel?
My garden is out front of my house next the porch, so the critters would have to come all the way from the back of the house (woods) to the front. No deer here I don't think.
I just took some pics. Here ya go. Directly in the center of the pic. 'maters in the back. Cucumbers to the left. Can't really see them.
 

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Ponytail

New Member
Vince said:
Had lots of both peppers and tomatoes until the heat hit. :shrug:

I got one damn tomato all season. That's it! effin mice ought to be nice and fat by the time winter comes.

Now that I think about it, where I planted mine, is right next to an old tree stump, and i have noticed that somthing has made a home underneath that stump. New hole with lots of dirt pushed out in front of it. Been wondering what that could be...never even considered that what that could be is what I've been feeding for the last few months. :lol: :banghead:
 

MMDad

Lem Putt
Ponytail said:
I got one damn tomato all season. That's it! effin mice ought to be nice and fat by the time winter comes.

Now that I think about it, where I planted mine, is right next to an old tree stump, and i have noticed that somthing has made a home underneath that stump. New hole with lots of dirt pushed out in front of it. Been wondering what that could be...never even considered that what that could be is what I've been feeding for the last few months. :lol: :banghead:
Last night, after we ate three tomatoes, I told the wife that we might have one ready today. I got home from work and five were ready. It must suck to have mice.
 

Sharon

* * * * * * * * *
Staff member
PREMO Member
Ponytail said:
I got one damn tomato all season.
I know the feeling. I waited all year for my Oriental lilies to bloom, only to have Mr. Big Buck come over and eat the buds as they were maturing. :banghead:

I can give you some homegrown tomatoes (and jalapenos) if you like. I wait all year for these too because I never buy store tomatoes.
 

Ponytail

New Member
MMDad said:
Last night, after we ate three tomatoes, I told the wife that we might have one ready today. I got home from work and five were ready. It must suck to have mice.

It does. lil creepy vermin theifs!

BUT, it figures...after never having heard of cut worms or whatver that big-azzed green worm thing was that RR posted, I was out last night with the dog in the back yard, 'bout 10pm and on the phone w the g/f and eating dinner (good multi-tasking, eh?) I glance over at my 'maters, and in mid conversation said "WHAT THE FUG". I had a green stick where a tomato plant once stood with ONE leaf and some buds left. I walked over REALLY quick like, which scared the crap out of the dog. That one leaf that was left, was one of those dayum worms! sum of in itch! Sucker was bout as big around as my thumb and longer than my middle finger! Pile o worm turds on the ground that would have made a rabbit proud. The entire top half of the plant was gone. Now it looks like I've been doing some wierd japanese plant trimming on one of my 'mater plants. Dang thing is bare at the bottom, sticks at the top, and perfect leaves, buds, branches and sprouts in the middle. It is about the ugliest lookin plant I have ever seen.

So, now I'm thinking I got mice AND worms! I thoroughly checked the plants with a flashlight, and found no more worms, but sprayed anyway with the Safer spray.

This morning, there hasn't been anymore damage to the plants. But I will be visiting Lowes on the way home to load up on enough chemicals to kill every bug within a 5 mile radius, and possibly the neighbors cats too. Figured they're useless to me anyway... Unless cats don't like vegetarian mice, I don't know.
 

Ponytail

New Member
Sharon said:
I know the feeling. I waited all year for my Oriental lilies to bloom, only to have Mr. Big Buck come over and eat the buds as they were maturing. :banghead:

I can give you some homegrown tomatoes (and jalapenos) if you like. I wait all year for these too because I never buy store tomatoes.

Thanks! I appreciate it. I do buy store tomatoes, but have been savoring the memory of the taste of that one tomato that I so proudly grew, for about two weeks now, just waiting for another one. :lol:

I have jalepenos growing in a beer glass. I should be good with those in another couple of weeks. I wish I was kidding. I never thought it would keep growing like that...but it is. At least I know I don't have mice in the house. :lol:
 

rack'm

Jaded
Ponytail said:
But I will be visiting Lowes on the way home to load up on enough chemicals to kill every bug within a 5 mile radius, and possibly the neighbors cats too. Figured they're useless to me anyway... Unless cats don't like vegetarian mice, I don't know.


:killingme :killingme
 

morganj614

New Member
Ponytail said:
It does. lil creepy vermin theifs!

BUT, it figures...after never having heard of cut worms or whatver that big-azzed green worm thing was that RR posted, I was out last night with the dog in the back yard, 'bout 10pm and on the phone w the g/f and eating dinner (good multi-tasking, eh?) I glance over at my 'maters, and in mid conversation said "WHAT THE FUG". I had a green stick where a tomato plant once stood with ONE leaf and some buds left. I walked over REALLY quick like, which scared the crap out of the dog. That one leaf that was left, was one of those dayum worms! sum of in itch! Sucker was bout as big around as my thumb and longer than my middle finger! Pile o worm turds on the ground that would have made a rabbit proud. The entire top half of the plant was gone. Now it looks like I've been doing some wierd japanese plant trimming on one of my 'mater plants. Dang thing is bare at the bottom, sticks at the top, and perfect leaves, buds, branches and sprouts in the middle. It is about the ugliest lookin plant I have ever seen.
So, now I'm thinking I got mice AND worms! I thoroughly checked the plants with a flashlight, and found no more worms, but sprayed anyway with the Safer spray.
This morning, there hasn't been anymore damage to the plants. But I will be visiting Lowes on the way home to load up on enough chemicals to kill every bug within a 5 mile radius, and possibly the neighbors cats too. Figured they're useless to me anyway... Unless cats don't like vegetarian mice, I don't know.

Oh crap, now I remember as a kid we saw those huge green crawlies come out at night. I used to have nightmares :lol: I blocked that memory :lmao:
 

Ponytail

New Member
RoseRed said:
Told ya so.

you didn't tell me nothing. You were wrong till last night. You used some wierd worm voodoo just to proove a point, din't ya! I still have mice dang it!
 

RoseRed

American Beauty
PREMO Member
Ponytail said:
you didn't tell me nothing. You were wrong till last night. You used some wierd worm voodoo just to proove a point, din't ya! I still have mice dang it!
I cast a spell... :lmao:
 
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