Expert: C.L. Fornari - 6/9/2008

Question
I live in Ontario, Canada, in a city called Oshawa (about 20 miles east of Toronto). I am in a 1st floor apartment with a small backyard. I planted some marigolds a few days ago, some are the really tiny yellow ones and the others are a little bigger ball-type flower in yellow. All the flowers have disappeared. We suspect the squirrels have eaten them but have never heard of this before. Could this be true?? or could it be birds?? Appreciate any suggestions you could give me to keep whoever it is away and let the flowers grow. Thanks so much.

Answer
Dianne,
Well the good news is that if you pinch off the first top flower that all marigolds make it immediately makes them bushier and ultimately leads to more flowers....not that the critter that did this knew this technique!

I've seen squirrels AND birds take flowers off plants. Who knows why! To repel squirrels sprinkle some ground cayenne pepper over the plants. For birds, laying a light cloth such as tulle or floating row cover (available at garden centers) over the plants for a few days will do the trick. This will do it for squirrels too and once the plants start growing (in seven to ten days) you can take the fabric off. I've also seen success with two stakes tied at either end of a row and a string strung across, about two feet above the plants - aluminum pie tins are strung along this string so that they hang just above the plants. Because they are light weight and blow around in the breeze they scare critters off.
I hope this helps!
C.L.