RADIO TRANSCRIPT
Date: May 13, 2020
Agent: Donna Teasley

Hello, this is Donna Teasley, Horticulture Agent with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension, Burke Center.

Now that the strawberries are getting ripe in home gardens all over Burke County, the problem of keeping the pests away until you can pick the ripe berries is the next challenge. Humans aren’t the only ones who love the taste of a fresh red strawberry and uninvited pickers don’t take a simple “leave my berries alone” to heart. The list of pests is long and includes birds, racoons, squirrels, slugs,
earwigs, and sap beetles. Sometimes the family dog can even develop a fondness for a ripe berry.

One of the best methods for hanging on to your crop is exclusion. Drape chicken wire over the bed and the birds will be kept at bay. Racoons and squirrels however will just crawl under the wire. Making a frame using PVC pipe and wire or netting does a good job and can be weighted down for those critters that want to crawl under. Pie pans, loud noises and repellants are very temporary, working for only a short time.

As for slugs and earwigs, beer in a shallow bowl will attract slugs and drown them at the same time, while rolled up newspapers laid in the strawberry patch will attract earwigs. As for Fido, maybe an extra dog biscuit or two will help.

This is Donna Teasley with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension, Burke Center. If you would like more information about this program, you can call us at 764-9480.