Protecting Grapes

Growing juicy grapes could be inviting little animals into the garden for a feast. Julitt/Shutterstock

Q: We planted grapevines a couple of years ago, and they are growing some clusters of grapes. Unfortunately, birds are eating them. We tried a big net over the whole area, but the birds seem to find a way to get in anyway. Any suggestions on how to keep the birds out?

A: You are lucky to only have birds eating your grapes; raccoons, possums, and other mammals all like grapes, too. Netting draped over the whole vine can work very well, but it needs to be pinned down to the ground to keep birds from going under it. There are wider rolls for grapevines that work better than the standard bird netting. If the netting is too short to reach the ground, tie it shut across the bottom to keep the birds out.

If the grapes are mostly hanging at the same height under the wires, then installing the netting from the bottom up can work. Pull it up from the bottom on both sides and tie it together above the grapes. The leaves and vines are above the netting in this case. Make sure to close any gaps.

If you only have a few grapevines, you could cover them in tulle fabric or garden row cover fabric. These materials will also help keep out Japanese beetles if they are a problem in your area.

I have found that for just a few vines, I can bag each cluster into an organza gift bag. The bags come in several sizes and many colors. The gauzy bags have a drawstring top that makes them easy to slip over the cluster and pull the top shut. I don’t even have to tie it; it just stays in place. I also use the bags on apples, pears, and cherries. Some fruits are close enough together to have two or more in one bag. I can wrap several blueberry clusters, leaves and all, into a larger bag. The bags keep birds out and many mammals, but some mammals pull the cluster and bag off and then chew on the bags for a while.

Paper lunch bags can be stapled over the grape clusters and last even with several rains. They do block you from seeing if the grapes are ready for harvest.

All of the devices that work on sounds or being seen will have limited success. Birds see many shiny items every day, so shiny ribbons and pinwheels will not work for long. The same goes for sound effects. They hear all of the urban sounds all the time, so a simple windchime hanging in the grapes is useless. Unless you can make a really loud noise, you won’t scare birds. A loud noise is more likely to scare your neighbors.

The vast majority of birds don’t have a sense of smell, so smelly sprays won’t work on birds, but they might work on mammals. Bobcat and coyote urine bottles are available, and they do seem to help keep some mammals from climbing my fruit trees.

Courtesy of Jeff Rugg

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