[Living in Hope]

A couple of months ago I got a field in which I'm creating a vegatable plot. I'm still learning what the challenges are, but I can't work out all the invaders.

I put in some drawf french beans and the leaves were eaten, then a week later rabbits found the plot and polished off the lot. I've since put in a fence and put in some runner beans. I put some slug pellets in but agian the leaves are being eaten - the rabbits don't appear to have got in - no droppings - is this some sort of bird?

I have also planted shallots and onions under netting. Within a few days every one of the shallots had disappeared, again no rabbit droppings and now the onions have been eaten - the netting is still in place - any ideas what is eating all my plants?

As well as rabbits I have seen evidence of voles/mice, moles, possibly fox and a wide variety of birds. I'm also interested to know what is leaving little piles of perfectly cleaned wild cherry stones.

[shokkyy]

You'd be surprised how much mice can eat, specially if there's a good population of them. They've never touched my onions, but they've certainly gone for peas and beans and fruit. Squirrels are also voracious raiders and extremely clever at getting through/under/over obstacles.  I'd have thought perfectly cleaned cherry stones would be either mice or squirrels. Birds tend to peck at them but don't normally get the whole thing.

[stompy]

Could be deer!

[8doubles]

Sounds like mice hoarding the cherry stones for winter food.Squirrels tend to hide individual food items.

[Brewers]

if you're in a field i would say deer or muntjac. muntjac aren't picky!

[Living in Hope]

Deer are the one pest I don't think I have - with sheep with escapologist tendancies in the next field I'm pretty near a full set otherwise!

If it is mice/voles that's eating the onions - any suggestions?

[shokkyy]

If the mice start to bother my veggie plot, I put out some box traps, catch them and release them a mile away. You always tend to find the population will grow again, they'll start to become a pest again, and you have to reduce the population again, in cycles. It's entirely personal choice whether you use traps to kill or humane traps.