[Sparkie]

Can anyone help??  I had about 60 Leeks in my Polytunnel last week, waiting to be planted out in a few weeks time.  As we are mainly weekend gardeners, we live in Lancashire and our Lottie is in Cumbria where we have a cottage (which we hope to retire to next year), I only noticed on Saturday that every one of them had been eaten - presumably by mice.  They were on a high shelf in the tunnel.  

I decided to put my Peas out into the Cold Frame, closed the lid on them and fully expected them to be safe there.  Horror of horrors, on Sunday morning I discovered that all the tops had been nibbled off those too.

Traps are no good as we aren't there in the week to empty them, and the speed at which my crops are vanishing, I would need a truck load.

Any suggestions as to poisons etc.  I am loathe to go down this track, but it is looking as if needs must.  I am dreading going up on Friday and discovering more devastation!!

Sparkie  

[DD.]

I'm moving this from the Welcome forum to Grow Your Own, where the question is more appropriate & may be viewed by more folk with knowledge of the problem.

[gobs]

You can buy mouse trap real cheap some 50-70p a go and re-usable, poison is much more expensive and a real long life toxin in the environment, including the waterways, which eventually supply your kitchen sink, too.

I should think, you can empty on a weekly basis, don't you think they all instantly going run into them.

[richyrich7]

Hi Sparkie try  this

keep it dry and away from wild birds and small pets, don't suppose you keep pet mice but ...   Anything that can break wind should be ok with this.

[Aidy]

Are you 100% positive its mice? I know they will go for peas but I have never heard of them going for leeks, I am not for 1 minute suggesting they dont but never heard of it.

[dumpling]

Sounds very curious.

Not sure but doesn't sound like mice. In my garden they tend to eat
the peas and beans themselves, but not the tops and never leeks!

My pet hate is slugs and little ones are everywhere unless trays and
pots and soils is all clean. And they can dissappear a whole sowing of
seedlings overnight.

Anyway just my tuppenceworth!

[Sparkie]

Thanks for all your replies and suggestions.  I am nearly certain that it is mice as they definitely ate the Beetroot last year - saw the teethmarks!  Haven't seen any evidence of slugs yet this year.  

Will try a few traps and, if I do go down the poison line, it will be placed in the tunnel, high up on the shelf where the leeks were - no chance of anything else getting at it as the tunnel is enclosed.

Sparkie

[dereklane]

I had a problem with them eating my leeks (when there is nothing else about outside, they'll eat anything), but now I have mouse traps in the greenhouse they've been left alone (due to the eaters no longer being with us).

If your area is anything like here, spring has hardly touched us, so they're probably hungry.