[Beetroot queen]

While i am not in the cat brigade as you called it i do own a cat, so what do you want the planet to do murder them all so they dont poop on the veg patch, seriously i dont like cows either they ruin my view and they stink. 

Believe me if i saw my cat doing what cats do i would pick up after her but i cant follow her around all day long and apart from sticking a cork up her backside i am not sure what the answer is. Life is stressfull enough without having a go on here about something that cant be fixed ? Thats why i suggested not going down that path.

Personally i dont have enough time in the day to argue, i have beetroot to sow.  have a lovely evening

[Dave Mack]

Luckily, we don't have any cats around here anymore.  The last 2 moved last year! 

Yeah ok Annie ... i bet there under here http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=106279.0   

[davejg]

If you can lay hands on one a super soaker great for cats 2 direct hits and they wont be back for a long while. High pressure hose is good as well. If you have an outside tap a lawn sprinkler on a timer set for the shortest possible time will send them on their way to somewhere safer, saw it happen one night it was as funny as the cat finding the balloon underground 

[hubballi]

Dog owners pick up after them ? really ? You want to come round to where I live and see for yourself. When we go for our walk along the canal, through the fields you don't have time to look at the view because you are too busy watching your feet for stepping in the most offensive smelling muck known to man. Not the dog's fault I know. Some owners are even thoughtful enough to bag it up but  their brain doesn't get to the next stage because they hang them in tree branches for the fairies to take away. Oh and my peace in the garden is spoilt by neighbors yappy dogs who just bark intermittently through the day resulting in my having to wear personal headphones with music. I was at an event the other day and someone had a boxer type dog so ugly with  slowly falling globules of slobber oozing from it's mouth that I just couldn't see the merit in having it. The poor creature has been bred to be like that which is a shame. Yuk !

[seaside]

I don't  really want allotment as I like my own space and find it a bit of a distraction having to speak to other folk, especially if I am not up to talking (I suffer depression from time to time which is part of the problem) . I'm not a very social creature really but I like it here of course ;-)

The cat is out at night so slept on it when my wife found it this morning. Their house is up for sale so perhaps the problem will be gone soon. I didn't know that the onion fly went underneath 

It may do you the world of good, and would give you a hide out. I am rather anti social in person but you dont have to talk to people just a wave to acknowledge they are there is often all that is needed. You'd be able to grow so much more. 

I agree with you whole heartedly BQ. We tried growing vegetables in a walled city garden for years ... an absolute failure for all sorts of reasons, apart from the odd crop of broad beans and traditional garden herbs. The undoubted ubiquitous city cat, one of which resides in this home, were small change compared to the Biblical behemoth, the slug. Hence the move to an allotment, leaving the garden to do  what it does best ... small trees, bamboo for the allotment, a few flowers and a bit of a natural woodland feel with self seeding natives like foxgloves, wild blue duranium, forget-me-nots, bluebells, tall daisies, poppies and the odd shrubs that like the garden and it's aspect. Best gardening move I ever made.
Hubbali, I'm an old fashioned Taoist deep down, and note your comments earlier in this thread. It's quite clear you have failure after failure in gardening terms. I think the juxtaposition of your gardening and the planet we all love, is trying to tell you something. Some things are just not meant to be. If you wants some success in growing food, change something.

[Aunt Sally]

,i hate cats,what gives them the right to come into my garden and dig everything up?? to me cats are as much of a problem as slug/snails/aphids,just another pest so why cant we talk about them.

Because people who don't like cats seem to have to rant and rave about them and they cannot carry a sensible debate about the topic. 

So no more ranting and raving please 

[GrannieAnnie]

Luckily, we don't have any cats around here anymore.  The last 2 moved last year! 

Yeah ok Annie ... i bet there under here http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=106279.0   

Dave!  How very dare you!      No, I like cats.  When my Sooty Cat died, I buried her under the blackcurrant bush that she liked to hide behind!

The 2 I was referring to lived 2 doors away and the white one was always in our garden.  But if the dog saw her, she didn't stay in our garden long!   

But the neighbours moved away and luckily took the cats with them! 

[al78]

I feel for you. I'm surrounded by cat people who think it's hilarious when their furry, purry, little friends dig up your garden and pee on your plants and lawns. There should be a law brought out top make cat owners more responsible. Owners of other types of pets are responsible for keeping them under control.

I do completely understand why people dislike cats but these threads often end up very heated so best not go down that path. I do have a cat and she is a law unto herself but apart from putting her on a lead and carrying a poop bag around i actually cant do much more.  we love cat posts really 

this is what annoys me, "best not go down that path" !!!!! why not,its a problem most gardeners face at sometime.ive had it this year as has lots of people in the street.funnily enough it stopped a couple of weeks ago and I haven't seen the 5 cats responsible for a while. im fed up that cat owners can get away with it whilst dog owners pick up after them.yes,i hate cats,what gives them the right to come into my garden and dig everything up?? to me cats are as much of a problem as slug/snails/aphids,just another pest so why cant we talk about them.no doubt this thread will be closed now,so not to upset the cat brigade.

Cats do have a legal right to roam (although cat owners have a legal duty to take reasonable care to ensure their cats don't cause injury to people or damage to property). In any case, they are animals, and as such have no concept of your property rights. If you are having problems then I can recommend laying brambles around the areas you don't want them digging, that seemed to work for me.

[archibtbm]

we place curry plants in pots around the beds at home and sprinkle curry powder on the freshly dug areas to deter cats.  It seems to work as cats hate the smell.

[hubballi]

Thanks for that, I have a curry plant in a pot and it is very fast growing. Will try that. We use cuttings off it for the wardrobe to stop moths.

[sunshineband]

Just catching up after Hubballi's first post on here yesterday and it sounds like there are lots of reasonably priced attractive option for deterring the neighbour's cat from sleeping on the net cover.

The domed top/sloped top with the net pulled tight and weighted at the edges would certainly work, and the odd squirt of water helps deter unwanted cat visitors too, as does the scented repellent.

Using a hose pipe sections instead of blue water pipe is an excellent idea, so I hope that helps you Hubs 

[New shoot]

It has gone a bit here, there and everywhere this thread 

There are loads of good ideas and as I originally said, sagging netting will just make cats want to climb on it.  If you stretch it tight, they don't want to know.  Believe me, I am surrounded by cats at home, so anything I grow there is netted or otherwise protected from our feline friends 

I like my own company as well at times, but I also enjoy interacting with others.  As with everything, there is a balance to be found

[stainesbloke]

I've tried every method of trying to persuade cats not to frequent my garden. All the propriotary powders and gels. They dont work. Pepper and chilli powder. They don't work. Citrus peel. That doesn't work. Those things you tie into your shrubs. They don't work. Electronic cat scarers. They don't work. Bottles with ammonia in buried in strategic places with just the neck showing. They don't work. Curry plants dotted about. They don't work. Metal cats. They don't work. Pieces of hosepipe laid around to resemble snakes. They don't work. All beds netted. They don't work.

Just how much messing about and expense does one have to go to just to discourage someone else's pet to stay off your property?

Best deterrent is water! Especially sprayed out of a hose or gun. My cat used to use the next door neighbours garden as a toilet til they started chucking water at him. I wasn't overjoyed but I'd also be annoyed at a cat destroying my garden. Otherwise not much else you can do apart from net properly.

[A Reyt Tayty]

I don't think water will deter this one. It sits outside and prowls round even when it's bucketing down.

Plus, if it sees you, it's off like greased proverbial before you can get anywhere near it, so getting near enough to use water is not an option.

[mumofstig]

How about a few of these dotted around - not cheap though!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Defenders-STV414-Animal-Squirrel-Repeller/dp/B003TLA4FS