THE SMALL BIRD PEST.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19726, 17 September 1929, Page 13

THE SMALL BIRD PEST.

TO.THE EDITOR 0» THB PMS9. Sir,—Tt is now near the time when the email birds start in to strip off the fruit buds from apple trees and other fruits. Each year it has become worse in my orchard, and in hundreds of other orchards also, and it does not matter what you spray with. Last ytar 1 lost almost the whole of the ciops off about 80 trees. From the correspondence in the paper, "Gardening Illustrated." I see they are troubled in their gardens and orchards in England also. The Kent Research Station, says spraying with lime sulphur will stop the birds from destroying the buds. However, that has no effect here, and I always spray my trees at the cluster bud stage, and last year I sprayed at t.he green tip stage, also, but without effect. However, a Mr Frank Burton writes after years of running around with the gun; and-still losing half his fruit. This last 7 season he cut up tin canisters three inchos long and one inch wide, punched a small hole through an end of the tin, tied a piece of string through the hole, and fastened the string near. the ends of the branches on the fruit trees three or four pieces per tree. Some larger would no doubt require more. He states not a bud was destroyed, the bright pieces of tin dangling about on the branches frightening the birds away. The tin must be bright. Years ago I tried white bottles tied to branches to frighten blackbirds, etc., away when the fruits were ripening. These bottles certainly had a deterring effect but to do several acres of orchards with bottles was too costly I advise readers to try the strips of tin and save the crops.— Yours, etc., GEORGE LEE. Templeton, September loth, 1929.