Do raccoons eat caladium?
I saw a small raccoon in my yard tonight that was approaching my
plantings. When he saw me, he scurried up the tree! ~Bunny
Bonnie,
You rubber the leaves with alcohol --like isopropyl? Or, what?
If I also change the soil, will it help??
Bunny
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Bonnie Christensen wrote:
Bunny and all,
I have Caladiums and Elephant ears that I had outside last summer which I
brought in in the fall and planted in a large plastic tub. Everything died
back, but the Elephant Ears would send up a shoot and the leaf would unroll
and just as soon as it did it would start to turn yellow/tan and tear or get
holes in it. I nursed it all winter and set it out in the spring. Then I
noticed that it had an infestation of something --couldn't quite tell. So I
rubbed the leaves with alcohol and I stopped. About two weeks ago up came
the pink caladium. But they have large holes in them worse than the
Elephant Ears. I will treat them with the alcohol and see what happens.
This post is more sympathy than help, but I'll let you know if I find
something that helps.
Bonnie C.
Mt.zone 5 Ut. USA
Bonnie,
What kind and what dilution factor was the alcohol you use? I assume you
diluted it with water? Yes? No?
I washed some small black rice-shaped specks from my avocado leaves today. The
mixture I used was 2 orange rinds, which I liquidified in the Osterizer with a
quart of water; fermented overnight; and then strained and mixed into more water
in the morning. So far, they have not come back.
Thanks to whomever suggested using orange rinds! :-)
Bunny
====================
Bonnie Christensen wrote:
Thanks, Bonnie for the information on using the alcohol.
BTW, I don't recall who mentioned it, but I liquefied 2 orange rinds and garlic
in water and with cotton dapped the avocado leaves that were covered on the
underneath side with black rice-like specs. That got rid of them. Until it
rains, and cleans off the leaves, I doubt that they'll be back. Thanks to
whomever.
I've also done some snooping online and in my garden. I did surprise a young
raccoon about to dig my caladium. Since raccoons will eat nearly everything, I
think he or she is part of the answer.
I also wrote to Lon and sent him a JPG or JPEG attachment of the caladium. He
thought that the culprit might be slugs or snails. In a private correspondence,
Lon wrote:
<<...the hole in the picture could be from a slug or snail. You could have one
or two large ones hidden in the soil. This time of year you would most likely
find them very early in the morning, like right at sunrise, while there is
enough dew on the ground to give them the moisture they need. A fat one might
be enough to tear a tender leaf by it's weight. Go out right before or just at
sunrise and look for signs, especially slime trails. Or dig around in the soil
near the plants, any place that might offer cover...>>
Digging a bit further, I found at great article that was in the Journal for
Pesticide Reform on slugs and snails.
I've been a long time member of the National Coalition for Alternatives to
Pesticides, but I tripped across their JPR on line. It really excites me that
key articles are available to everyone. The Journal for Pesticide Reform Index
is at: http://www.eap.mcgill.ca/MagRack/JPR/jpr_ind.htm
Thanks, again, everyone for your help.
Bunny
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Al782@aol.com wrote:
Bunny and all,
Yes, I used regular rubbing alcohol like you would use on a scratch or cut.
I used cotton balls saturated in it and changed them often until I had
covered every leaf top and bottom. I did it late in the evening when it had
cooled off or early morning I forget. Just so it would evaporate without
sunshine on it.
Bonnie C.
Gee! Thanks Lon, :-)
I thought I mentioned that I spied raccoons in the yard earlier. However, with such
a plentifiul number posts to this list, I can understand where that might get
lost.
I'll still keep my eyes peeled for slug and snails, especially since they are among
the varieties of foods raccoons will eat. ''Raccoons are omnivorous and will consume
practically any food item, plant or animal.''
http://www.cws-scf.ec.gc.ca/hww-fap/raccoon/raccoon.html
''Corn, crayfish, fruits, and nuts are preferred, but there is a seasonal shift in
diet depending on availability of food items. During the spring, animal matter,
including invertebrates and insects, makes up the major portion of the diet. Crayfish
are preferred, but muskrats, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl eggs, and freshwater clams
are also consumed. In the summer, plant material, including fruits and nuts, becomes
more important. Wild cherries, gooseberries, elderberries, wild grapes, strawberries,
and garden items such as potatoes and sweet corn are relished. As well, crayfish,
frogs, small fish, turtles, beetle grubs, grasshoppers, earthworms, crickets, and
snails are eaten during the summer.''
In the JPR article, NCAP recommends reducing habitat for slugs and snail, and to use
mulches that are slug irritants such as shredded bark, crushed rock, or cinder.
That would be an easy option, to helping control the coons and the snails or slugs.
Also, I noticed that Wormwood is suggested to be a general insecticide and deters
mice and other rodents, slugs & snails from the garden. I don't have enough light to
grow Wormwood, but do you suppose that if I mixed essential oils of wormwood mixed
with jojoba (and I have no idea of the proportion) and sprayed the mixture over my
plants, that it would deter slugs and snail from my pots?
Lon J. Rombough wrote:
Gee! Thanks Lon, :-)
I thought I mentioned that I spied raccoons in the yard earlier. However, with such
a plentifiul number posts to this list, I can understand where that might get
lost.
I'll still keep my eyes peeled for slug and snails, especially since they are among
the varieties of foods raccoons will eat. ''Raccoons are omnivorous and will consume
practically any food item, plant or animal.''
http://www.cws-scf.ec.gc.ca/hww-fap/raccoon/raccoon.html
''Corn, crayfish, fruits, and nuts are preferred, but there is a seasonal shift in
diet depending on availability of food items. During the spring, animal matter,
including invertebrates and insects, makes up the major portion of the diet. Crayfish
are preferred, but muskrats, squirrels, rabbits, waterfowl eggs, and freshwater clams
are also consumed. In the summer, plant material, including fruits and nuts, becomes
more important. Wild cherries, gooseberries, elderberries, wild grapes, strawberries,
and garden items such as potatoes and sweet corn are relished. As well, crayfish,
frogs, small fish, turtles, beetle grubs, grasshoppers, earthworms, crickets, and
snails are eaten during the summer.''
In the JPR article, NCAP recommends reducing habitat for slugs and snail, and to use
mulches that are slug irritants such as shredded bark, crushed rock, or cinder.
That would be an easy option, to helping control the coons and the snails or slugs.
Also, I noticed that Wormwood is suggested to be a general insecticide and deters
mice and other rodents, slugs & snails from the garden. I don't have enough light to
grow Wormwood, but do you suppose that if I mixed essential oils of wormwood mixed
with jojoba (and I have no idea of the proportion) and sprayed the mixture over my
plants, that it would deter slugs and snail from my pots?
Bunny Snow
-------------------------------------------
Lon J. Rombough wrote:
