A well-balanced garden includes beautiful vegetable plants and the right wildlife to encourage pollination. While you're likely more than willing to welcome bees and worms into your yard to help support your pepper growth, too many birds can be a problem. Some birds will eat pepper plants, especially if there are any insects on or near them. What's more, even when birds just roost on your pepper plants, the chances of them damaging the plant are high. To stop birds from engaging in this activity, you'll want to consider strategies like netting and visual deterrents to keep them away.
Birds eat all types of peppers. In some cases, the bright colors attract birds, encouraging them to peck at the peppers. They tend to be good for a bird's health since they are high in beta-carotene, Vitamin C, and potassium. Even if you plant hot peppers, birds are still likely to munch on them. They can't taste the spice of these peppers but benefit from the nutrients in them. Birds like peppers so much that some people plant them to encourage more avian visitors in their yards.
Protecting Pepper Plants from Birds
However, from the pepper plant standpoint, birds are problematic. They create small holes in the peppers, causing them to rot long before they are ripe enough for you to pick them. The rotting vegetable also attracts pests, which can worsen the health of the plant. Not planning for the threat of birds is one mistake you can make when growing peppers.
Create a protective barrier to keep birds out
The most effective way of protecting your pepper plants is to use a barrier. Growing peppers in a greenhouse is one option, but when that's not possible, consider using bird or butterfly netting. You can also use mesh placed around the plants. Chicken wire with small holes can work well. This allows for ample sunlight while limiting birds' access. Using a tomato stake with netting draped over it can be helpful since it doesn't overly limit the growth of the plant and allows you to have easy access to the peppers.
Another option is to make your garden feel less safe for the birds. In short, you want the bird to think there's a risk present that wards them off. You can do that in several ways. Start with the use of reflective items placed in the garden. You can use anything from a silver balloon, a shiny windchime, and pinwheels with bright colors. The movement and shine from these objects are a distraction to birds, who will simply move on to another area to use as a food source. Another option is to use fake predators in your yard. If you don't want to put a human-like scarecrow in your garden, choose a fake owl. The presence of the owl is one aspect that will deter them, but some are designed to make noise when birds come into the area. That makes it frightening to birds who come near to it.
If you want to deter birds from your yard, there are several strategies you can try. One effective method is to provide an alternative food source for the birds. By placing a bird feeder on the opposite side of your yard, you can attract the birds away from areas where they may be causing damage. Make sure to keep the bird feeder full and choose a bird food that is popular among the local bird population.
