>Dear members
>To those struggling with hardware cloth: Have you tried interplanting your
>bulbs with various Tagetes, euphorbias, etc.?
>There are number of websites that really endorse these remedies. Type--
>moles, voles, marigolds--- into your search strip. My own direct
>experience is nil
This is one subject on which I suggest you take what you read
on the internet with a very large grain of salt. There is research which
shows that some marigolds do repel or kill nematodes--but not the marigolds
(Tagetes) commonly grown. Those eager to sell often brag that
marigolds kill nematodes, without bothering to mention (and possibly without
even knowing or caring) that it only applies to certain marigolds. Planting
African marigolds may look pretty, but will do nothing for nematode control.
My experience with Euphorbias is that they do not work as a rodent
deterrent. Yes, some of them are very weedy, and almost impossible to
get rid of. Perhaps because they are difficult to get rid of, someone claimed
they were being left "to control rodents", rather than admit they couldn't
weed them out. Not all Euphorbias are fast growing and weedy, so use
normal caution in what you choose to plant.
Perhaps some of you do have experience with either marigolds
or Euphorbias where they actually work. I'd be pleased to know details
of which marigolds, which Euphorbias, and whether or not similiar but
unprotected plants were nearby. In other words, the fact that they didn't
work for me doesn't mean they never work--but I'd need experience where
they did work before I change my mind.
Interplanting various different plants is often a good strategy to
confuse
predators, and even deer may pass by a single lily when grown among
a planting of foxgloves.
Ken