Fall is right around the corner, and for gardeners that means planting spring-flowering bulbs, such as tulips, hyacinths, and crocuses. Unfortunately, mice and voles love to munch these newly planted bulbs, often leaving bare spots in your bulb bed come spring. Although repellents may work for a while, the only sure solution is to create a barrier between your bulbs and these pests.
Placing homemade wire cages around newly planted bulbs is a good way to protect them, and a new cage system makes it even easier. The Protecta-Bulb cages are made from galvanized wire sheets that can be bent into a cage form. Simply dig a hole 3 inches deeper than the cage depth, add fertilizer mixed with soil, set the cage in place, and add the bulbs. Then fill up the cage with soil and secure the top. There are various sized cages for large and small beds.
The Protecta-Bulb cages will last for years in the soil. The bulb roots and shoots grow through the holes in the wire cage, yet the holes are too small for rodents to squeeze through. The cages come with marker tags that sit aboveground so you can find the cages when planting other flowers or when digging and dividing bulbs.
The cost per bulb of using a Protecta-Bulb cage is between 10 and 20 percent of the cost of an average bulb. That's not a large investment to insure your bulbs bloom for years.
For more information on these bulb cages, go to: Protecta-Bulb Cage.
Charlie Nardozzi is an award winning, nationally recognized garden writer, speaker, radio, and television personality. He has worked for more than 30 years bringing expert gardening information to home gardeners through radio, television, talks, tours, on-line, and the printed page. Charlie delights in making gardening information simple, easy, fun and accessible to everyone. He's the author of 6 books, has three radio shows in New England and a TV show. He leads Garden Tours around the world and consults with organizations and companies about gardening programs. See more about him at Gardening With Charlie.
