“I have cherry trees, and every year I can’t manage to eat a single cherry. As soon as they start to ripen, the birds eat them all…” If this is also your case, in this article, you will discover four different methods that you can use to protect cherry trees from birds and prevent them from eating the cherries.
Check out this video of sparrows pecking at the cherries.
There are four fundamental methods to prevent birds from eating cherries.
Method 1 – Visual Bird Repellers to Protect Cherry Trees
There is a wide range of visual bird deterrents: scare-eye balloons, owl replicas, hawk figures, and other birds of prey… Among this wide range of visual bird deterrents, we recommend the Falcon Kite Scarecrow as the most effective solution.
To prevent birds from getting used to these visual bird deterrents, it’s important that they are not static. They need to move with the breeze. It’s also important to change their positions frequently.
We recommend the following articles:
- Tips for Choosing an Effective Scarecrow Figure to learn what to consider when choosing a visual bird deterrent.
- Falcon Kite Scarecrow to discover its key features.
Place the visual bird deterrent before the cherries start to ripen and the birds have already become accustomed to pecking at them. As the saying goes, “prevention is better than cure”…
If you already have many birds in the cherry tree, the visual bird deterrent may not be effective on its own to prevent birds from eating the cherries. In that case, use it as a complement to other more effective bird control measures explained below.
Method 2 – Bioacustic Bird Repellers to Prevent Birds from Eating Cherries
These bioacustic bird repellers emit sounds that scare birds away.
In particular, these bioacoustic bird deterrents emit a combination of predator sounds such as hawks, eagles, and falcons, as well as sounds of the birds themselves that we want to deter, such as sparrows, thrushes, starlings, blackbirds, etc. When birds hear these sounds, it’s as if they hear a bird of their own species saying, “Let’s go away! There’s danger!”
Don’t miss the article: “I Have Problems with Birds, What Type of Bird Repeller Do I Need?” where you will find a good comparison of different sound bird deterrents.
Bird Gard sonic bird repellers are a reliable solution. They are environmentally friendly and remain effective year after year as a solution to scare birds away from cherry trees.
Read the experience of José Luis López Budia, a farmer in Cifuentes (Guadalajara), who in this article shares how he managed to protect his cherry orchard from the attack of thrushes, which arrived in flocks of over 300 specimens.
Method 3 – Bird Netting. Anti-Bird Mesh
Bird nets cover the trees, creating a physical barrier. It is important to place them properly to avoid damaging the cherry tree.
You must consider the size of the birds that approach to eat the fruits in order to choose the appropriate size of the anti-bird mesh.
A bird net with holes that are too large will allow smaller birds to get inside the tree and peck at the fruits.
However, if the anti-bird mesh is too fine, it will obstruct the passage of sunlight and hinder the proper ripening of the cherries.
For large areas, bird nets are undoubtedly the most expensive method to deter birds. Both in terms of initial investment and the labor required to install, maintain, and remove the nets, which can take several hours of work.
Also, during winter, it is important to store the bird nets in a dry place to prevent them from rotting.
Method 4 – Bird Scare Cannons
Propane cannons can produce explosions of up to 125 decibels. This makes them unsuitable for use in livestock or crops near houses. Additionally, since they emit constant and repetitive sounds, birds tend to become accustomed to them and they cease to be effective in the long term.
How to Protect Cherry Trees from Birds – Conclusions
We hope that this article on how to protect cherry trees from birds has been helpful to you. If you need help identifying the bird species that are attacking your cherry trees, we recommend the article “How to Deter Birds from Crops”.
You can find all the recommended products in this article at the BirdGard Iberia online store.
If you have any additional questions or are unsure about which solution to apply in your case, do not hesitate to contact BirdGard Iberia. One of our experts will advise you on the best solution for your specific case.