Whooo's Watching The Plants

Using plastic owls to naturally deter birds from dining on your plants

If you’re a gardener, you know the heartbreak of watching your plants get nibbled on by hungry birds. They swoop in, peck around, and before you know it, your plants are a MIA. After starting our sunflower seeds, we needed a way to keep the birds away. Birds especially love the sunflower seeds, they are present in bird feed as we know!

Enter in, their natural predator -- a lifelike owl, perched on a nearby fence or stake, glaring down with its fierce, unblinking eyes. While you might think it’s just a decorative touch, in the bird world, it’s a predator’s presence. Birds instinctively recognize predators, and the mere sight of an owl can send them fluttering in the opposite direction.

These plastic owls can be purchased at garden centers, Amazon.com, or many other online retailers. The benefit of using this determent system is that it doesn't harm wildlife, it can be used year over year, and it's a nice garden decoration.

To use these owls effectively:

1. Position the owl so the birds can see -- ideally elevated but it's not necessary.

2. Move it occassionally-- this is essential! The local birds will recognize if the owl doesn't move for several days and get smart to it's dumbness.

3. Choose the owl for the job. We place small stationary owls with our seedlings and a large, motion-detection activated owl over our garden trellises. 

Whoooo knew it was this easy to help keep those birds away!

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