The birds are getting rabid and I already sustained cherry casualties so this is war!
Now protecting my stash of cherries using bird scare tapes. I used fisherman’s swivel so that the ribbons effortlessly flutter without knotting up in the slightest breeze. Using Christmas decor hooks, they are easy to hang and remove or transfer to another tree. I then directed some laser lights on the tree programmed for 8 hours flashes during the day. Laser lights should irritate the bird’s keen eyes.
I couldn’t afford the $250,000 laser systems that vineyards uses, so I bought a $25 laser disco lights from Amazon and directed them to the ribbons on the tree. It should look fantastic at night.
I have fruit picker and very stable 26’ metamorphic ladder. I can harvest any fruit 50’ from the ground. In fact I can harvest any fruit just from the ground.
95% of my cherry tree canopy is Royal Rainier. The 5% are about 20 types of sweet and sour cherries grafted for specimen only. I make Royal Rainier Cherry wine so need lots of them!
I have fewer cherries this year than last year because of hailstorms, high winds and the late season rains that reduced the fruit sets and brought in a lot of fungal diseases. Many of my dark red cherries have been stolen by the birds. The remaing Royal Rainier cherries are almost ready. The brix have improved but so now the bird damage on the remaining ones. I’m thankful for what’s left for my family and friends!
