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Mice

 
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I had one raised bed with mostly tomatoes in it that has gotten infested with mice. I am clearing it out but wondering if the tomatoes from there should be safe to eat still. The reason I question their safety is one mouse a cat caught and it had mites or some white bugs crawling on it. The rest don't seem to have this problem. I assume mice get to crops often on farms and such but the bugs on it to me scream red flag. the roma's look fine to me but its my first year.
 
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Location: Southern New England, seaside, avg yearly rainfall 41.91 in, zone 6b
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I would eat the tomatoes. Mice get fleas and tapeworm and yucky things like that, but those yucky things don't climb up tomato stalks and hang out on the fruit.

It's possible that the mouse burrows are making your soil and thus your plants healthier by bringing air into the soil and by moving soil nutrients around.
 
jeff charelbois
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I figured it might be helping but there's far too many of them for comfort. Cat caught 6 traps 2 and holes everywhere I had carrots in that bed at one point to that either got choked out as the tomatoes went crazy or were eaten by the mice who knows lol.
 
jeff charelbois
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With them and the abundance of rabbits I think I need to make some of sepps bone sauce.
 
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When in doubt wash your crops before eating them. This is generally a good healthy thing to do. General hygene is standard practice for the kitchen. If you maintain a clean kitchen, and you prepare your foods in a genarlly safe clean way, then you should be ok. Some things in the kitchen require higher typpes of handling standards to keep cross contamination down. Meat is the top on that list.
If you have any questions go to your local adult school and see if they are offering a kitchen prep training program. Hands on training is the best.
 
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