Chipmunks ate my hugelkultur

Ok, not exactly. But they sure are digging holes in one of them, and eating all of the fodder radishes. I keep finding holes, with a radish root (all the leaves gone) tossed aside nearby after one or two nibbles. Apparently they really like the greens quite a bit, but then after they pull out the root they decide that part is not so tasty after all.

At least, so far, their depredations appear to be limited tot he radishes. Not going after the kale or anything else I have planted in that hugelbeet, for which I am grateful.

So, slugs means insufficient ducks - what am I lacking that would deal with these chipmunks?

An air rifle?

A super quickie internet search on "chipmunk predators" came up with this:

Predators of chipmunks include hawks, minks, raccoons, weasels, martens, foxes, bobcats, coyotes, red squirrels, cats and large snakes. In their natural habitat, chipmunks compete with and complement the natural community of plants and animals.

Peter Ellis : Rocks! Rocks piled on the north side will condense moisture out of the air to Make your Hugelbeet even more self sufficient in water !

ROCKS on the south side warm the ground moderating/slowing temperature swings at night, and provide habitat for snakes, Even if the snakes
dont 'get' the Chipmunks, it will keep them up in the trees, hollering their heads off ! Big AL !

Late note, a large rubber snake, out 4'length of garden house lying on the ground, in partial shade, like under ferns with a couple of fronds removed
will, as the light patterns change, make your 'Snake ' seem to come alive and move ! A.L.

Peter Ellis wrote:
So, slugs means insufficient ducks - what am I lacking that would deal with these chipmunks?

If you know anyone with any kind of terrier, borrow it for a few days. Park it in front of the HK where the chipmunks are doing their dirty work.

Listen to Jennifer and Allen's advice; there is a reason they are suggesting this. The best solution is to provide habitat for the predators of your pest because then you do not have to spend your time and money handling the chipmunks. Snakes and most other reptiles like rocks due to the rocks' thermal mass. The rocks store the heat from the sunlight and release it throughout the night. Once the rock is cool in the morning, the rocks will readily have condensation on them to keep the reptiles moist. It would be a bit silly to buy rocks, but if there is any construction going on in your neighborhood or nearby, you could try talking with them and see if you can get the rocks that show up on their property for free. Also, if you need a little inspiration for how to deal with other miscellaneous nibblers, I would like to direct you the What Eats? site. Although it is designed for kids, it might inspire you some. http://www.whateats.com/
From there, I would like to direct you to resources that will inform you on the types of food and habitat that they need.
http://a-z-animals.com/
http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/nw4.htm

Hi Peter, et al,

If you have an aberrant amount of a prey species...the best bet is a predator species to bring things within your biome back to homeostasis...snakes are my first choice and I have several posts about them and several other predator approaches to infestations of various forms...I think it maybe time to just start a dedicated post about predator and prey approaches for permaculture. The advice thus far about snakes is great!

Regards,

j

This challenged my searching skills a bit! First "dog & chipmunk" got me a dog barking at a chipmunk thru a window... and that was it.

Then, "dog chasing chipmunk" got me er... a dog chasing a chipmunk, around and around... and that was it.

Finally, the lightbulb goes off. Dog catching a chipmunk got me just that. Unsurprisingly it was a rat terrier who got the chipmunk & did as he was told and took at out of the house.

Bravo!

Perhaps I need to search for "dog eating chipmunk!"

Cats

my cat loves to catch them in my garden beds
and she brings them inside to play catch and release
the chippies are tough enough for several games (unlike moles and mice)
however, unlike Pepper, my cat doesn't pay attention
when I say "take it outside"

HAHAHAHAHA! "You have a lack of air-rifle problem!" Permaculturists show our true colors. hahahaha Now, how do you encourage the air-rifle population?

Michael Cox wrote:An air rifle?

"Dog taking aim at squirrel with air rifle"

Cj Verde wrote:This challenged my searching skills a bit! First "dog & chipmunk" got me a dog barking at a chipmunk thru a window... and that was it.

Then, "dog chasing chipmunk" got me er... a dog chasing a chipmunk, around and around... and that was it.

Finally, the lightbulb goes off. Dog catching a chipmunk got me just that. Unsurprisingly it was a rat terrier who got the chipmunk & did as he was told and took at out of the house.

Bravo!

Perhaps I need to search for "dog eating chipmunk!"

Joshua Myrvaagnes wrote:"Dog taking aim at squirrel with air rifle"

Please post if you find it...
Until then...

Just wait, the chipmunk predators will come when they notice the abundance of tasty chipmunks, just like when ladybugs show up to eat the aphids.

Having said the predators will come on their own, I need to back paddle a little. My garden is plagued by squirrels instead of chipmunks. Bitch squirrels brazenly make off with my tomatoes in their little mouths, gnaw my sunflowers off at the base and then find a comfy perch on my patio to make sure I see them devouring the flowers. It is illegal to kill the squirrels in Dallas, but I have an awesome outdoor cat who loves to eat the little bastards from the head down. So my point is, if you want something lower maintenance than the dogs recommended in previous posts, and your tired of waiting for wild predators to put the voracious chippies in check, adopt a cat! The vet says our cats teeth are very clean because of gnawing on all those rodent bones. Tee hee!

In one sense this thread highlights one of the big challenges in permaculture - patience.
Waiting for natural predators to appear is a long term solution. It is also, in nature, a somewhat inconsistent solution even when working well, as demonstrated by the classic example of the lynx and snowshoe hare boom - bust cycle.
While one waits for predators to arrive, the entire potato crop fails for this year. Next year snakes may arrive to help, but this winter there will be no potatoes in the cellar.
There are real, genuine benefits to the permaculture approach, but there are also times when pressures combine to demand a more immediate solution.