The squirrels are eating the persimmons off my wife's persimmon tree.

[BigAlOfMD]

The squirrels have eaten 37 of the 40 persimmons off my wife's persimmon tree.
Any idea on how to stop them without getting attacked in revenge????

[Serk]

Pellet gun if you're in the city...

.22 if you're out in the country...

And a 5.56 if you're WAY out in the country...

[Walküre]

The squirrels have eaten 37 of the 40 persimmons off my wife's persimmon tree.
Any idea on how to stop them without getting attacked in revenge????

Just give them the other 3...can't do nothing with just 3!



We've had 5 trees for about 4 years, hardly any production at all. Hoping to this year - my wife makes a MEAN persimmon pudding...

[fudgie]

Just give them the other 3...can't do nothing with just 3!

+1 

[Chili Pepper]

If there's nothing within 6 feet of the tree they can use to jump onto it...spread bloodmeal around on the ground below the tree. Squirrels hate that stuff...won't dig up your bulbs if you put it in the dirt either. I suppose you could try making little baggies of the stuff and hanging them around on the tree, too tho I've never tried it. Hmmm... maybe I'll try that on my apple tree next year. 

[Thunderbolt]

I have the same trouble with pecans at my place.  Just about the time they get ready, the squirrels attack.  I hope to get rid of some of them this year.

[RainMaker]

My pear tree has been loaded for 20 years and I've yet to get one.  Just before they ripen, the squirrel horde harvests the whole tree (25 feet tall) in one night.  Unfortunately, in the city so can't blast 'em.  Too many trees around the pear tree to try the bloodmeal.  So guess I'll just keep feeding the rats with furry tails. 

Unless Daniel will come over and lead them away like the Pied Piper - heard he loves squirrels.

[Rams]

Pellet gun if you're in the city...

.22 if you're out in the country...

And a 5.56 if you're WAY out in the country...

There is another alternative.  Bird shot from a shot gun.  The only issue I have with that is I hate biting into bird shot in the squirrel stew.   

blackrams   

[big turkey]

Geico Squirrel

They are working together now.

They left those three persimmons to draw you in for the Kill.

[Jess from VA]

 A .22 rifle with .22 Aguilla Super Colibri subsonic ammo is quieter than my .177 and .22 supersonic pellet rifles, and kills them dead.  Will not cycle my 10-22 Ruger, but loaded singly does the job nicely (4X).  Contrary to the sales writeup, clears a rifle barrel easily.  

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/AMM066-5.html

[Ferris Leets]

RE the Super Colibri:  I wrap a heavy duty rubber band around the front scope mount and then around the charging handle.  It keeps the shells from stove piping and jamming but you can cycle it manually.
     Real good for around the house pest control and a ball for short range target shooting.
Jessie,
     Have you ever gone lion hunting with that Ruger?  Set up in my backyard in a nice comfortable chair and shoot the heads off of the Dandelions.  The yellow ones are easy but after they seed you have to hit the little speck in the middle.  Really good practice at using hold over and windage with those slow light bullets.  When you get to hitting them out to 30 yards give a call and we have a competition.

[Jess from VA]

I poisoned all the dandelions in my yard years ago.  I have no problem dispatching squirrels from 50 feet with the Ruger..... bench rest from the windowsill.  Freeze them till garbage day..... do not eat rodent.

[big turkey]

Deer around the house, and I live in the city, are crazy about persimmons.

I have a persimmon tree that produces hundreds if not thousands every year.

Deer eat them, squirrels, rats, birds, and even one of my dogs rolls them around.

They stink after a while, but one of my neighbors comes down and gathers them up for Jelly or

something.

So they get cleaned up and all is well.

Big Al

[Rams]

I poisoned all the dandelions in my yard years ago.  I have no problem dispatching squirrels from 50 feet with the Ruger..... bench rest from the windowsill.  Freeze them till garbage day..... do not eat rodent.

Hmm, I'm just guessing here but apparently you've never been to a military survival school.

blackrams 

[Jess from VA]

Attended numerous military schools/courses, but was not sent to SERE school up at Fairchild AFB.

USAF SERE School

[MarkT]

I wired our bird feeder with a grid on the perches of wires powered by an electric fence power unit for cattle.  Powered it with a motion detector - relay.  Cost maybe $20 if you had to buy the parts.  The + & - wires are too far apart for a bird to bridge them, but the squirrels do.  They approach and turn on the power for their own electrocution.  Actually it doesn't kill them, but the shock they get - BIG surprise and they scamper off like their tails are on fire.  Pretty effective.  I'm sure the same could be done, with your trees, if their approach path can be defined.  Perhaps a grid wrapped around the trunk.

[Daniel Meyer]

[X Ring]

Attended numerous military schools/courses, but was not sent to SERE school up at Fairchild AFB.

USAF SERE School

Not like a lawyer has to worry about getting shot down.   

Marty 

[Jess from VA]

That is correct.... only on TV and the movies.

I once did get surrounded by huge Turkish shepherd dogs out in the wilds of that country.  I only gave my name, rank and service number, but they were not impressed.  They took me prisoner for their master. 

[Kaiser]

You would need to tweak this design to fit your needs.  But, it gives you the general idea.

I HATE squirrels.  They got in my attic and ate through the air conditioning ducts, doing major $$$ damage.

My favorite combination was sunflower seeds, a "Have a Heart" trap, a high-powered BB gun, and my lack of having a heart when it came to these tree rats.

squirrel Launcher!!!

[Jabba]

Have-A-Heart them.

Then use a 5 gallon bucket full of 4x strength Jello to die them weird colors.

Then release them.  Your states scientists will come round them all up for you for study.



Jabba

[Serk]

I like the way you think!

Tie-dye 'em and release 'em near the closest congregation of hippies...

Have-A-Heart them.

Then use a 5 gallon bucket full of 4x strength Jello to die them weird colors.

Then release them.  Your states scientists will come round them all up for you for study.



Jabba

[Jabba]

That sounds fun... except for having to handle a live squirrell.  Those things are pretty hard to ahng onto.  That's why a have-a-heart trap works great.  You can dip the whole danged thing in the 5 gallon bucket. 

Jabba

[alph]

i have a bird feeder that i have finally been able to keep the squirels out of, the secret is to use an 8" airduct tube on the bottom so they can't climb up the side.  now the new problem are the damn deer!!  for them i've got a cattle fence zapper, i like birds, i hate everything else that eats their food!!

give me more infor on your persimmons tree, are there any other trees within a 10' radius of it?  i've seen squirels fly over 15' to get into another tree!!  maybe you can make a "tube" to go around your tree like i did for my bird feeder.  i enjoy out smarting squirels, i made a "zapper" out of a 1/2" PVC tube that i wired into a 120v outlet, i had to get rid of that one when one of the neighbor kids grabbed it!! 

[Serk]

Alph - For a bird feeder, capsaicin is ideal. (The HOT in Hot sauces). It only effect mammals, birds don't have receptors for it. So you can put a lot of really HOT stuff in the bird seed, it won't bother the birds at all, but will stop mammals from grazing in it...

Capsaicin is present in large quantities in the placental tissue (which holds the seeds), the internal membranes and, to a lesser extent, the other fleshy parts of the fruits of plants in the genus Capsicum. The seeds themselves do not produce any capsaicin, although the highest concentration of capsaicin can be found in the white pith around the seeds.[18]

The seeds of Capsicum plants are predominantly dispersed by birds. Birds do not have the receptor to which capsaicin binds, so it does not function as an irritant for them. Chili pepper seeds consumed by birds pass through the digestive tract and can germinate later, but mammals have molars, which destroy seeds and prevent them from germinating. Thus, natural selection may have led to increasing capsaicin production because it makes the plant less likely to be eaten by animals that do not help it reproduce. There is also evidence that capsaicin evolved as an anti-fungal agent[1], and capsaicinoids are broadly anti-microbial

From this article - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capsaicin

[Jess from VA]

Have-A-Heart them.  Then use a 5 gallon bucket full of 4x strength Jello to die them weird colors.
Then release them. 
Jabba

5-gal jello dye and release phooey.... Have-a-Heart (nope) and 45 gallons of water and a 5-minute swim = waterlogged squirrel who no longer tears up the yard/landscape/feeders/nest eggs.  Released to the landfill.

[X Ring]

The squirrels have eaten 37 of the 40 persimmons off my wife's persimmon tree.
Any idea on how to stop them without getting attacked in revenge????

Talked with a friend of mine about your problem.  He said during dry periods squirrels will eat fruit for the moisture.  Dan said to leave them a water source they can get to easily and they will leave your fruit trees alone.

Marty

[GA Mike]

Alph, +1 on the hot stuff. I had the same problem with the deer and the bird feeder. Got some cayenne pepper, sprinkled it in and around the food...no more deer in the bird feed. Now they eat the wife's plants.