Does anyone know what pulls plants up? I've included a picture. The first time, it tore them all up, the 2nd- four plants, the 3rd- only two, plus it dug at the dirt at some others. (It did not eat the plants, only dug them up.) At planting, I placed bone meal, blood meal, and epsome salt in the hole- could that have attracted some creature? Can anything be done to discourage future 'attacks'? Thanks for having a look!
Bone meal and blood meal are definitely attractive to dogs--one of my dogs goes nuts over organic fertilizers like that. Normally she could care less about the garden, but if I use fertilizers like that she goes nuts and starts digging. My last dog did the same thing--also normally not interested at all in the garden but turned into a crazy digger when that sort of thing was around. So if there are any dogs in your neighborhood that might have access to your yard that could be it, or I would assume since that stuff is attractive to dogs there would probably be some types of wildlife that would be attracted to it also.
How frustrating. I think coons will up root plants and so will squirells. Good luck with your plants.
pizzacat, ecrane3 is right about dogs going crazy for the organic "smell". I used some organic granular fertilizer in my flower bed and no sooner did I put it down the neighbors dog was trying to dig under my fence to get at it; all you could see was her nose sniffing and her tongue sticking out from under the fence! I think any digging animal would have a go at it, be it a dog, squirrel, raccoon, groundhog, etc.
I have my own little dog and he loves to sniff and even try to eat the organic fertilizer when I use it. I have to tell him "leave it" before he'll go away.
Thank you for your replies- so far no further digging I'm happy to say. :o)
That sure looks like the work of a raccoon. The plants are still fairly intact, as if something with little hands pulled them out to get at what they were smelling (blood meal).
I have had a surly tailless raccoon come and remove the cap from a bottle of fish emulsion, then spill it everywhere. That ended my truce with the raccoons.
