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Re: Rat(s) & compost??

Square Foot Gardening List - http://www.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html

>Square Foot Gardening List - http://www.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html
>
>eeeeeeekkkkkk!!
>I noticed a hole going into cement under outside steps.  I asked the
>doiteverythingmiracleman (handy man par excellence) what it is.  He
>said rats.  Then later in the day, he saw a big (aren't they all!!??)
>rat in front yard, scurring into ivy.  Here's my question:  I have
>compost piles & I add ONLY ORGANIC kitchen scraps to them.  No meats,
>fats, dairy; only veggies & fruits & some bread products.  Do rats eat
>this stuff?????  I always bury the scraps, but the beds are open.

Rats eat everything. In Calif. we've had a bumper crop of rats this year
(they say it's the result of el nino) and they will start with the compost
but then help themselves to anything else you have around - peaches,
tomatoes, eggplant, whatever.

What works: trapping. We got ourselves six "Victor" rat traps and put them
all out consistently, every night. We have trapped 12 so far and are no
longer noticing nibbles in the tomatoes. We also pick our tomatoes at a
semi-ripe stage so that they are less tempting. Bait the traps with small
bits of tomatoes. Works like a charm.


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