Pigeons, once they’ve chosen your garden as a nesting ground, will eat the plants you’re trying to grow. These birds may be harmless but they can cause significant damage to your property and potentially bring disease-causing organisms into your garden. For that reason, it’s important to deter them or scare them away before they can do any lasting damage.
What attracts pigeons?
Like most pests, pigeons need a safe area with a steady and stable supply of food to thrive and survive.
Once they find a stable food source, they will likely create several nests as they like to live in flocks.
They are not especially picky dieters which can make it all the harder to get rid of them for good.
Pigeons will be more than happy to dine out on exposed junk as much as they’ll enjoy seeds from your vegetable garden.
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Use reflective surfaces
Reflective, shiny lights can be a good deterrent for pigeons and birds.
Adorn your garden with CDs or other shiny surfaces as this can temporarily affect the pigeon’s eyesight, effectively deterring them from nesting in your garden.
Protective measures
Installing bird netting is a good way to protect your garden from unwanted visitors and birds.
If they’re going after a particular plant, you can cover them with the netting in a bid to preserve it.
Guard the bird feeders
If you have bird feeders, pigeons can very easily infiltrate and infest your garden as they’re known to scare off smaller birds in an effort to steal as much food as they can.
Because of this, your best bet is just to keep bird feeders away.
Sometimes though, you need to get rid of pigeons without repelling birds that do good to your garden.
In such cases, you could invest in ultrasonic sound devices or gel repellents designed to confuse the pigeons or deter them from going into your garden.