I've got a little orange tree outside my house that I've nurtured carefully, and it only produces a couple of oranges at a time. It really frustrates me that people keep stealing my oranges before they even have the chance to ripen! I'm down to just one orange now. Has anyone ever faced this issue? What are some effective and peaceful ways to discourage these fruit thieves from taking what's not theirs? Any creative solutions or tips would be super helpful! Also, I'm considering using nets to protect the fruit, but I'm worried they might shade the tree too much since oranges need a lot of sunlight. What do you think?
3 Answers
I get where you’re coming from! You could try putting some prickly plants around the edges of your yard to deter anyone thinking about reaching for your fruits. Thorny roses or cacti could serve as a natural barrier without being too ugly. Just don't put your precious plants where they can easily reach them. As for the syringe joke—maybe skip that? 😂
When I had a garden in my front yard, I found that planting with sharing in mind made me less upset when someone took something. But it sounds like you’ve had issues with broken branches apart from just the oranges. Is there any way you could move the orange plant to a more secure spot? It might help protect it if you can't.
In some places, people consider fruit that's accessible from a sidewalk to be fair game, so it's worth noting that you might be dealing with ignorant passersby. A fence or a polite sign asking people to leave the fruit alone could help. You could also try putting bird netting around the oranges along with a sign about donating them to a local food pantry, which might get people to leave them alone. Plus, making it harder to access the tree with a statue or fountain could deter them further. Have you thought about catching them in the act and addressing it directly? A security camera could help!