Protection for Spring Bulbs

Placing homemade wire cages around newly planted bulbs is a good way to protect them.

You need to get some hardware cloth, not chickenwire .. voles can get through chicken wire. You need:

• hardware cloth
• a can - to catch the pointy ends that you will be cutting off
• heavy duty gloves (or lots of bandaids)
• wire cutters
• twist ties or wire
  - I prefer twist ties. you can buy yards of it at any hardware or garden store.
• rolling pin or something round to shape the cloth into a cylinder
Cut enough hardware cloth (don't leave any pointy ends as they can hurt you when trying to dig them up then you'll have to go get a tetanus shot) to make a cylinder around the bulb that will leave at least 1/2 around the sides and 1 inch at top and bottom. Use the wire/twist ties to hold it together. You can close the root end either with a circle of hardware cloth attached with ties or make a mesh with the twist ties that have openings no larger than 1/2 inch. Close the top end with a mesh of wire or ties and try to leave a hole in the center that will to be slightly larger than what the main stem looks like it will be when it starts to grow.

A new cage system makes it even easier. The Protecta-Bulb cages are made from galvanized wire sheets that can be bent into a cage form. Simply dig a hole 3 inches deeper than the cage depth, add fertilizer mixed with soil, set the cage in place, and add the bulbs. Then fill up the cage with soil and secure the top. There are various sized cages for large and small beds.

National Gardening Association