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30 Aug 09, kate (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Last autumn I planted chilli and capsicum plants which were eaten down to a stick. I seem to have protected from what ate them, but now although they are getting new shoots, they don't seem to actually be getting any bigger. Also a couple grew flowers - but these never developed into fruit. Should I just throw them away and start again or be patient? Any advice would be great. I promise to reciprocate elsewhere on the site!

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03 Aug 09, Tom (Australia - temperate climate)

Re animals eating chillis: it could be rats. We have possums, birds and rats. The birds are relatively easy to keep out - however they will find any holes in nets - particularly introduced English thrush. The possums at least eat the entire fruit and can tell which fruit is ripe - they don't tend to taste test like birds (taste testing spoils fruit which is not ripe). We have seen a rat or two in our garden that is too smart for any trap, poison etc. Presume it is the rat that can find its way through a mouse-wire cage I built for our berries and apple. I suspect rats are also responsible for partially eating fruit (different bite mark to birds).

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14 Jul 09, Jason (Australia - temperate climate)

Skunk, I tried that trick, stuck a couple of Habanero's onto the plant, low and behold they went too!!!

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13 Jul 09, Jason (Australia - temperate climate)

I am having major issues with my chilli and capsicums in that something is eating the fruit completely. I had a nice chilli plant with lots of green fruit on it and now it is almost completely bare of fruit, whatever it is is also eating capsicums too. I suspected it was possum so I fenced the plants in with a chicken type wire and I put some netting over the top however whatever it is is still getting the fruit. I have spotted possums around there at night so perhaps they are picking the fruit through the netting. Any ideas on what it is and how ti stop them?

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08 Jul 09, (Australia - cool/mountain climate)

This link is pertinent to a previous poster's query and might come in handy for others. I found it (and this site) with the same Google search... www.wildfirechilli.com.au/

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06 Jul 09, Anne (Australia - cool/mountain climate)

I'm having terrible trouble with possums eating my chillies (leaves & fruit - even habaneros!). I now have a small greenhouse but it's not big enough for all the varieties I want to grow. Does anyone have experience with a possum deterrent? I've tried various over-the-counter so-called deterrents and all have been crap. Did a Google search & ended up on a CSIRO site where they suggested a home made spray made of, guess what, chillies! Needless to say I didn't bother with that one!

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31 May 13, Paige (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Im also having alot of trouble with possums. They are eating all my vegie plants as well as my snap dragons and other flowers. I have tried fencing and nets but they still manage to diestroy my plants

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27 May 11, Sarah (Australia - tropical climate)

I had the same problem. I netted the garden thinking it was possums, but I caught rats in the netted sections several times. One night they ate over 60 ripe chillis and all my halerpinos. I got a cat shortly after, and she brought in a lot of rats at first. As the rats declined, the chillis increased. I now have a full pot of them, and they are now un-netted.

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26 Jun 09, Dis (Australia - temperate climate)

Thank youJPVD that's the one now where does one get seeds?

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18 Jun 09, JPVD (Australia - temperate climate)

Scotch bonnet, then habanero (closely related) and now the mighty Bhut Jolokia.

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