9 Animals that eat Tomatoes (& Tips on keeping them away from your Garden)
I was fed up with seeing my tomatoes eaten by some animal overnight, and the saddest part is I don’t know who is eating them. Trust me, it irritates me to see them getting destroyed. I tried hard to find out what was happening. So, I delved into everything about tomatoes and discovered some animals that eat them. Are you interested in knowing which animals eat tomatoes so that you can figure out who is eating your tomatoes and how to keep them away from the garden?
In this guide, I’ve discussed the delicious plant that every farmer loves to grow—the tomato—and how to keep those animals away from the garden to protect fruit.
Key takeaways:
- Tomatoes are loved by humans and animals as well.
- The difference is humans grow them and enjoy the fruits but animals eat them by spoiling them.
- They spoil the whole plant. When the tomatoes ripen, various animals run toward them and eat them.
- It is a favorite vegetable one and all in this era and growers tend to plant them excitedly.
Top 9 Animals That Eat Tomatoes
Tomatoes are nutritious, attractive, and a favorite vegetable of everyone whether humans or animals. But various animals love eating tomatoes. Animals eat the tomatoes and spoil the whole plant and the gardener receives nothing in the end. So, it is important to be aware of those animals that eat tomatoes. A list of the top 9 animals that eat tomatoes is as follows:
1. Birds
One of the culprits in eating tomatoes is birds. They roam around the plant and when they see no one there, they tend to eat them. The plant will indirectly get spoiled.
The birds do damage the top of the plant and even the local birds try to eat them for their taste. You can stop them from coming to your garden by buying a bird net and fixing it around your plants so they can’t even touch them. You will see more options for keeping him away from your garden.
2. Rabbits
You might be very familiar with rabbits as they are one of those common animals that are driven towards many plants to eat them. Rabbits love to eat tomato plants. They eat the whole fruit and even the seedlings, especially in the evening and night.
So, it is better to keep the rabbits from the garden or not let them come into the garden by doing anything such as fences, spraying, etc, that will be discussed soon.
3. Voles
There is another type of animal that loves tomatoes and eats them vigorously. They are voles that cause damage to tomato plants. When you find grooves in the leaves, then you will find that voles are the reason behind eating the tomatoes.
You can stop them by keeping them away from your garden by spoiling the tunnels that they have made by going from one place to another.
4. Squirrels
Being clever animals, they roam around the plants and try to achieve their end goal. Their end goal is to eat the tomato plants. By doing so, they satisfy their hunger and make a hole around the plant and put the tomato there, and move forward.
So, it is easy to find that squirrels are behind the robbing of your tomatoes by checking the surroundings around the plant. If it is messed up then squirrels are the culprits.
5. Chipmunks
When it comes to gardening, they seem to be attractive but they are dangerous for your vegetation. Being omnivorous animals, they eat tomatoes and try to make holes in the garden, and make their home, especially in the leaf piles.
Though it is difficult to control them you can do so with the help of this guide. They can destroy your vegetation at a faster pace.
6. Cats
Cats need to get close to your plant’s shoots so that they can eat them.
Cats suffer from hunger most of the time, which leads them to run toward the garden and eat the plants and animals. So, you shouldn’t let them in by doing anything.
7. Raccoons
You might be aware of these animals that are medium in size and are generally found in the Americas. They are grey and have furs on their body with ringed tails. They can eat anything such as insects, birds, eggs, corn, beans, and the most favorite of theirs, tomatoes.
Tomatoes are eaten by the raccoons and they leave nothing behind. The gardeners must keep them away from the garden so that they do not enter the garden to spoil your vegetation.
8. Groundhogs
Being in a place where you find the groundhogs most often, your plants are not safe there. They mess up your whole garden and even eat the tomatoes fully.
They are famous for messing up the things in the garden. They even have the potential to eat up or destroy the whole garden. You can easily get rid of them and that will be shown below in this guide.
9. Deer
Last but not the least, the deer is also one of those animals that eat tomatoes. As you know they are voracious, they tend to eat the whole fruit and you will receive nothing in the end from your efforts.
Deer are clever somehow so if you plot any plan against them, they can come to know. You can see the location where the deer are roaming, you can keep an eye on them so that you protect your tomato plants from the deer.
What are the tips on keeping them away from your Garden?
You will see various tips that can help you keep the animals away from your plants so they can destroy them fully. So, let’s know about those tips by following the below points:
1. You can make a fence
Fences are one and the best solution for protecting your yard from the animals who eat tomatoes. Some people used them before the animal came in.
You can leave the gap only for 1 inch as more will not stop the animals. So, you can prevent animals like deer, goats, and others from coming into the yard and destroying your tomato plants.
2. Try to pick the tomatoes earlier
When tomatoes become red and ripe, then animals move toward them to eat them. So, if you pick them up early, the animals won’t have any chance to eat the tomatoes. This is how you can save the tomatoes from getting spoiled.
3. You can make a Decoy Garden
Folks, another option for keeping the animals away from your garden is to make a decoy garden which means that you have to plant other plants in your garden so that animals get distracted from your tomatoes.
Some of the plants that can attract animals from tomatoes are strawberries, buckwheat, flowering kale, and so on.
4. You can grow plants in pots
Try planting tomatoes in the pots so that animals can not touch them and harm them. You can even place the pots in your house and the good thing is that animals do not come close to people. So, doing this is a great thing as it would be keeping them away from your garden.
Concluding lines
This guide revolves around those animals that eat tomatoes and spoil the plant. Tomatoes are loved by humans and animals as well. But the difference is humans grow them and enjoy the fruit but animals eat them by spoiling them. They spoil the whole plant. When the tomatoes ripen, various animals run toward them and eat them. So the gardeners need to keep those animals away from the garden area. Read the article carefully so that you can keep animals that eat tomatoes away like groundhogs eat watermelon from your garden and enjoy your vegetation.
FAQs
1. What eats tomatoes at night?
2. Do possums eat tomatoes?
Being omnivorous animals they are driven toward eating fruits and even insects. One of their favorite fruits to eat is tomato. Possums eat tomatoes basically at night time.