I mentioned my problems with chipmunks and watching them eat almost all of last year’s tomato crop. They seem to have an uncanny ability to know when a tomato is going to turn color and demolish it the same day. When I stopped at one of our local farm stands for some 4th of July raspberries, the woman who took my cash suggested mesh bags, like the ones that onions are sold in, to protect my crop. It’s not really feasible for all of my crop, like the sprawling bunches of cherry tomatoes, but for some of my prized, large heirlooms, it may be.
I don’t honestly know if mesh will work. The woman who made the suggestion had actually used brown paper bags. She said that they’d worked well, even ripening the tomatoes more quickly, but she quickly learned that they had to be emptied and reset after every rain or they’d hold the water and rot the tomatoes.
The problem with mesh is that I know my little chipmunk friends can eat suet through the suet cage and I’ve seen them use their sharp little claws. They may be able to eat the suet through the mesh. Or maybe, the strangness of the stuff will deter, on its own. Although I doubt that. These are very tame chipmunks.
If a coarse mesh will work, the easiest to apply is the plastic mesh “jackets” that they use to separate bottles of wine when they are packed two to a bag. They don’t need to be tied, just slipped on. And their natural stretch settles in around the tomato and can easily expand as it grows.
I had a couple of different bags; the one that I purchased with limes in it had the smallest mesh. It’s all an experiment. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Why not just put cylinders of chicken wire around the plants? You could remove them when you’re picking ripe tomatoes.
Alas, chipmunks can make it through everything but 1/2″ grid fencing. And they burrow up under the plants or come down from above. They would appreciate the nice ladder I’d made for them — easier access.