How can I protect my garden on a tight buget?

I just planted my first garden. I have put tomatoes plants, cucumbers, squash and watermelon. The tomatoes had fruit already on it when I planted them and now the fruit has been ruined by some animal (thinking a bird) How can I protect them from further damage. I am on a strict budget so if any one has any ideas with things around the house that would be great. I live in an area I dont have to worry about deer just small animals. Please help.

How can I protect my garden on a tight buget?
Aphids or plant lice secrete honeydew that molds and attracts ant.


USDA recommends


1T of liquid dishwashing soap--the brand doesn't matter


1 c vegetable oil.


Scientists believe that canola oil repels insects by altering the outer layer of the leaf surface or by acting as an insect irritant.


Canola oil appears to have no adverse effects on humans or the environment.


Soybean oil is widely available and has demonstrated good to moderate control on many species of pests. Soybean oil can also aid in suppression of powdery mildew.


When you're ready to spray, add one or two teaspoons of the oil-and-soap solution to a cup of water. Pour that into a sprayer and shake well.


Do not spray when temps are above 80 degrees Fahrenheit! Your plants may "burn" or have a reaction to what you are using in excessive heat. This is known as "phytotoxicity."








Hot Pepper Spray: This can be used to repel rabbits and other pests from your flowers and some vegetables. Note, use caution with vegetables as a peppery taste may remain on the fruit.


6 Hot Peppers, the hotter the better


2 Cups Water


Plus water to final volume





Put hot (like scotch bonnets) peppers and two cups of water into a blender -


Mix at high speed for 1-2 minutes keep lid on until aerosol settles this stuff is nasty. .


Pour into a container and set aside for up to one day.


Strain liquid through a cheese cloth.


Add liquid into a one quart container. Fill container to top with water.


Apply liberally to plants. Re-apply every week to two weeks or after a rain.








If you have old net shear curtains use them as floating row covers. Insects can't get through. Curtains, cheesecloth or nylon mesh tents made by draping cloth over crossed stakes.





Mites


Mix together a 1/4C of milk and 4 C of flour. Add this to 5 gal of water and stir well and constantly. This makes enough to treat several plants. It should be sprayed on to all surfaces of the plants every two days, until the mites or bugs have gone.


Firstly the fine particles block up the breathing holes of insects, so it is best to use the fine-ground white plain flour, not the coarser stone-ground wholemeal types. Secondly, it acts as a stomach poison on larger insects like caterpillars.


You can dust the plants with dry flour also.





Slugs %26amp; other nocturnal pests


Crush your eggs shells with coffee grounds and sprinkle them around the slug chewed plants. Caffeine repels and egg shells are not good to slither on. Hair from you or pet is anti slither surface, too. Hardware cloth, sandpaper, tansey or rosemary.


Slugs are attracted to the odors given off by the yeast fermentation process. The most popular bait has been beer. However, not all beers are created equal. In 1987, a study at Colorado State University Entomology Professor Whitney found that Kingsbury Malt®, Michelob®, and Budweiser® attracted slugs far better than other brands. Can’t sacrifice the beer? Try a mixture of 1 tablespoon (T) yeast, 1 T flour, 1 T sugar, and 1 cup water. The beer will need to be replaced at least once a week or more as it looses its potency or becomes diluted by rain.


Whatever the type of beer you use, you can create your own slug trap. Use cottage cheese, margarine, or similar size plastic containers. Put between 1/2 and 2 inches of beer in each container and place the containers around your garden, especially around plants prone to slug damage. Never, sink the containers with their rims flush with the soil level or you run the risk of drowning ground beetles, important slug controllers. The rims should be 1" above the soil's surface. You will probably need to empty the container of drowned slugs every other night. The range of slug traps is only a few feet so you need to supply a few traps throughout your garden.


Slug hunting is a euphemism for handpicking, a term which implies more direct contact than I like to think about. The best time to do it is at night, when the slugs are active. Gloves and a flashlight are essential; a set of tongs or chopsticks is advised. Slug hiding sites make night cropping easier. Lay out old carpet or boards or grapefruit rinds upside down. Slugs go under to hide in daylight. Remove slugs each morning and scrape them into a lidded bucket of soapy water.





Earwig traps are plastic pots baited with fish oil (like tuna or sardines) on water, placed in a small cup sunk into the ground they will be visited by earwigs. Keep the level of the oil at least an inch below the surface, forcing the earwigs to crawl deeply into the cup. Many earwigs may be attracted into oil-baited cups and drown.





Rolled corrugated cardboard can be very effective trapping earwigs, as can rolled or crumpled newspapers. Wheat bran and wheat germ are among the baits that have been effective in CSU trials. Such traps should be collected every 2-3 days, bagged and the captured earwigs discarded.
Reply:Slugs and snails will eat your tomatoes, but it could also be a tomatoe hornworm. They are large caterpillars - green so that they blend in well with foliage - and they have a horn on top of their head. The easiest way to get rid of them is to hand pick them. You have to look very close to spot them though. Birds will not usually eat tomatoes.
Reply:Your tomatoes were probably eaten by a slug. Dig some plastic cups into the ground and put some beer in them. The slugs will go for the beer and not for your plants.
Reply:i use the bridal veil stuff.... Toole or some other kind of netting depending on whats on sale at the fabric store.... i tie it to the stakes and the fence i have behind the garden....s will keep birds out but not the bugs...but you stated that you had problems with birds not bugs so hopefully the netting helps! good luck! and the netting if you take care of it you can reuse next year!
Reply:It might sound gross but egg shells and coffee grounds, mix it up and put it in your soil, and the slugs will get cut up by the egg shells because there body is so sensitive. That will work I do that to my garden all the time and slugs never came into my garden since I put that stuff in it...
Reply:My grandmother said that the best way on a tight budget is to pour soapy water (dish soap) on your plants, it will kill bugs and when animals eat your plants it will only have an aweful taste and it won't hurt them (like having your mouth washed with soap) but do this every few days or it will wash off when you water them.. hope this helps!!