It is very difficult to deter possums from eating your roses and flowers once they get a taste for them, but here are a few suggestions.

Put a spotlight or party lights to shine on the area for a few nights as possums, being nocturnal, do not like bright lights and learn how avoid that part of the garden.

Put sheet metal collars around the trunks of your fruit trees at least 600mm wide and 600mm off the ground (these will need changing for a larger size as the tree grows). The possums should then clean up your "windfalls" and leave the fruit on the tree for you.

Some sprays that can be used have a bitter taste and smell that conditions possums (and birds) by their common chemical sense. The negative taste and smell registers that the area is unsafe, and they move on. This chemical reaction disappears when they go to any unsprayed area - reinforcing the signal that the area they just left was unsuitable. This "learnt behavior" induced by memory or odour is often communicated to other members of the species, and so the sprayed area or plants remains untouched.

Try one of the proprietary brands of possum deterrents which are usually available from garden centers, hardware stores or fodder stores such as:

Scat made by Multicrop

D-Ter which is advertised safe for birds and animals

SkunkShot

Citronella Oil

Quassia Spray

To make your own Quassia Spray - boil a packet of Quassia Chips (from the chemist) in 10 litres of water for two hours. Strain, discarding the chips and reserving the liquid. Add a further 20 litres of water to the liquid. Spray the affected area for 5 consecutive days, and again after rain, until the problem is eliminated.

Quassia chips are a natural pesticide but are also a poison and may affect your domestic animals. The effect on possums is unknown, but the taste is so foul that they should not eat enough to do harm.

Unfortunately there is no foolproof way to stop the possums enjoying your choice plants, but if you put up a platform (such as an enamel plate nailed to a branch) with a selection of fruit and vegetables (no citrus) a couple of times a week, they would probably turn their attentions to that and you would have the pleasure of seeing them feeding and playing.

Fauna Rescue Of South Australia does not endorse any particular product or suggestion. The ideas listed here have been tried by people with varying success. We hope you find a solution that suits your situation.

 For more ideas go to:

 www.environment.sa.gov.au/biodiversity/possums.html

 If you know of another solution to deter possums from eating flowers and plants we would like to hear from you. Email your suggestion to info@faunarescue.org.au

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