A rodent has been eating the bark off my hibiscus tree. It has taken considerable bark off several main branches, stripping some branches completely bare. The rodent is still busy as I see fresh patches of damage. My questions are, when can I expect this pest to lose interst? Is there anything I can do to discourage him? The hibiscus is situated beside a fence and between 2 trees so trying to eliminate access will be next to impossible. With all this bark damage, will the hibiscus survive? Will I need to prune the damaged ? If so, when do I prune and how much damage do I need to cut off?
We have some stuff here called "skunk shot" humans can't smell it but dogs and cats sure can. Maybe your garden centre has something similar and can be used for yr midnight visitor. If you had been in Australia I would have said possum (marsupial) was dining on yr. Plant. I have a small outside light I use to discourage them as they set my dogs off. May be you could try the same with a light on your plant. Liz
