Cut off flowers and branches - Ask Extension
We have noticed that some of our flowers and plant branches have been 'disappearing'. It looks like they have been cut off and there is no sign of th...
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Cut off flowers and branches #594528
Asked September 04, 2019, 10:09 PM EDT
We have noticed that some of our flowers and plant branches have been 'disappearing'. It looks like they have been cut off and there is no sign of them. We have a fenced in back yard and many of the 'cuts' appear to be too high for rabbits to have done. Please see the attached pictures. Any idea what might be going on?
Hennepin County Minnesota
Expert Response
It probably is rabbits. They stand on their hind legs and can reach quite a height. If you don't have deer, they probably are the culprits. They reached up and chopped off some of my tall tulips this past spring and then just left the blooms on the ground. Grrr
WOW--We were not expecting such a fast response--thank you!
Deer and rabbits were the only things we could think of also; however, with the fenced in yard the deer seemed very unlikely and there is no other sign of them in the yard. The Echinacea flowers were not on the ground like your tulip blooms. So are you thinking the rabbits ate some of them and just left the others? Do you know how high rabbits can reach?
Deer and rabbits were the only things we could think of also; however, with the fenced in yard the deer seemed very unlikely and there is no other sign of them in the yard. The Echinacea flowers were not on the ground like your tulip blooms. So are you thinking the rabbits ate some of them and just left the others? Do you know how high rabbits can reach?
Yes, they probably ate the flowers. If you think of the size of a full grown rabbit, they can be 18" or more. Take that length and then put them on their hind legs stretching up and you have some idea. I don't have any measurements.
OK; thanks again! Maybe the rabbits have been reading some of the health claims attributed to Echinacea! ;-)
Grin!
