38 
WISCONSIN HORTICULTURE 
November, 1917 
Mice and Rabbits 
Pir.e mice and cottontail rabbits 
occur throughout the eastern por- 
tion of the United States and do 
much harm to fruit and orna- 
mental trees and shrubs as well 
as to garden produce and other 
fa m crops. 
Pine mice are se’doni seen on 
account of their molelike habits, 
for they live in their own under- 
ground burrows or in mole run- 
ways. The presence of these mice 
in mole burrows can usually be 
defected by an occasional opening 
that they make to the surface from 
the runway. Pine mice are not 
so prop tie as them near relatives, 
the meadow mice, but protected as 
they are by their underground 
habits they sometimes become ab- 
normally abundant. This is espe- 
ciallv apparent in states where 
hawks and owls, which are ene- 
mies of these rodents, are de- 
stroyed The mice live noon roots, 
seeds, succulent vegetation, and 
bark of young trees, and are very 
destructive to sweet potatoes and 
o + hcr tubers as well as to trees 
and shrubs. 
The most practical method of 
contrcPing this pest is by poison- 
ing. Sweet potatoes cut into small 
p : eces have proved to be the most 
effective bai + . They are prepared 
as follows: 
Sweet-potato hait . — Cut sweet 
potatoes into pieces about the size 
of large grapes. Moisten 4 quarts 
of these and d v ain off excess mois- 
ture. Slowly sift over them ore- 
eighth ounce of powdered strych- 
nine (aTaloid) , using a pepper 
box or salt shaker for the purpose, 
and stir constantly to distribute 
the poisen evenly. 
Ore or two pieces of the poi- 
soned. sweet potatoes should be 
dropped into the tunnels through 
the natural openings, or through 
openings made with a stick. A 
sys ematic use of this poison inva- 
r’ably results in an almost com- 
plete extermination of pine mice. 
Those pests are also easily trapped, 
but ow'ng to the extra time and 
labor required, this method does 
not compare favorably with poi- 
soning. 
Cottontail Rabbits. 
Cottontail rabbits breed rapidly, 
and in spite of the inroads made 
upon their numbers by predatory 
: nimals, such as the larger hawks 
and owls, cats, and dogs, and the 
excellent sport they furnish hunt- 
ers, they sometimes become so 
abundant as to occasion serious 
loses. They eat all sorts of herb- 
age, preferring such succulent 
foods as vegetables, clover or al- 
faTa, fallen fruits, etc. When 
snow cut 5 off the supply of their 
favori e food, they frequently kill 
tr< es and shrubs by gnawing the 
bark. In this way they often 
cause serious financial losses to 
nurserymen and orehardists. 
The majority of eastern states 
protect rabbits during the greater 
part of the year, although half of 
these state 5 have provisions enab- 
ling farmers and fruit growers to 
destroy the animals in order to 
protect their crops and trees. 
In localities where cottontails 
are sufficiently abundant to be a 
continual menace, the safest and 
most nearly permanent method of 
s curing immunity from their rav- 
ages is to fence against them. Tt 
hrs been found that woven wirr> 
netting of 1 l/ 9 -inch mesh and 30 
mches high will exclude rabbits, 
provided that the lower board of 
the fence ; s buried 5 or 6 inches 
below the surface of the ground. 
In cases where a small number of 
trees are concerned, a cylinder of 
ruuilar wire rett'ng around each 
tree, if so fastened that it can not 
be pushed up close against the 
tree, serves the pnrpese more eco- 
nomically. 
(May we add to the above what 
everyone in Wisconsin knows, that 
fencing against rabbits in this cli- 
mate is usually a waste of time and 
money. Even a light fall of dry 
snow followed by a wind will pro- 
vide a rabbit highway over the 
fence we built with so much care 
that would delight the heart of 
any Good Roads advocate. Better 
spend more on poison and also buy 
a gun. — Editor.) 
When the law permits, poison 
can often be used to advantage, 
t specially at times when the nat- 
ural food of the rabbit is scarce. 
The following formulas have been 
employed with considerable suc- 
cess : 
Poisoned Oats . — Mix together 1 
ounce of powdered strychnine (al- 
kaloid), 1 ounce of baking soda, 
Vs ounce of saccharine, and 3 
heaping table spoonfuls of flour. 
Stir with enough cold water to 
make a creamy paste and apply to 
12 quarts of good, clean oats, mix- 
ing thoroughly. This same creamy 
paste can also be applied to orch- 
ard primings. The smaller twigs 
should be cut up into 2 or 3 inch 
lengths and the poison applied in 
the same way as with oats. 
Poisoned green baits . — Cut up a 
supply of carrots, parsnips, apples, 
or other similar baits into cubes 
14 to 1 inch in diameter. Insert 
in each a small quantity of pow- 
dered strychnine or a small strych- 
nine crystal. When a larger quan- 
tity is to be prepared, the pow- 
dered strychnine can be dusted 
over the bait by means of a salt- 
shaker in the proportion of % 
ounce of strychnine to 2 quarts of 
the baits. 
The poisoned oats, primings, or 
