Q. Do you know of any effective protection against squirrels taking all my tree fruit?

A. One of the best ways to control squirrels is to limit their food resources. In most suburban locations, they find ample nourishment in the form of pet food left outdoors, bird seed in bird feeders and food waste left in uncovered compost heaps. Some people even feed squirrels. This keeps the population unnaturally high. Talk to neighbors, and see if you can curtail some of the activities that may be providing the squirrels with sustenance. If you don’t get anywhere, then cover your trees with netting. To do that every year, keep the trees small so netting is feasible. Tanglefoot might be another option. This is a goopy, sticky mixture of beeswax, oil and other ingredients. Apply a wide band of tape to the trunks of your fruit trees, and use a trowel or putty knife to spread the Tanglefoot on the band. The squirrels won’t like the sticky substance on their feet, and they’ll associate the area with discomfort and leave the trees alone.

Tulip tips

Q. My wife loves tulips. Is it true they only last one to two seasons? Are there any species that come back every year?

A. Tulips have a reputation for not returning for more than a year or two because they decay when their bulbs are left in the ground all summer. Some varieties can better tolerate heavy soil and humidity. Drainage is important; you may need to create a gravelly growth medium. Several species to look for are the starry-flowered Tulipa tarda, white-and-gold; T. turkestanica, cream-and-yellow; T. batalinii Bright Gem, canary yellow; and T. praestans Fusilier, scarlet.

Compiled from Washington Post reports