About this publication
Netting of garden fruit trees - guidelines to protect wildlife
March 2003
Why are these guidelines necessary?
These guidelines are designed to assist owners of backyard fruit trees in the proper construction of netting structures that will both protect their trees from damage and minimise harm to native wildlife.
Inappropriate netting practices can lead to animals such as flying-foxes and birds becoming entangled, injured or killed. Some of the animals, such as the Grey-headed Flying-fox are listed as 'vulnerable' under the Threatened Species Conservation Act.
Netting your fruit trees can improve the quality and yield of fruit by protecting it from the effects of wind and hail and damage from foraging wildlife. However, care must be taken to ensure that it is constructed in a wildlife friendly manner.
Good netting design
Individual trees can be protected from flying-foxes and other wildlife by stretching durable knitted netting over a homemade frame. All the materials you'll need to do this are available from many larger hardware stores and some nurseries.
The frame may be constructed of timber, metal or lengths of polythene pipe inserted over star pickets driven into the ground, with spacer bars of pipe or wood to stabilize the frame at the top.
A net with mesh size 40 mm (or smaller) is needed to exclude flying-foxes and larger birds. 30 per cent blockout shadecloth may also be used as a temporary and inexpensive alternative. The net must be stretched tightly over the frame and pegged securely to the ground. Remember to leave room inside the frame for picking, pruning and growth.
Inappropriate netting
- Never use thin nylon (monofilament) netting material. This can cause serious injury to flying-foxes and birds.
- Never throw netting loosely over trees as this can lead to entanglement, injury or death to wildlife.
- Always ensure your netting is stretched taut and held away from the tree.
Health and safety
- Avoid handling injured or trapped flying-foxes. These animals can carry diseases that may be transmissible to humans, such as bat lyssavirus. Always seek professional assistance.
- Always use gloves when handling dead flying-foxes. These animals should be buried deeper than 15 cm.
- If bitten or scratched, wash the wound carefully with soap and water and contact you local doctor immediately.
Injured wildlife
Contact your local NPWS office or wildlife rehabilitation organisation should an animal become inadvertently caught in your net. Do not attempt to release it yourself. Wildlife carers have the skills to handle native wildlife and determine whether any further treatment is required.
Your responsibility
Remember that it is your responsibility to appropriately net your fruit trees. You could be liable to prosecution if your trees are netted in a manner that could harm our native wildlife.
More information
- Find out more about flying-foxes on the Ku-ring-gai Bat Conservation Society website.
- Find out more about bat lyssavirus on the CSIRO website.