Something is eating the new growth off the sedums I just planted. What could it be and how do I stop it?

Welcome to NGA @bcheckov

I see you are in zone 7, but could you include a state or country? A picture of your plant would also be helpful.

In summerbirds will go after sedums for water stored in the leaves. Rutgers Univ just released a notice on the red headed flea beetle

http://plant-pest-advisory.rut...

These are merely guesses without being able to see the damage, or knowing what part of the world they are growing in.

I agree more information and a picture would help us figure out possible culprits. The type of sedum also, and the extent of the damage. If this is a large sedum like 'Autumn Joy' and large amounts of the tops are disappearing, around here that would be deer. They love those sedums!

Snales/slugs?

Another gardener here has seen the birds eat them, weird as that may sound, I have no reason to doubt her. But could be other culprits.

I have had the birds pull the smaller type ground sedum apart, feeding on parts of the plant. Seems like it is only in the spring when they do this.

I've seen the suggestion, for dealing with groundhog damage, that giving them water sources might reduce the plant damage. No idea if this applies to the birds (if that's the culprit)

I lost my purple split rocks (Pleiospilos nelli 'Royal Flush' ) to very persistent birds. They literally gouged them to death.

Also, squirrels, mice and other rodents will graze on various succulents.

Hi Sally . I thought that might work too. I discovered that it wasn't water they were after. We have a pond and 6 birdbaths and 3 butterfly water trays....then I realized that it was indeed spring and early summer that the damage was done, I think the critters were looking for food as the berries and seeds etc. weren't growing/ready yet. Maybe they were just hungry.

Good observation, moonhowl

It could be birds. I've seen purple finch on them repeatedly. I thought they were drinking water!

BTW, I am in northern Virginia and here is a picture of the sedum (Autumn Joy).

What kind of birds are they? I have never had them bother the upright sedum. Do you have dear that might be visiting at night?

I'm pretty sure I've seen purple finch on the sedum. The sedum is Autumn Fire not Autumn Joy. I don't think deer are around since it is a subdivision near a golf course with no woods around.

Do rabbits eat sedum?

I haven't had rabbits eat sedum but different rabbits have different ideas about what is tasty. Is the golf course completely surrounded by sub-divisions? I see deer on the golf course near here which has some houses around but also farmland. If it was deer you may see their hoofprints in the soil near the plants.

I can see beak shaped cutouts in hard to reach angles. I see these in green leaves in spring of certain types of plants. The culprits in my case are White Crowned Sparrows that winter over in the gardens here. Pecked a few things to death every year then they start in on petals of spring flowers! Love them anyway.

Yes, some rabbits will nibble on sedum.
Same here Leslieray. We have the little house sparrows. We love them. The Blue Jays do a lot of damage here in the spring.

Beth, I'm not too far from you and have witnessed birds eating my sedum. I was standing in the kitchen and watched as a bird perched on the hanging basket and feasted on the sedum for quite awhile.

But the damage on my Sedum seboldii isn't as extensive as yours and I've never had birds touch my larger sedums like Autumn Fire.

I don't have deer so I don't know what deer damage looks like, but I do know that sedum is not at all deer proof.

I'm in Maryland just over the Potomac from Beth, and have identical sedum damage. I've seen the purple finch on it and have woodchucks across street. Any ideas on how to keep the birds away?

Bird netting? It's black and is not very noticeable. Putting a realistic looking owl worked for awhile. But you do need to move it around the garden.