Possums Indoors

Possums are browsing pests and can cause damage to many trees and plants. They often feed on roses and fruit in gardens.

Identify the problem

Possums where introduced to New Zealand to begin a fur trade. With no natural predators they have rapidly sprerad and become a major pest. They damage native flora and will eat bird eggs. They are also the major carrier and transmitter of tuberculosis to cattle and deer.

Possums eat roses, fruit and other garden plants. They will also live in our roof spaces, and given a chance become a general nuisance around homes and other buildings.

Solutions

To stop possum browsing damage:

Damage to trees and other plants can be reduced by the use of PLANThealth Buxus Blight Buster Thiram which is a repellent to possums and other browsing animals.

Did You Know

Brushtail possums were first introduced from Australia into New Zealand in 1837. They were initially landed in Invercargill by Captain J. Howell with the intention of establishing a fur trade. With no native predators and the native plant life having no natural defence against these browsing mammals, there was nothing to stop the possums breeding out of control.

The scientific Latin name for the common Australian Brushtail Possum is - Trichosurus vulpecula