Bears are making the news around here a lot lately. Grizzlies are expanding their current range into the areas they historically inhabited showing up on the prairie. While there have been bears in these areas for several years, locals believe there are more of them, and the bears are increasingly visible. Plus, with the advent of social media, it’s easier for neighbors to spread the word when they saw the last one (sometimes in the daytime) making it seem like there are even more.

The whole situation isn’t going well for the bears or people. Over a month ago, somebody in a truck chased a grizzly until it took shelter in an old granary. When Fish, Wildlife and Parks found it, it was tired and muddy. A couple of years ago, farmers ran two grizzlies to death with equipment because they said they were trying to shoo them out of the corn field; they then burned one and buried the other. But it’s not only the bears on the losing end. A couple of weeks ago one grizzly killed 40 sheep over a single weekend. It didn’t end well for that bear, either.

My Experiences

I lived with grizzlies when I was just outside of West Glacier. One time a bear knocked over the beehives, and I pretty much gave up on a compost pile. My most riveting night was when my dog woke me up with that deep, gutteral growl that means something is wrong. I came downstairs, clicked on the porch light, and saw a grizzly licking the grill. That will wake you up, let me tell you. We’re having more bears around here, as well. Just a couple of weeks ago we had a black bear not far from our house. The poor thing was in a tree and a whole bunch of folks were gathered around watching it.

For the most part, bears aren’t a huge problem in the garden, but they can be if there are attractants they can’t resist. A compost pile is a good example. That’s like a buffet to them right there. If you insist on having one, you need to have it basically enclosed or electrify it. I spoke with a gentleman from the USDA Widlife Services who told me they rely a lot on electric fencing to discourage bears, both black and grizzlies. They even have an electrified “welcome mat” that they put outside of the door of barns or buildings if there is a problem with bears breaking in for grain. I’ve seen the spiked ones, but the electrified options are genius being non-lethal and effective.

Keeping Safe

Bees and chickens are other farm critters you often have to protect from bears looking for an easy meal. Even a well-built chicken coop isn’t much of a match for a hungry bear with extraordinarily dexterous abilities, which means you need to run electric around it to keep those hens safe and sound. You also might have to run wire around your garden. As mentioned above, corn is a favored treat by bears.

When I first moved out to Montana, there was a train derailment along Hwy 2 spilling grain and corn all over the area. Then it started to ferment. You can imagine what it was like to have a bunch of grizzlies showing up getting sideways on fermented grain. You weren’t allowed to stop along the road for years. If you have corn in the garden, you might need to fence it. In some instances, state agencies will help landowners protect their crops so be sure to ask. Apples in the fall are also known to bring them into yards, which is why it’s important to keep them picked up off of the ground.

A lot of gardeners don’t have to deal with bears in the garden, but if you do, you know what a challenge it can be. My advice is to start stringing the electric fence and fire up that charger!

This lovely photo of the black bear is by Geoffrey Kuchera at shutterstock.com.