I am happy to feed the birds- although the rooks that descend on my bird feeder and the naughty squirrel who hangs upside down helping himself to the peanuts, do try my patience at times. However, I am much less sanguine when I discover that someone/something has been nibbling the tops off my kale and broccoli seedlings over-night. I thought at first it was a muntjak deer which had jumped the fence, however after dangling lots of computer discs around the place to scare them away, the problem remained. I then discovered on the internet that it was probably a rat- and I have seen one in the garden. So what to do? I don’t want to trap them and have to clear up corpses each morning. I heard that they hate mint and so I have put minty things around the veg, however, they may start to help themselves to the fruit when it is ready. They are also effectively fenced in by the rabbit proof fence. Perhaps I can starve them to death before the fruit comes in. Whatever I do it doesn’t seem very kind. Ideas?