Whether it ’s a cute bunny girl , a thirsty deer , or crotchety ground squirrel , dealing with plague in the garden is just part of gardening ( often , a very frustrating part of gardening ! ) Over my many year of horticulture , I have see how to protect gardens from cervid , rabbits and other wildlife effectively and affordably .
While there are many , many cure , nonsense and old married woman ’ tales out there , I will share what has work out for me without using a bunch of chemicals .
PIN IT
This post incorporate affiliate connection . If you click onone of the links and make a purchase , I may receive a pocket-size commission at no extra cost to you . Seefull disclosure here .
How to Keep Deer and Rabbits Out of the Garden
The dependable way to protect your vegetable gardens from deer , rabbits , and other animals is to keep them out of the garden as much as possible . This is the first personal line of credit of defensive structure and often a simple solution to keep undesirable garden visitors out of your growing space . And , yes , I realize in a hatful of instance this is simply impossible . learn on though , because there are lots of helpful tips .
At our last home , we were a few blocks from a wildlife conserves , and when the cervid pass out of things to eat there , or got bored with the menu , they paid a visit to my gardens .
All it take was a visit from one cervid , and then every night , there would be two or more add up to dine . They were n’t really scared of humans , either . Even the headlight from our car pull into the driveway would not deter them .
They would look up as if to greet us and then continue their feast . We had motion sensor lights in our backyard , but they became accustomed to those . I knew then that if I wanted to protect my garden , I would have to learn how to deal out with garden pest .
1. Install physical barriers
The first matter we did was to fence in our raise seam vegetable garden . We did n’t do anything fancy , and it was n’t at all attractive , but once the veggie rise and filled in , the fence was n’t all that noticeable .
If you do use fencing , be sure the bottom of the fencing is small enough so that baby bunny girl ca n’t lift through … talk from experience . And , make trusted that the bottom is buried , so the small buggers ca n’t dig under it .
wimp conducting wire : Any conducting wire mesh can be a great physical roadblock to your garden space . you’re able to add chicken conducting wire now around your garden layer as a fence or frame in the entire garden bottom .
Row covering fire : cloth row coverscan help protect tender vernal industrial plant from cervid damage and nybble from unseasoned rabbits . They ’d need to eat through the cloth to get through the plant life , which slows them down . Plus , a row cover can helpdeter louse pests , regulate temperatures , and aid in germination .
Electric fence : Anelectric fenceis a powerful check for the most unyielding pest who do n’t want to be appall . This is a more costly solution , but it is highly efficient .
Ultrasonic devices : Did you know some gimmick produce an off - put , loud sound to deter animals ? Place theseultrasonic brute deterrentsthroughout your garden to keep the critters out .
movement - activated sprinklers : This is a authoritative solution for look at with cat-o'-nine-tails or other animals in the garden , and it also works well for cony and deer . Thesprinklersactivate when they feel motion , which will affright the fauna off without harm them .
2. Start early
I knew I was n’t going to argue in my full yard , or my single flower garden , so I had to come up with an armoury against the cervid and rabbits that were feasting on my veritable smorgasbord .
This is very important ; hindrance must be used starting very early in the spring , just as soon as you see little buds bug out out of the land . After a long wintertime , wildlife are lust and looking for a intellectual nourishment source . Be especially vigilant with tulip , lily , liatris , bachelor-at-arms ’s buttons , smutty - eyed Susan , and many other delicious perennials .
I also urge trying a few unlike solutions . For persistent pests , you may need to try several strategies to protect your plants . If you plan for a problem , it will be easier to preclude them in the long ladder .
3. Add scent
Animals are highly strike by smell ; fortunately , many different odors put off the most unwashed garden pests .
barroom of liquid ecstasy : A simple bar of goop , like Irish Spring , has a secure odor that rabbit ca n’t stand . you could shave the soap into flake to sprinkle around your garden beds , hang the whole bars , or spray diluted soap on the plants your pestilence enjoy the most . As they take a nibble , they ’ll experience an off - putting taste and move on to a more enjoyable snack .
Human fuzz : Next time you get a haircut or make clean out your hairbrush , salvage the hairsbreadth and sum it to your garden . The deer will smell your pheromone and smell your bearing . It ’s undecomposed to stick the fuzz in nylon or another breathable fabric so the smell can escape , but the odor goes away after a few weeks .
marauder urine : Prey animals like cervid and hare are exceptionally aware of predators , and one of the ways to know where predators are is to sniff out their permissive waste . If you add a minuscule human water to your garden , the animate being will have sex there is a marauder nearby and palpate less easy staying there . Haha , neither hubs or I would do this , but if you be out in the state with no neighbors , that might be a different story .
Hot red pepper nebulizer : Did you eff you’re able to make your own deer repellent at home ? If you simmer raging Madagascar pepper and garlic in pee , you may spray the spicy solution on a variety of plants . Like the soap , the flavor of the blistering peppercorn will be extremely off - putting and get the pest to find a fresh reference of food . screen this on one plant , to make certain it does n’t burn off the plant foliage , before you spray your entire garden .
4. Eliminate potential shelters
It ’s a good idea to expect at your garden and identify any areas that animals could apply as shelter . Do you have marvelous green goddess or brush piles ?
These can be used by small mammal for living accommodations , making your wanton admission , favorite plants a convenient midnight snack .
It can be helpful to keep your compost off the ground ( try arotating composter ) , combust or compost your brush raft quickly , and vindicated dead plants out of your garden plant sooner rather than later .
Products That Work To Keep Garden Pests (Wildlife) From Eating Your Plants
Here ’s the thing with lapin and cervid , they become habitual to smells and gustatory modality , and their taste bud will adapt to yucky - savour plants . That means you ’ve get to change things up or use multiple deterrents . I had the good luck using Milorganite , and alternating commercial-grade repellents , Liquid Fence and Deer Off .
Milorganite
Milorganiteis an constituent fertilizer made from dried sewage . It sounds gross , but it crop . If you get it on grass , it will change state it a full-bodied , rich putting surface . It is also the flash deterrent out there .
I ’m sharing my Amazon Affiliate link , but you may plausibly get this ware cheaper at your local grownup boxwood store . It ’s usually with lawn plant food . I use a funnel shape and create a line on the mulch around all my flower bottom . It ’s a capital fertilizer too , racy in N .
Liquid Fence
Liquid Fenceis a nasty confection made with rotten eggs , garlic , and other skank that critter do n’t care for . I ask to warn you that it stink , and that is set it mildly . The unassailable scent does disperse , but the taste does not . Liquid Fence is my # 1 go - to in my armoury of wildlife deterrents , because it works !
It includes a wax ware that pull in it stick to to the flora through pelting . If you do n’t shake the bottle well , the wax will leave cloudy white spots on the foliage once it has dried on the plant .
Also , the merchandise recording label states that it ’s in force for three months , but I do n’t find that to be the case , and I unremarkably reapply it after heavy pelting . That being say , the white maculation on the leaf and the want to reapply still make the toll of this product and the fuss of using it worth it because it works !
write this pin to your preferent horticulture board on Pinterest , so you may remember it later!PIN IT
Deer Off
Deer Offis also made with shitty egg and garlic , but it ’s temper with hot peppercorn , which is off - putting to cervid , rabbit and squirrels .
So by using Milorganite and alternating Liquid Fence and Deer Off , I can keep cervid and cony equipment casualty to a minimum .
More Ways to Protect Gardens From Deer, Rabbits and Other Wildlife
There are so many ways to foreclose major terms in your garden . Some methods are tried - and - true , but there are plenty of previous wives ’ tales too .
I ’ve tried everything to keep the bunny , cervid , and squirrels aside from my beloved flora ! These are a few of the various products you’re able to assay to do just that .
commercial-grade repellents : I also usedthese stake thingsfilled with some kind of cattiness in my hosta seam , and they seemed to work well for our summer growing time of year .
stock meal : Made by dry out beast rip to add nutrients to the stain , profligate mealis also a great means to deter critters from your garden . It has an off - putting odor cervid especially favour to nullify .
Aluminum Proto-Indo European pans : This scheme is like making a scarecrow . If you fall metal pie pans or even old CD , the reflexion from the lighter can scare away critter .
Reflective tape : This product has two aim in the garden . First , it adds light like the pie pans , but it also do a loud whisper , click speech sound in the wind , stool it go like a predator nearby . It can also be used to keep birds out of the garden .
Cloches : Add cloches or cylinder - type fences around plants you eff cony will eat , like tulip or lily . I made up a bunch of piston chamber fences fromthis type of fencingthat works well . This is the one thing I have found to protect plant from baby bunny rabbit . They are so precious , but baby bunny will exhaust anything , no matter what you put on it .
Protecting Plants in the Winter from Deer and Rabbits
Deer and coney can do just as much , if not more , damage in the winter as they can in warmer months . When there ’s nothing green in the wintertime , they will resort to chew on the bark of tree diagram and shrub . I ’m not certain why , but some winters are bad than others .
We used thesetree trunk protectorsfor our younger tree . If you are in an area where you get band of snow , you may have to repeat up .
For shrubs and evergreens , like arborvitae , use burlap wrap orshrub protector jackets .
Grow Animal-Resistant Plants
If you ’re in an area with mountain of wildlife in your grand , there are many perennials that deer and cony do n’t especially care for . I compile a list of 30 + Rabbit & Deer Resistant Perennials usable in theGardening Resources Library . Complete the form below to gain immediate entree .
The list is divided by Shade / Part Shade Plants and Sun / Part Sun Plants . I recommend doing a little enquiry on cervid - repellent plants and rabbit resistant plants in your horticulture zona . By taking just a few minutes , you ’ll fall up with a in effect list of flora to try .
Some great choice admit : Shasta daisy , bee balm , lamb ’s pinna , and many more . control out the resourcefulness to find more rabbit and deer - proof plant for your garden .
Tips for Keeping Squirrels from Digging In Your Garden
Squirrels are my garden nemesis now . I am hunky-dory with if they savvy in the lawn , but not my gardens or my planter .
squirrel also love to exhaust sure bloom . They ’ve exhaust my gazania for the preceding three summers . No matter where I put them , the squirrels will get a way to get to them and eat them .
I ’ve read that the productPlantskyddworks well to keep squirrel and other garden critters away .
Capsicum annuum longum pepper or cinnamon work surprisingly to dissuade squirrels . I use cinnamon in my planter , and yes , it keeps the piffling brats out , but it does need to be reapplied . Once the plants fill in and the soil is n’t showing , squirrel are less potential to grok .
I ca n’t really visualise scattering Ceylon cinnamon tree all around my entire garden . However , I will patter it around pertly plant annuals . Also , after plant a new plant , if you mulch around it , so that it does n’t see like something just turn over there , squirrels are more likely to leave behind it along .
A Few More Tips to Protect Gardens from Deer, Rabbits and Other Wildlife
If you have a rabbit job , keep a patch of lawn overcompensate with clover just for the rabbits . I bang it sounds brainsick , but we do n’t do anything special to our back lawn so it has a lot of clover . Something I have notice is that the bunnies much opt clover over anything in my gardens . Just prove it and I think you ’ll agree .
If you have a curt produce season like I do , it ’s incredibly frustrative to see that tender new growth destroyed by roving cony or deer . luckily , you could use many strategy to protect your flowers , comestible plants , and yield trees from the critters . pop out by securing your garden as much as potential , like installing a proper cervid fence or electric fencing . Then , spot - treat affect areas using instinctive deer repellents like spray , Proto-Indo European pans , or other appliance to intimidate the creatures to move on to somewhere new .
With a scrap of planning and persistence , you’re able to enjoy a beautiful garden while keeping deer , bunnies , and other animals out of your garden .
Happy gardening , Julie
More Great Things on Gingham Gardens
More property to find Gingham Gardens :
Save a pin to your gardening board on Pinterest , so you could remember this Emily Post afterwards :
