Keep Pests Out of Your Garden
I recently saw a movie with my grandkids. It was an adaptation of Beatrix Potter’s classic tale of a rebellious rabbit trying to sneak into a farmer’s vegetable garden. Which got me thinking…
You put a significant amount of time into planting and cultivating your garden.
You’re proud of how it looks. You love walking carefully through it to check on the progress of your vegetables and fruits. Maybe you even talk to them, encouraging them to grow to their full potential.
But now you’ve discovered your plants have an enemy. Or maybe several enemies. And you’ve decided that any enemy of your garden is an enemy of yours.
Of course, these enemies are the critters who have found their way into your garden. They are wreaking havoc with the plants that would otherwise be providing you and your family with meals following their harvesting.
Among these persistent pests could be rabbits, squirrels, gophers, woodchucks, raccoons, skunks, moles and voles. These conscienceless thieves may look cute, but in your weaker moments you might wish you could send them to the great beyond with a shotgun blast.
Assuming you are a more peaceful sort who realizes they are trying to survive like all of us, there are other ways of going about it. And considering the time you’ve put into your garden, it’s worth whatever effort is needed to protect your investment.
Gardeners.com offers some great suggestions. Let’s take a look at some of them:
- Identify the invading critter or critters. Do some research into their habits, which could help you find the best way to keep them out.
- Make your garden less attractive to these creatures. Get rid of brush piles and tall grass where they can hide or nest.
- Minimize nearby food sources. You can do this by cleaning up birdseed (squirrels) and covering your compost pile (raccoons).
- Use beneficial nematodes and Milky Spore on your lawn to reduce grub populations (moles, skunks).
- Seal off access to crawl spaces under your deck or porch (all sorts of critters).
Here are some safe and humane ways to control the critters who otherwise will be helping themselves to the fruits (and vegetables) of your labor.
- Scent repellents. Temporary solutions include castor oil, garlic clips and predator urine, including that of coyotes. (There actually is a product called “Coyote Urine.”) Small animals recognize that smell and don’t want to end up as a coyote’s lunch.
- Scare devices. Motion-activated water sprayers, noise makers and reflective tape can be effective deterrents. You can also acquire an ultrasonic repellent. Keep in mind, though, that pests usually catch on to these tricks eventually.
- Assuming they are unable to get into your garden, your dogs and cats can help keep pests at bay. Dogs can do it just by their presence. Cats will actually catch voles and gophers.
- Live traps. You can use crackers, vegetables or other food to lure an animal into a trap made of galvanized steel mesh. Check your state laws regarding relocating wildlife.
- This might be the best way to go for many folks. Plastic poles and polyethylene mesh can give you an effective barrier while still allowing you a great view of your garden. And you can take this fence down after you harvest your plants if you want to. An electric fence is another option.
door sills, oil concentrate, soak the cotton , don’t know why the site misspelled these.
You are missing one of the best bets for vermin control. 100% Natural Peppermint Oil. Mix it in a ten to one ratio, water to oil. Apply it from a spray bottle to window frames and done sills, screens and vent to help keep stink bugs out your house, cabin. or tent. ALSO keeps mice, lady bugs, rats and snakes at bey. Stuff plastic pill bottles full of cotton the soak the content with the oil companies Centrale and place the bottles in pantries, attics, other storage areas. Magic.
Living here in the N Florida area we are inundated with all kinds of critters and bugs! It’s a never ending battle to keep them at bay in the lawns, the garden, trees and home! Fire ants are big nuisance but lot of great ant killers are on the market now. Armadillos the tunnel under a house is a big one here. I use Moth Balls the minute I see where one is digging! It doesn’t come back! If I find a hole already going under, I give it a bog dose of Moth Balls! They don’t come back and if they are in the hole they will come out! Then I shoot em! Others are Tree rats(common squirrel) and my pellet gun does the trick on them and my Malti-Poo keeps em running!
Marigolds planted around the garden will detract many pests, and are pretty. Animals don’t like the smell.
Thanks for that info, Margie!
Rabbits avoid areas with Dog or human hair. so when I get my dog groomed I get the all their dog clippings and spread these around my bushes.. cost 0
I’ve used DE For Years
plus distilled vinegar
My garden has an effective 9 foot high fixed knot high tensile steel fence to keep the deer away. Although the lower ‘fence squares’ are smaller than the ones higher up, the woodchucks were still climbing up and getting in. The solution was pricey but worked. 50 ft. long by 4 ft. wide chicken wire lengths are used around the entire outside of the main fence. Roll out the chicken wire and fold it into an ‘L’ shape with the lower leg of the ‘L’ being about 18 inches long. Place the long leg of the ‘L’ against the primary fence (outside) with the 18″ leg on top of the ground. No need to bury it, grass and weeds will grow through it and anchor it well. Using thin 3″ long flexible wires twist tie the fences together along the vertical leg every 3 feet (horizontal) at both 1 ft. and 2 ft. from the ground. Last, curl the unfastened top of the ‘L’ in a 180 degree semi-circle away from the primary fence (over the ground leg of the ‘L’. Woodchucks, skilled climbers, can’t fit through the chicken wire so they climb. when they reach the curled wire and grasp it, it fails to support their weight and they drop off. They next try to dig under but are foiled by the weed anchored ground chicken wire. This method is expensive if your garden is as big as mine and is labor intensive, BUT IT WORKS! Plus, as the beasts try to defeat the fence, they are relatively still and preoccupied and present a much easier target to receive the ultimate discouragement.
Most Nocturnal’s don’t like Light, specially Very BRIGHT LIGHT.
Harbor Freight sells two Solar Powered Lights, one with 36 LED’s ($15-$22) other with 60 LED’s ($27-$36 depending on sale).
I used two and now have no Coyote or Skunk Issues.
The first was installed 3 years back and still OK, but the Solar Panel was degrading (2 1/2 years) so I cut a large Plastic Pine-Sole bottle(s) as needed to cover the Panel(s) and Tie-Wrapped on Both Sol0ar Panels.
Still OK now going-on four Years and Rodents are gone.
PS: I’d also suggest wrapping exposed wiring with Aluminum Foil in their vulnerable areas?
I plant the herb Borage in with my tomato plants. Borage deters tomato horn worm. Also, plant marigolds with all your veggies. They exude a enzyme from the roots that deters many pests, And they look pretty! I also crush egg shells to keep slugs and snails from eating my plants before they can grow. The shells are good for the soil, and the soft bodied diners can’t stand the sharp edges of the crushed egg shells. Buy lady bugs to drive away aphids. Happy harvesting! Oh, I forgot to tell you The pretty blue borage flowers are completely edible and look nice in the ice tea and salad.
One thing most people don’t consider when battling animal pests in their gardens is that Nature will reward you if you HELP the animals be fed! So, a little ways away from your garden, plant things that the animal visitors like to eat. Seeds are cheap, so don’t be greedy and hoard them while Nature’s other children go hungry. Plant some things that you don’t eat also, such as bushes/trees that the birds like. Of course, fence off your own garden stash and clean up the area so as not to encourage pests. You’ll find if you work with Nature instead of against it, you’ll have better crops with less problems. Use non-toxic insect deterrants, like diatomaceous earth, neem, and karanja. Use BioGeometry (16 identical stones in a circle around each plant…or around your garden…I use that and have NO WHITE FLIES, but have had to pick off tomato hornworms).