I use hot sprinkling pepper (as is used in Italian restaurants) that I purchase in bulk from the Commission Market (Willow Brook Farms) on the corner of Clinton and Bailey and/or I plant very hot peppers near the plants to be protected and when the very hot peppers are ripe, with gloves and a knife or scissors, I put slits in the sides of the peppers and distribute the peppers among the plants. Rabbits don’t especially like clematis, but the baby rabbits don’t know what is good to eat, so they chomp on everything, he said. Vegetable gardens of all sizes can attract unwanted visitors who make your plants their five-course meal. Use Garlic. See more here in this article about keeping cats away. A ratio of about 3 ounces of garlic to 1 ounce of mineral oil typically works well to deter pests. A solution of cayenne pepper, garlic salt and soap DOES NOT protect rabbits from eating petunia flowers. Use old cassette tapes, suggested another gardener. Don’t use this mixture before harvesting vegetables; allow a few days to weeks between applying the spray to the plants and harvesting the crops. Especially if they have a strong scent, they should help keep critters away. To make the homemade repellent using these inexpensive items, place a water-filled bucket in an area where it won’t be disturbed, and add one dozen eggs -- without the shell -- and four beef bouillon cubes. Cover the plants with a solution of 1 tbsp. 0. You can buy covers that fit over the shrub and I’ve found them to work well. Hi CG, thanks for letting me know. I apologize for not being able to credit each gardener, but I do appreciate their help!). When the deer bend over to browse, they encounter smell of the air freshener, which they don’t like, and will back off. of … Odor repellants are granular and attempt to keep the animal away from an area in the first place with a bad smell. Do you have a favorite tips on dealing with critters in your garden? You can also sprinkle cayenne pepper spray on the soil (see recipe below) for your outdoor plants in pots to deter … She said the container has a dimple on the bottom so you can set it on top of a dowel or stick. I love those pretty little soaps, and I actually use them to wash my hands. Smells That Repel Rabbits Rabbits will turn up their twitchy noses at the rotten eggs and garlic stench in pest repellant garden sprays. Mothballs and Neem oil are both pesticides, and neither has directions on using them to keep rabbits away. Kim, I don’t know that coffee grounds will deter rabbits or deer. Thanks for any advice. In addition to tips on deer and rabbits, you’ll see articles about plant diseases, harmful insects and invasive plants as well as tips on other critters such as herons, squirrels and cats. Deer love new growth. I am still searching for something that will stop rabbits other than fencing. Mothballs aren’t supposed to be used outside. By the way, it’s free to subscribe to Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com. Another gardener said she plants mint around daylilies to protect her flowers. Fish emulsion is commonly used as an organic fertilizer and is made from mixing fish waste -- such as fish guts -- with water and allowing it to rot for several weeks. Thoroughly coat the ground around the vegetables -- don’t spray the plants -- with the homemade deer repellent. we made holes through small soaps and put string through to hang it on different limbs to keep deer from eating the small limbs of our cherry tree. What do you think about the use of coffee grounds? This smelly liquid is also available for purchase at garden centers. Castor Oil for Mole Repellent. Paula, John Farfaglia, extension educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Niagara County, said, “I doubt there would be any significant effect on the soil. Every tip gives us one more strategy we can try! Vinegar is acidic enough that most animals will avoid the area. It is also used to create a homemade mole repellent. Linda, I’m so sorry to hear that! This blog has been great but I want the notifications to stop. Whip up raw eggs in a blender add five times water to whatever amount of eggs you have Put the entire solution through cheesecloth into a sprayer and spray the plants that the deer love to eat. However, a few natural sprays can be made using inexpensive and nontoxic household ingredients that keep the animals from your vegetable plants without toxic chemicals. The solution will dry on the plant and last all summer but you will have to spray new growth. Irish Spring does have a strong smell and has worked for me as well. I think the best thing you could do in winter is to cover the shrub to protect it from rabbits. Blocking Access to Your Garden Add a fence around your plants. One drawback is that dogs like it and may dig at the blood meal. Natural Ways to Repel Squirrels From the Garden Using Spices, How to Enrich Soil for Indoor Plants With Egg Shells, University of Maryland Extension: Using Commercial Deer Repellents to Manage Deer Browsing in the Landscape, Homemade Organic Pesticide for Vegetables. You can lay or sprinkle whole garlic gloves around … Drape shrubs and small trees with garden netting, the same material used to keep birds off edible plants. Much appreciated tips and information to deter deer. Use them around the garden and plants, not over edible parts, unless the product label says that’s OK, and you wash them well before eating. That seemed to work a little better than just scattering them on the ground. We’ve talked before about how soap can keep deer away from your plants. 16th November 2017. Do Squirrels Rhododendron Buds? Do you think that would keep rabbits away? Yes, the stinkier the hair is, the better it keeps the rabbits away! Before using, dilute 2 to 3 tablespoons of the homemade garlic spray with 1 pint of lukewarm water, and liberally spray the vegetable plants. Now they ignore them and eat the petunias. After mixing the ingredients for several seconds, cover the bucket and allow the mixture to rot for several days. Garlic is used in some sprays to keep rabbits away, but having garlic in the garden didn’t do anything for me. You could also try burlap or the wire mesh seen in this article. I sliced the peppers into rings and actually looped them onto a plant that the rabbits were eating. Pour this mixture into a … Squirrels love eating all types of plant buds, even rhododendrons. Recycle those slivers left over from bars of soap, or especially from decorative soaps. But you don’t have to go out and buy a bar of soap to use in your garden. Vinegar. Before spraying the plants, mix the concentrated liquid with water using a ratio of one part hot pepper liquid with 10 parts lukewarm water. Here’s an even better tip for soap that I got from another gardener. Animals would have to eat 0.2 percent of their body weight before they display signs of poisoning. The pepper pieces need to be removed; so strain the concoction with cheesecloth into a jar, and add a drop of nontoxic school glue and two to three drops of liquid dish soap. See this article. I recently sprayed some of the rabbit-nibbled plants with Neem oil and they stayed away from those plants. Place scallions, garlic, eggs, and chili powder in a large piece of doubled cheesecloth. Strain the garlic from the oil, combine the oil with the fish emulsion solution, and store it in a dark, dry and cool location. … Jalapeno peppers can be ground in a food processor to create a homemade hot pepper spray. Attach plastic forks to sticks or dowels, tine side up, and set them around a new plant, said another gardener. Last winter the rabbits made their nest in a patch of garlic plants! I had luck with human hair on my plants to keep the rabbits away. After the peppers have been run through the food processor for a few minutes, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time until you have created a liquid. I have hanging plants can I put the soap in the plant or not. This has been placed on the NYS DEC list of banned plant material as an invasive planting. This taste deterrent keeps rabbits away from vegetable plants without chemical repellents. Homemade garlic spray repels various animals, such as deer, rabbits and opossums, and damaging insects from vegetable plants. Karen, thanks for sharing. You can soak hot peppers … Do you have any suggestions that would be alternative plants? Deer, rodents, raccoons and rabbits are a few critters known to munch on vegetables. Please let me know if you have other problems. However, don’t use mothballs. Blood meal mixed into a gallon (4 L.) of water or an Epsom salt spray will keep the rabbits from eating the young berry plants. © 2016 Buffalo-Niagara Gardening. First, place orange peel on the ground as this has an acidic smell … When the snow is deep, the rabbits can sit on top of the snow and chew the upper portions of the shrub. You can find more tips elsewhere on Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com. For more active bandits like squirrels, you’ll need a more covered approach. You can hang them high in a shrub that a deer is chomping on or hang them above shorter plants. He put the plant inside a old decorative parrot cage. Flanigan completed two writing courses at Pierpont Community and Technical College. Squirrels eat several plants, but hibiscus plants … Ruby and cgm, you must follow the directions for the use of pesticides. While you might find the scent of coffee delicious, squirrels don't. To minimize even further I would suggest tying small soap bars to a branch of the tree or shrub rather than leaving them in direct contact with the soil.” I hope that helps. liquid detergent and half a bottle of hot sauce, mixed into a watering can filled with water. This is a bit late to be commenting on this blog post but I’ve gotten a lot of great ideas from the comments here. But when the soap starts out so small, before you know it, the soap is too small to grip. Even fences may not stop deer. She situates it in her garden so the air freshener is above her hostas or whatever plant the deer are bothering. Opt for a mesh fence like chicken wire and bury it about six inches deep to combat digging. This is a great way to use something that might otherwise find its way into a landfill, too. How to keep animals from eating your harvest Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, beans, squash, okra and all sorts of summer edibles should be maturing in droves in your garden by now, … Your email address will not be published. Does anyone know if the soap would have negative impact on the soil below? She suggested taking those slivers and threading them on a string. If you own pets like rabbits and you don’t want to keep … For a high volume of trees and plants, use a spray bottle or backpack sprayer. Here are a bunch of tips. So, this year, I have sprinkled chili powder on the flowers. I have had good luck with this plant. I have taken your name off the list of notifications for comments on this article. Are there any winter hints different from all the great ideas mentioned here? Hot Pepper Sauce A homemade hot pepper mixture sprayed on your plants will make them taste bad to potential pests and keep animals out of garden. Amanda Flanigan began writing professionally in 2007. Then I put moth balls around them. Pat, I grew hot peppers one year and got more than I could actually use in cooking. What about blood meal? Thanks for your question. I used to use Irish Spring soap around my petunias to keep rabbits from eating them, but they got used to that. Pour this mixture into the mole’s runs to drive the annoying rodents out of your yard. Let me see what I can find out. Above the Popular Topics, you’ll see the Search box. Apply the soap in a circle around each … Another natural remedy to keep animals from eating or messing with your plants is to use garlic. Try Cat Nip. Fence the area to keep the animals from entering your garden. Simple and cheap tips for preventing deer & rabbits from eating your plants. Thank you for any suggestions. It is good for the soil. Bird baths and feeds are great for this. © Copyright 2020 Hearst Communications, Inc. Jackie, I don’t know. The first tip is how Krebs uses wire mesh to protect his clematis. It’s not very noticeable. 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