Is your beautiful garden being invaded by squirrels? Are the vegetables being nibbled at and destroyed? Is all your effort into keeping your plants healthy going to waste? If the answer to any of the above is in the affirmative, then it is no doubt a frustrating spot to be in.
Everyone who has a garden probably suffers such destruction and has squirrels to blame. These furry, little rodents are experts in tasting the tomatoes before you can pluck them, checking out the beans before you could get to them, feasting on the chard or apples that you have been carefully nurturing all this while. These critters maybe cute but, you cannot afford such savagery in your painstakingly cared-for garden patch. You need to control squirrels and keep them away, and here are the top 7 methods that can be of help:
How to keep squirrels off the garden with these easy steps to follow?
- Peppermint
Peppermint is one of the most amazing and effective measures of keeping squirrels away. Much like mice, they hate the strong aroma of mint. You can buy some concentrated peppermint extracts/oil and scatter them all over your garden in little pieces of sponge or you can add a collection of peppermint plants to line your vegetable beds.
- Predator Pee
One amazing technique is using a predator’s pee to mark your territory! You need not get a real predator for a pet but just order the pee online. It is a perfectly legal antidote. From a squirrel to a moose/cow, nothing will bother you again when your garden smarts of wolf urine.
- Cayenne Pepper
A generous sprinkle of cayenne pepper will keep these pests away. You can also spray a homemade remedy of vinegar, peppermint oil and chillies along the periphery of your garden.
- Feed Them
This method is also quite effective as many opine. You can set up an area with some water and sunflower seeds, nuts and berries. It may be that they are not getting enough in their own habitat and thus coming upon your crops. If you set them a place to feed on, they will probably leave your garden alone.
- Fence Your Garden
Fencing your garden is a great idea but keep in mind to dig at least 2-3 feet into the soil to keep these deft diggers away. They are not known to dig any deeper than that. Electric fencing is also a useful thing but it is rather cruel.
- Trick Them
It is advised to cover fresh beds of new bulbs with thick layers of leaves or some heavy piece of rock and plant the bulbs at a depth of twice the bulb’s height. This stops the squirrels from sniffing out the newly planted saplings. Spreading an organic nitrogen supplement that boosts the health and growth of the plant by balancing the fertilizing properties of your garden soil also acts as a strong repellent for squirrels.
- Install Motion Detector Water Sprinklers
This is one of the simplest ways of fighting squirrel attacks. Whenever your motion sensor sprinkler senses movement near your crops, a strong spray of water will ward off the mugger and also add the benefit of water to your garden space!
The above-mentioned techniques involve safe, natural methods to make your garden squirrel free. Try different combinations from the above-mentioned methods for effective results.
