!@$!@ Squirrels

[Anonymous]

How to prevent squirrels from digging up potted annuals? Every year they dig up my plants leaving roots exposed and the need to replant several times a week.

[Anonymous]

I gave up and planted grasses. Between the deer, squirrels and what ever other critter's happened by, it was a losing battle.

[Anonymous]

I took a bunch of green plastic forks and stuck them in the pots, 5-6 per pot. Digging stoped, squirrels were probably hurting themselves getting around sharp "teeth".

[Anonymous]

I love when the squirrels dig up my bulbs and then re-plant them in other parts of the yard. I love seeing where my crocuses come up every year.

[Anonymous]

I put cayenne pepper in my annuals. It helps a little.

[Anonymous]

+1 on cayenne pepper

[Anonymous]

In pots? I use wine corks as mulch on the top of the pots. Not dig friendly for squirrels and very good as a mulch.

[Anonymous]

Our neighbor has a gum tree that drops spiky round balls. We collect them and put them on top of the soil in pots.

[Anonymous]

The stupid things are chomping up all my sunflower seedlings. If only they'd wait, they could have an entire huge flower head of delicious seeds. I've never had any luck getting rid of squirrels.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The stupid things are chomping up all my sunflower seedlings. If only they'd wait, they could have an entire huge flower head of delicious seeds. I've never had any luck getting rid of squirrels.

Same with my peach tree. As soon as peaches start getting some color, squirrels eat the blushed spot of them and throw the rest on the ground, 80% uneaten and hard like a rock. the ground under the peach tree looks like a rug, all covered with partially eaten peaches. Then bunnies get to work and eat what is on the ground. I am lucky if I get few pounds of peaches off my huge and productive peach tree.
In the fall I have to collect couple if buckets of pits, though....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The stupid things are chomping up all my sunflower seedlings. If only they'd wait, they could have an entire huge flower head of delicious seeds. I've never had any luck getting rid of squirrels.

Darn! I wanted to do sunflowers this year for DD who has asked for them. Nurseries don't seem to stock the plants, which at least would be grown enough to keep the squirrels away until they start seeding. Has anyone seen any? Sm particularly interested in elf sunflowers owing to smaller garden size.

[Anonymous]

Nurseries probably don't tend to stock sunflower seedlings because they're super easy to grow from seed.

Just get some seed packets and plant way more than you want to actually grow. I think maybe one in ten sunflower seedlings survive the nibbling of squirrels and birds in my yard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nurseries probably don't tend to stock sunflower seedlings because they're super easy to grow from seed.

Just get some seed packets and plant way more than you want to actually grow. I think maybe one in ten sunflower seedlings survive the nibbling of squirrels and birds in my yard.

I just read a tip about placing plastic forks tines up around plants to discourage small animals. I can see if this works around the seedlings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I took a bunch of green plastic forks and stuck them in the pots, 5-6 per pot. Digging stoped, squirrels were probably hurting themselves getting around sharp "teeth".

This is kind of brilliant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I took a bunch of green plastic forks and stuck them in the pots, 5-6 per pot. Digging stoped, squirrels were probably hurting themselves getting around sharp "teeth".

This is kind of brilliant.

Thanks! I'll have to try that!