Deterring Wild Animals from Eating Your Garden Before You Do

Wild animals, while wonderful to witness, can be a huge burden when they decide to use your vegetable garden or backyard orchard as a ready-made buffet. They can nibble leafy plants down to the nub, strip trees of fruit and nuts, and devour berries before you ever get a look in on what’s growing.

For us animal lovers, there is a constant balance of carving out enough space for both the wildlife to thrive and the fresh food to be abundant. The answer can’t be, and isn’t, to eradicate wildlife, and the same goes for growing food at home. In other words, we’ve got to find some cooperative solutions!

Well, some of these humane ways of protecting the garden from disappearing might be common sense, some of them might be revolutionary for you, and some might prove ineffective in your particular circumstances. But, before having a minor meltdown and giving up on the whole garden thing, here are some ways to deter animals from chowing down on that homegrown chow.

Fences

Fences, for some, can be a little costly, but around small gardens, they aren’t so bad. Plus, they are wicked effective at keeping out lots of veggie munchers, such as deer, rabbits (be aware that they can squeeze through many fence holes), and so on.

When the garden is relatively small, deer won’t jump into the confined space. Rabbits can’t really jump higher than three feet. And, lots of animals we’ll just opt not to bother when something else tasty doesn’t require scaling a fence.

Raised beds

Raised beds have really gotten to be the popular way to have a backyard garden, and it’s with good reason. Not only do they help with providing quality growing spaces for plants, but also they intrinsically lend protection to young crops as well.

While they can scale a raised bed frame, snails and slugs are much less likely to do so. Rabbits can certainly hop that high, but they can be easily distracted by tasty treats that are easier to access. Burrowing animals like moles and voles are largely avoided as well.

Covers

It’s incredible what damage birds can do in the garden, not to mention how quickly they get it done. A weekend away can be just enough time for the avarice avian to strip a blueberry bush or blackberry cane bare of fruit. Otherwise, some birds, like crows, will have a great time pulling up young seedlings for a snack or just—it would seem—fun.

But, a cover can make a world of difference. Whether it’s a small cage over young corn sprouts or netting atop a thicket of raspberries, putting something over a crop will deter the bulk of the birds, at least for long enough to get to the harvest.

Companion Plants

Different animals have different means of differentiating the plants they like. It might be the bloom or the shape of the leaf or, often, the odor. Often creating a mixture of plants within a crop can be really helpful for throwing wildlife off the scent.

Alliums—onions, leeks, and garlic—seem to be universally detested by animals. Oddly enough, they are totally edible for humans, delicious in fact, and can be grown through the garden as protection. Daffodils are toxic, but they are great for planting around fruit trees or garden boundaries because most animals, particularly burrowing animals, don’t like them and will steer clear. Mint is good for thwart mice, ants, and spiders, and other culinary herbs do the same sort of thing. Squash can be great for keeping raccoons at bay.

Noisemakers

Different noisemakers can be great for scaring wildlife away. This can come in many forms. Leaving talk radio on overnight in the garden can help. Wind chimes and crinkly streamers can provide just enough noise to keep some animals away. There are little buzzer spikes that go into the ground to repel moles and voles.

Garlic-Hot Pepper Spray

For many of us, the homemade hot sauce lovers of the world, the combination of garlic and hot pepper sound like a dream. Most wildlife, however, isn’t into the flavor of garlic and dine on mild dishes instead of spicy. This includes insect pests as well. So, using a little garlic and hot peppers as an organic pest repellant can be effective, but it does have to be reapplied after rainy weather.

Pets

Cats and dogs are guardians of the garden. They will chase out any riffraff that comes in looking for a free lunch. The big question will be: Will the pets tear up the garden in the process? Oftentimes, just the presence of a cat and/or dog will be enough to keep wild animals out of the garden space.

In short, before tossing in the towel or turning to lethal methods or even humane traps, it’s worth delving into some of these simple techniques for deterring wild animals from eating your garden before you do. Another option so folks like is planting an easy-access sacrificial garden to divert the wildlife and feed them at the same time.

Related Content:

• How to Humanely Protect Your Garden from Moles, Voles, Gophers and More
• Why Birds Are So Good for the Garden
• 9 Common Garden Pests and How to Deal with Them Humanely
• Animals and Insects That Help Control Garden Pests

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