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During the autumn season, squirrels are particularly active. You will find them burrowing around and seeking food in preparation for winter. They do all that they can to create underground pantries that will allow them to be well-stocked before the cold winter when food will be scarce and hard to find.
Their food-hoarding instincts help them survive. So, don’t be surprised when you find a few squirrels rampaging through your garden during this period. They often aim for your nuts, pinecones, fruits, and many other plants. Some will even go on to ruin your flowers just because they can!
The squirrels that you will mostly come across in your garden are dark brown, black, tan, or light brown in color. They are up to eleven inches long with an eight to ten- inch tail. Do not underestimate these creatures. Squirrels may be tiny but they can cause significant damage to your garden.
So, how do you keep ground squirrels out of your garden? Here are 4 ways:
Fencing and netting
According to Smith’s humane squirrel control services, fencing and netting is perhaps the most humane way to keep squirrels out of your garden. Where other rodents can squeeze through tight spaces, squirrels are not able to do this.
However, it is important to keep the holes in the net small to avoid easy penetration. Instead of purchasing general nets, look for those that have been made especially for rat and squirrel control.
Chew-proof netting is also a great option for netting that goes over your plants. Apart from the use of netting, you can adopt a wire fence in your garden. Because squirrels can dig deep into the ground, ensure that your fence is at least a foot or two into the ground so that it will not be dismantled even when squirrels dig under it.
Use of natural repellents
Yes, there are a multitude of repellent options for squirrels. While there are commercial repellents that are manufactured, you can also opt for homemade repellent. Usually, commercial repellents are made using the urine of squirrel predators.
This is sure to keep the rodents away. When the repellent is sprayed regularly around the garden, you can rest easy knowing that your plants will not be destroyed.
If you opt for homemade repellents, combine pepper flakes, cayenne pepper and garlic then distribute the combination all around your plants.
When the squirrels get a taste of this, they will keep away from your plants as squirrels do not eat anything with cayenne.
Get rid of overgrown weeds
We tend to ignore weeds in our gardens. If they do nothing to affect us, why should we get rid of them, right? Well, this is wrong! Overgrown weeds are the attraction that squirrels need.
These animals are attracted to the vegetation and they are known to use weeds as their hiding places as well as a source of food. It is not surprising to find a family of squirrels hiding here. Therefore, take time to till and mulch your garden so you can prevent weeds from growing.
Use noisy elements
Did you know that ground squirrels cannot stand noise? If you want to keep them out of your garden, using noisy elements is the way to go. The best way to do this is by placing vibrating stakes on the ground so they will send out vibrations all through the ground.
Secondly, moving lawn ornaments can also create vibrations on the ground. This will automatically deter rodents. Finally, hanging wind chimes also discourage ground squirrels from setting up camp in your garden. Move the wind chimes from one part of your garden to another and you will send all squirrels packing.
Conclusion
There you go! 4 reliable ways that will keep ground squirrels out of your garden. Needless to say, your garden is your pride and you should protect it by all means necessary. Do not put anything by ground squirrels because they can wreak havoc on your garden.
Stealing fruits, bulbs and other types of plants is their specialty. By discouraging them from coming into your garden, squirrels will realize that your plants are out of bounds.
However, as you struggle to keep squirrels out, remember the most important precautions; keep children away from your fencing or netting, and most importantly, be humane in the way that you intend to use to keep squirrels out of your garden.
Natural or homemade deterrents may just be the best option because they simply deter ground squirrels without harming them in any way.
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