Here are tips on how to keep squirrels out of the garden, off the bird feeders, and out of the attic—especially when they are most active in autumn!
Why Worry About Squirrels in the Garden?
With a fondness for fresh fruits, vegetables, and flowers, the common squirrel has long spelled trouble for home gardeners. From Maine to Montana, these wily critters yank geraniums from window boxes, pluck tomatoes from their vines, and strip apple trees like professional pickers. Though their foraging forays can happen at any time of year, a squirrel’s raid in late summer and early autumn can drive a gardener nuts.
Squirrels are especially active in autumn as they stock up for winter. They do not hibernate (although they may “lie low” during cold spells), so their underground pantries are vitally important winter warehouses. They have a major instinct for hoarding food, which helps them to survive. Gray squirrels stash food by burying it in a scattered fashion around their territory.
Although North America is home to several species of squirrels, it is the suburb-savvy gray squirrel, Sciurus carolinensis, that gives gardeners (and people who feed birds) the most grief. How did the clever critters find those bulbs, anyway? Why do they ransack some borders and leave others alone? What do squirrels eat?
The average squirrel gathers acorns, pinecones, nuts, bark, fruit, berries, fungi, and insects, but is not above stealing bird eggs and bulbs. Sometimes they will even ruin your flowers just for the fun of it! Keep an eye out for these pesky visitors and try some of our tips below.
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pest control
For mice control options, you might check out this page: https://www.almanac.com/pest/mice
As for spiders, although they do help control other pests in the home, and very few are able to penetrate human skin if biting, a few can be dangerous, depending on where you live, or if one is highly allergic to spider bites. Some spiders spin webs to capture prey while others hunt actively for insects. In the home, one of the best ways to control them is by vacuuming and dusting; be sure to destroy any egg sacs that you might find, including in garages, basements, and attics. Reduce as much clutter as possible in dark areas, such as closets, basements, garages, etc., where spiders like to set up shop. Remove debris/weeds around the home’s foundation and keep wood piles away from the house. Make sure doors and windows are air tight, with no cracks that might let in insects and spiders. Control insects, which may attract spiders as a food source. Outdoor lights on at night will attract insects, some of which might come into garages etc, which in turn attract spiders. Hope this helps!
Squirrel Damage
I have a small city garden that squirrels like to visit very early in the morning.Those unwanted thieves have now developed a special liking for young cucumbers, just when they reach about 2 to 3 inches long. They snap them off the vine for a quenching snack during this dry spell. Beware!
Squirrel Repellants
My squirrels LIKE hot peppers, garlic, vinegar, tabasco sauce, safflower seed , moth balls.They've figured out how to untie a rope meant to keep the bird feeder lid on and to remove the plexiglass windows. The only thing they don't like is a cold shower from the hose.Any other suggestions to get rid of these pest would be greatly appreciated
Squirrels
The squirrels in my gardens sound like the ones you have. Every thing I have tried from the experts has failed - and I'm not used to failure so I keep trying to find a good solution, even the owls have given up! I guess; because I've not seen them in my yard for awhile. They probably are getting the squirrels in neighbors yards now as I can hear them in the area. The squirrels are very smart and cute but very very annoying. I've tried feeding them in a different area but there are so many of them I can't keep enough food for them and then they are back in my gardens and stealing the bird food, my pecans, vegetables, flowers, etc. Please help!!!
You will not beat them by
You will not beat them by being nice. All my fruits and vegetables got pillaged last year, so this year I took matters into my own hands. Got a Silent Cat pellet rifle, 46 squirrels eliminated. It has mostly solved my problem. There's still a straggler or two, but I have had a much higher rate of harvest. Much higher.
Squirrel Infestation
We moved into our present house last summer. We had a few squirrels (4-5) in the yard and our dog kept them at bay. He would run after them and they were not a nuisance. This week I looked outside and saw 12 squirrels running and jumping from tree to tree in the front and side yard. We have a pile of large logs piles on the side yard and they scurry in and around that all day. They stare at us when we sit on the deck and are not deterred by loud noises. They just look at the dog and only run when he chases them. We have 12 squirrels and no babies yet. Unfortunately we now live in a suburban neighborhood so my preferred method of eradicating the squirrels cannot be used. Has anyone had to deal with such large numbers of squirrels? Would getting rid of the wood pile make a difference? Thank you for any suggestions.
Squirrels
They seem to enjoy that wood pile and may even be roosting in it, so removing the logs should encourage them to find somewhere else to hang out. Problem is, you don’t know where they’ll choose! They could take a liking to your neighbor’s yard or your crawlspace instead. If you have any birdfeeders up, these are also squirrel-magnets, so take them down.
Alternatively, you could try spraying strong scents around the logs, which could discourage them from hanging out there. The strong scents of essential oils, like eucalyptus, lavender, or citronella, may be just offensive enough to get the squirrels to scram.
Overall, removing any sources of shelter or of food is the best way to get the squirrels to move on to greener pastures.
Go back to your preferred
Go back to your preferred method. Get a Silent Cat pellet rifle. Be consistent. It truly is the only way.
Squirrel Damage
Help! The squirrels have eaten the lead seal off all the vent stacks on my roof causing several leaks in my house. Their teeth marks are apparent on the vinyl trim and soffit and facia board of my house. And, they have even chewed the aluminum fence ties off my chain link fence. How can I get rid of these destructive animals? I don't want to use any type of poison lest I harm the family dog or my neighbor's cat.
squirrel trouble
Squirrels chew in part because their teeth are always growing, so they need to constantly wear them down. As for the lead around vent stacks, apparently that is a common problem. There are various methods you can try, including installing a vent shield made especially for deterring squirrels from chewing there. Installing wire mesh over certain places that squirrels favor, and trying squirrel repellents, available at hardware stores and garden centers, are other options. Hope this helps!
Squirral and chipmunk problems
I've been using vaseline rubbed on the pole holding my bird feeders for many years. This works all season and through the entire year. I've only had to replace the vaseline once a year. The pole/bird feeder stands alone; so there is no way for the pesky critters to jump to the bird feeders.
Squirrel problems
I note quite often the publisher steers clear from the obvious solution.....population reduction. The loss of natural predators has created an explosion in the population of the bushy tailed critters. I noted in the article it said not to relocating squirrels, as it could present a problem for any abandoned young. There is no reason not to remove and relocate during your areas hunting season for squirrels. Pretty safe, as they are outside the critical times when the young are being cared for. Population control, is no longer a first solution........a dozen proposals written that just tiptoe around the only true solution. I’m fortunate enough live in an area where the obvious solution usually has the best outcome...squirrel and dumplings!!!!
Squirrel Retardant
I liberally sprinkle moth balls through my flower garden. Does the trick every time as well as neighborhood cats.
Moth balls and squirrels
Did you know in the states it is now illegal to use moth balls outside? After years of using them and putting how many chemicals into our water table they are illegal to use outside. I have thrown a couple under my shed still in the wrappers but I don't live in the states. Be careful who you tell that you are doing this.
Squirrles hate soap
I plant bulbs with a healthy amount of grated bar soap flakes on top and then more soap grated over the top layer of soil once the bulbs are covered up. If the bulbs are near an edible plant humans eat I use my homemade soap that has no harmful additives. I have had total success with my soap deterrant. Good luck to you all!
Squirrels control
The best deterrent is a 12-gauge shotgun, used frequently, and then the crows will take care of the carcass!!!! Bon appetite!!!!
squirrels in the garden
I have a grandson with a pellet gun that keeps the population under control!
Protecting bird seed feeders from squirrels.
We have had great success by attaching the children’s toy “Slinky” to all our
bird feeder poles..
The squirrels leap on the poles and are startled when the “Slinky” descends to
the ground with them aboard, or they will immediately jump to the ground.
After a couple tries, they give up...no harm to them.
Squirrels
I have found that putting straw around any where you don't want them to dig works, l think they don't like the texture of it, so l use it every where, even in my flower pots,you can also try rocks, they can't move them,good luck !
Squirrels prevented from digging in our pots
When we did container gardening, and we first planted the seeds, the squirrels would love to dig in the soil and bury their nuts. We just placed a bunch of toothpicks in the soil. The squirrels do not like to dig and touch the toothpicks. It worked like a charm and we didn't need any chemicals or complicated solutions!
Squirrels
Me and my daughter have both had problems with squirrels making nests in the engines of our cars. They eat the wiring. It cost my daughter 2000.00 to repair her car. I was luckier. Cost me less than 200.00. The dealership told us to tuck peppermint oil soaked cotton balls in the engines. So far it's worked like a charm.
Squirrels damage!
Yes squirrels are fun to watch. I lived in a neighborhood where house after house had to replace the electrical wiring because squirrels had eaten the insulation off the wiring in the attic.
Squirrels
Leave the squirrels be. No reason to scare them away. They won't destroy your garden. They're just trying to survive like any other animal.
Squirrels
I had two 4x4 raised beds of sweet corn. 160 plants. They were doing fantastic. I was going to have a huge bounty of corn. The squirrels came and destroyed my corn beds. Deterrent sprays did not work. They ignored live animal traps. I will probably be going to extreme measures this fall.
SQUIRRELS WILL DAMAGE YOUR GARDEN !!!!
Squirrels
I have a small garden even so it is a lot of work and I don't do it for the squirrels and deer.
Cage it!
My 4x4 raised bed of sweet corn was destroyed in the tassel stage by ?raccoons? And the cure was this: first drive four stakes at each corner followed by mesh fencing around the perimeter. Check mesh opening size so that it is small enough to keep the pests out. At a height of four feet, cover the bed with more mesh and secure to the side mesh. Allow the corn to grow thru the mesh while the ears mature inside this cage. Enjoy the corn. Good luck!
leave squirrels alone?
The grey squirrel is the very invasive and has adapted well to development. It has few natural predators in these areas and their numbers have so increased that there are areas that encourage killing them. I for one, thought they were very cute and fed them as they were very poor looking. I even rescued a baby squirrel and my kids named it Box; cause it lived in a box.
I soon realized how feeding them and encouraging them to make homes in my yard would cost me dearly. First they chewed the wires up in my new Toyota pick up. The repairs cost over $1800.00. They invaded my attic and managed to go down inside a wall and chewed the wires to the dryer. I was told by the fire marshall the squirrels were electrocuted and their bodies piled up inside the wall and eventually the wire sparked and the hair on the bodies ignited. It was April 3rd about 2 am. My father was 84, he lived with me. He had dementia. The fire and smoke scared him and he hid. I tried to find him but had 5 children to rescue as well. I lost my father because he died from the smoke and fumes.
I hate grey squirrels and do everything to keep them out of my yard. There are a lot of people that do not share the ideas that grey squirrels are cute creatures to be left alone. If anyone wants to protect the rodents, I respect that but do not try to impose your feelings on me because I choose to not want the pests in my yard.
I HATE grey squirrels and do everything I can to keep them out of my yard.
nandina and squirrels
The squirrels literally eat my nandinas - right in front of me! These are small about 1 foot high but have not been able to buy a big one- any help if someone gives me another small plant to transfer?
netting
You may wish to consider some bird netting for your nandinas? The squirrels do like those berries!
Nuisance squirrels
Can't you find them difficult and not "hate" them? Likely squirrels were around before humans. Maybe there just giving us payback for destroying their safe world. :- )
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