what kind of trees you working under???? if oaks.. then the squirrel is just doing his job ....

i have never heard of squirrels .... causing damage on mature plants ... you don't even note that they are digging them up ... i doubt a little scratching near a clump will make a difference.. short of total upheaval ...

are you referring to BA ... there has been a lot of fooling around with various hormones.. and chemicals.. but i have never heard of any breathtaking successes ... BA is used to release dormant buds.. for faster multiplication .. and frankly .. hosta can take care of that all by themselves ... IMHO ... as I RECALL .. always an iffy proposition.. lol ... unless the plantlets were removed... it had no long term effect on the plant ...

anyway .. i don't know if that was any help ... at one time there was a scientific hosta journal ... and there is a hybridizers club ... and the peeps who fool around with the chems are intertwined with the peeps who fool around with hybridizing .. try the AHS site for links to the group ...

Good luck

ken

Rocks! If you put good-sized ones around your hosta, they will not only protect the roots from erosion from being watered by a hose, and keep them cool and maintain the moisture better, but they will prevent the digging around by the squirrels or chipmunks! At least it has worked in my garden, and I have even been known to feed my critters, unsalted p-nuts, as well! It seems that if they have a ready food source, they may feel less a need to forage or plant what they do find.

I've never had a hosta destroyed by a squirrel or a chipmunk--voles, yes--but rocks can help there, too!

BTW--welcome aboard, Luis! Glad you've joined us!

Just to add my experience with the squirrels around here, our neighbor feeds them corn, and the little suckers like to bury it in my flower beds. This past summer I was always pulling out corn seedlings. They think they are farmers...lol!

I also use rocks to keep the squirrels from digging around my hostas. I have had them destroy my begonias in the fall. I caught one with a good sized piece headed up the tree one day last fall. For some reason they decided to chew up my Liberty this fall. No clue why? They usually just dig around the roots for pecans.

I used to think squirrels were sort of cute, but I am well on my way to being a squirrel hater. When they made a nest in my ceiling, and again in a wall. and then chewed through wiring to my satellite TV (that ended up costing a hundred bucks), I stopped seeing them as harmless little critters.

This year I have had the most destructive squirrels that I've ever had. It all began in the spring when I brought home my new 'Ice Age Trail'. Before I could get it in the ground, the squirrels had it dug out of the pot and most of the leaves broken off. I tried to save it by replanting the roots, but they just rotted.
All summer, nearly everyday one or more of the hostas in pots have been dug up to the point of exposing the roots. I have tried Liquid Fence, black pepper, cayenne pepper, baby powder, nothing helped.
My hostas that are still in pots waiting to be wintered in the shed, have to be checked everyday to make sure there is soil over their roots, the squirrels are still at it.
Next year I'm going get some rocks for the pots and try that.
My only concern about that is, how can you tell if the soil is drying out or needs watering? Or I guess I could just water them everyday.

Janet

vermin are vermin .. and the faster you get out of disney mode.. the better off you will be ...

though of all the vermin.. squirrels have never been a problem for me.. but boy .. do they irritate the dog .. lol ..

and dont you know.. they never bother with undulata. .. it has to be your most prized possession ... lol ..

god luck

ken

The chipmunks got my beautiful, new h. montana 'Aureomarginata' this year. Not only did they dig around the roots, they bit into the large outside petioles at ground level, and the leaves fell over and died. I blamed my husband, because he had put a bird feeder directly over the plant, and I think the chipmunks were after the seeds. Why they bit the plant, I don't know. Salad along with the grains?

Speaking of salad... my h. 'Holy Mole' was fantastic until last Sunday. The deer obviously thought so too. End of the season for Holy Mole.

We got now a second cat, specifically to patrol the outside, regarding voles, moles, and chipmunks.
This does not help with squirrels, racoons, skunks or deer. As was noted above, the squirrels especially have been a pest this fall. I end up repotting half a dozen pots every day.
The way I recall, squirrels are not looking for nuts, in fact there are plenty around. Thousands of years in the development of this species has taught them to hide nuts, in hopes to retrieve them later in the winter, when the pickings are slim.
Check your unpotted hostas, and see if you can find a nut or acorn somewhere in that mess.
Manfred

Janet, the rocks work VERY WELL in the pots. I never have a problem of them uprooting the hosta when I have rocks in the pots, and you're right, just water them every couple of days to be sure they are hydrated. In facts the rocks will help keep them moist and help keep them from being uprooted by the water from your hose.

I've used pea gravel as well as rocks a couple of inches across, depending on the size of the pot and the rocks I have on hand. I'm a great rock hunter--to my husband's dismay!!! hehehe

I have to use rocks in my pots too. I put 1 1/2 or 2 inch rocks in a circle around the plant unless they are big pots and then I put more. The rocks aren't touching and you can wiggle a finger in to check if they need water. In a few of my nicer pots, I have used smooth, dark rocks that I got at the dollar store and you don't even notice them once the hostas leaf out.

In the garden I sometimes put rocks or sticks about 2 inches out from the center of the hosta to keep the squirrels from ripping up the crown when they dig, especially with the minis. Squirrels could move it, but they are basically lazy and if there are other places to dig they won't bother it.

Hmmm, Dorothy--Lazy, huh! Explains a lot----!! :o)

{{gwi:1094727}}

Not one of mine--I got this one off the net! This is the link to the page--this was a really fun site to explore!

www.cuteaddict.com/squirrel/index.html

WARNING--only explore if you don't find squirrels a *scurge of the planet*! :o)

I spent the better part of today gathering up some rock from around the yard and now have most of the smaller pots taken care of. So we shall see if it deters the squirrels.

One year we had a particularly determined squirrel that would take the top off of one of our birdfeeders and crawl inside and empty the feed. So we decided to duct tape the lid on.
The very next morning I found the duct tape wadded up in a ball tossed on the ground and the top off the now empty feeder. Now that was one determined squirrel, LOL.

Janice, THAT is a monster of a squirrel! It's a wonder he can haul his butt up a tree, lmao!

Janet

I have squirrel problems as well. Especially after I plant a hosta. They seem to like the rich dirt I use. They don't seem to be interested in the older hostas which don't have fresh soil. They can dig pretty deep around the roots and do much damage. A lot of talk about rocks for hostas in pots, but would you put rocks around hostas planted in beds, what does that look like? How about a heavy layer of wood chip mulch?

Jbranch--Actually, I love the look of some larger rocks around my hosta in the ground. I even purchased some
unique ones this year to strategically place them around my hosta! I'm talking about 12" long by 8"
wide or so! But, I'm a 'rock' person!

I need to hunt down some pics. to show you when I have more time!

Welcome, Esudina! I'm near Dulles so we probably share the same weather.

I have noticed squirrels go for fresh mulch or fresh soil because (I think) they think it will be easier to dig in, to bury their acorns. Little buggers.

As others have already said, I've found largish river rock or other rock to help discourage them in pots.

My problem is chipmunks undermining the roots of my mini's, which are in a tall castlerock bed with, yup, relatively fresh, easy-to-dig dirt. It was worst the first year; not so bad this summer, which is the second or third. I should go look that up... body's gone, memory going. :)

Have squirrels, voles, deer AND crows! The crows this year upheaved all of my flower beds and a large portion of my plants. I guess with our severe drought here in NC all of the critters were looking for something to eat. I had to dig up over 40 hostas to try and save them from the voles. AND I HAVE TWO CATS! The good (I used to cuss it) news is that my one acre is mostly quarts rock and clay. Now I have begun the task of replanting everything, using permatile in the hole (to prevent the voles), amending soil and placing rocks atop and around all of my plants. Just when I thought I was going to be able to sit back and enjoy!!!

Hello everyone,
I forgot to check my post for replies; wow, did not expect that many. Thanks to all for your replies & for the welcome... I too did try everything but, alas, nothing worked. I did observe the ones that dig out my hosta & found the two main culprits; i have gotten rid of them & the problem is gone too...
All the best,
Esudina