I just bought a spray called Neptunes Harvest Hot Pepper Wax Insect Repellent because something ate all the leaves off the bush beans, etc. Plus I have an apple tree with a ton of apples that I would like to get some apples from this year. The squirrels and deer work together in eating most of them. The squirrels will chew and cut the apples' stems and the apples drop on the ground. The reviews said this spray and pepper sprays in general were good to repel squirrels. The wax helps it adhere to the fruit and leaves. I haven't tried it yet but the reviews were good.

We trapped and released 5 groundhogs last year to a location miles away, but we still have a problem this year. My husband wants to shoot them. We're rural so it's safe. I've been hesitant to do that for years, but I've had enough. A couple of the larger ones, and I do mean large, were vicious when my husband was handling the cages last year. I talked to wild life professionals who will trap and remove them, but by law they have to kill them. The fee wasn't cheap either, so I guess if my husband wants to do the job for nothing I'll let him go for it. My neighbor has horses and the GH burrows are dangerous and can trip a horse. They're nasty buggers.My husband scattered some granular stuff I picked up at Lowes, but it didn't do much good. Not sure if my husband put enough around the vegetable beds. Coyote urine might work . You'd have to get that and the hot pepper wax over the internet or at a good farm supply store. I got my wax from Amazon.

To keep those critters away, not all plants are feasible to protect. For the veggies and shrubs that are fairly low-growing Here's one of many plans:

1. build a raised bed and have a layer of hardware cloth on the bottom

2. build a removable pvc frame (hoops are the quickest and easiest)

3. attach some hardware cloth to the frame or drape bird netting over the frame

4. put the frame over the bed

hope this works