I had to put chicken wire around my plants. My little Rat Terriers dog holes almost 2 ft deep next to my tomatoes. That wire is pretty cheap too

No opinions on the pepper?

For freshly seeded garden beds I usually lay either some cheap plastic fencing on the soil or I use thorny garden prunings if I have them (rose, barberry, and/or hawthorn prunings). Anything that will physically keep cats from digging or would feel poky on their feet works.

I doubt the pepper will be very effective, especially after it rains.

Rodney

I'd lay the chicken wire down on the soil around your plants instead of caging them. The cats can't dig it the soil then. Plus I don't like looking at caged-in plants.

Ditto what littlebug wrote. Lay chicken wire or wire mesh of some kind down on the soil.

Skip the pepper. I have sveral cats. Use No_Float cypress mulch. At least 3quarters of an inch of it. The more toothpick like the better. They do not like to dig in it at all. Also a sand pile they can use for that purpose helps to keep them from doing it elsewhere as well.

For a really quick and dirty fix if you need to do something immediately, lay down some aluminum foil on the soil. 90% of cats hate the feel and sound of sheets of it. I use very effectively it as a training aid to keep my cats from touching or walking on surfaces I don't want them interacting with in the house. No reason why it wouldn't also work in the garden.

Interesting ideas. Thanks all.