Does Liquid Fence work for squirrels?

I've been spraying it like crazy because of the rabbits. This morning I went out and one of my RS had a large leaf bitten off of it... It had rained since the last time I sprayed - just a few days ago. Makes me sooooo mad!

Last year I had trouble with chipmunks digging in my pots on the deck - someone suggested putting plastic forks down in the media - with the tines up - to discourage them. I think that worked. I also sprinkled cayenne pepper around the plants.

I use 1/2" hardware cloth laid across the tops of the pots when the hostas are dormant. Once they come up, I just have to go around each day and refill the holes. We have tree squirrels here... and they dig everywhere planting acorns and those #%$#^$ peanuts!!! Don't feed them!

-Babka

I would use chickenwire over the pots, barbed wire (ha!) or bird netting. And I agree with Babka, I tried the "give them their own food" tactic and that is a huge fail. If you feed them, the second their food runs out, they will go to any lengths to eat anything and everything else.

I have no idea if Liquid Fence works for squirrels, Windymess. Maybe someone else has tried it? I sympathize with you in regards to the rabbits. We had to have one side of our fence redone so I had my husband put up some wiring to prevent the rabbits from entering while the fence was being built. I hated the thought of having some rabbits chew my plants in the springtime when, for the most part, they are at their best!

Love the idea of the plastic forks! Now in regards to the cayenne pepper, I had heard about that method from Moccasinlanding, a former member of the hosta forum. When I told my kids and another avid gardener, they said that that was a cruel thing to do. I try to use other methods and am generally satisfied with them. Going to add the plastic fork method to my list of squirrel/chipmunk deterrents!

Babka, I like the idea of using the 1/2" hardware cloth across the tops of the pots when the hostas are dormant. I may leave some pots outside next year and will cover them with the cloth or some time of screening. I think cutting the screening and pinning it down on some of your pots would really help. After the same pot is dug once and then twice, well, that's the limit for me! The screening is then attached and voila! no problems! After you have them cut, they are easily available for the next season. You could always put some dirt on top of it to make them less visible.

Popmama, chicken wire , barbed wire or bird netting are all good suggestions I think. I agree with you and Babka that feeding the squirrels may create more problems.

nhl, You've gone to great lengths and gotten creative. I really like your homemade greenhouse! I cringe when people suggest cayenne pepper because it can have cruel consequences. Glad you went another direction. I like how you're displaying your own birds pics using the same frames and sizes. That looks really good!

nicholsworth, that would probably be my solution, feeding them, but ....that's a lot of squirrels at your diner. I might feel overrun if I saw that many at once.

I'm lucky that (so far) my squirrels are very well-behaved. The worst they've done lately is to tip over the tray bird feeder, and spill it all over the deck. Then they're polite enough to clean up their mess by stuffing their little cheeks and running off.

sandyslopes - it IS too many..they're so friendly..they come to us like dogs..they each get a pile of nuts to avoid fights..husband is a softie..trying to cut back & close the "peanut buffet"..agree that pepper is cruel..might try forks..

Hi Sandyslopes. I thought the cayenne pepper idea sounded good, but then, had second thoughts about the whole thing. Thanks for the compliments. The pictures were an idea we had to make our home more personalized---to show something about the people who live there, what they enjoy and value.

Nicolsworth, I have to say that your squirrels do look so darned cute!

Cayenne pepper doesn't cause any actual injury...in people or squirrels. It will make them uncomfortable and they won't go there again...until next week. What is cruel, is what they do in my yard, digging holes and uprooting plants. Don't let those big round eyes and soft little tummies fool you. Furry rodents.

-Babka

newhostalady - the squirrels r cute..especially when they're coming to u when u call!!..love those pots too..would a hosta overwinter in my zone 5-6 in a concrete pot?..hate the idea of moving the pots or covering them...

Babka, I'm with you... And around my house there is PLENTY for them to eat naturally.

windymess - the squirrels don't need us to survive..it just sort of happened..

Cute but a giant pain, furry rodents for sure!

I've tried cayenne pepper and mammal repellent sprays and none of it worked. The only deterrent that did work for me was to cover the pots with chicken wire. For the most part, the pips grew right up through it with little problem.

Had to cover some hosta planted in the ground with chicken wire too.

Nicholsworth, it would be lovely to see a hosta in those concrete pots of yours! I am afraid though that you would definitely need to cover your pots. Concrete pots absorb moisture and when frozen this moisture expands. It is then prone to some cracking. Now that would be a shame! Great closeup photo of the squirrel and peanuts! Do you know if these squirrels are fox squirrels?

Nice neat job on the chicken wire dgregory! Thanks for sharing. I just might use that method myself!

newhostalady - I had a feeling that it wouldn't work to fill those pots with hosta..

nicholsworth, if my squirrels came up to me like yours do, I'd end up putting out a banquet for them, lol. That is too cute how it's eating out of the peanut jar.

re: cayenne pepper, imagine it getting into your eyes. It would hurt like the dickens, but we can run to a sink and flush our eyes out with water. Animals can't do that. ....But I know what it feels like to be overrun (rats! before the weasel) and trying to find ways to deal with them.

....I might have spoke too soon about the squirrels. I won't blame them yet, but someone is eating some of the small and tender shoots of my hostas that are just coming up now.

sandyslopes - AGREE with u about pepper..CRUEL..would bother me to use it..I've had squirrels dig by a newly planted hosta but they don't bother my established ones thank goodness..seem to be more attracted to pots..

I only have 2 out of 230 hosta in pots and the squirrels haven't bothered those, but I do have about 50 pots with annuals. After squirrels digging, breaking and pulling my annuals out, especially my sweet potato vine, I did some research. IRISH SPRING SOAP...solved the problem. So now after I pot or put my pots out I use a knife or potato peeler and put some Irish spring shavings in each pot. I also sprinkle around new plantings in the ground and it solved the problem. I have to repeat a couple times in the spring after big rains, but it's worth it and doesn't harm the squirrels.

ellianne - wow - I couldn't handle that many pots of annuals..have about a dozen..have heard of Irish Spring as deer repellent but never thought of using it for squirrels..has no effect on the plants?

I remember something about that (Irish Spring) soap. You just use a potato peeler for a few shavings. Never tried it, no deer here, so I just use the hardware cloth.

-Babka

I get little metal grills like an oven rack or a grill rack or even metal shelf parts and set them on top of my pots. Those "fuzzy tail rats" uprooted a lot of my caladium in their pots.

I used to go through 200+ pounds of bird feed every winter; most of it eaten by the little "rats".

Ellianne12, thanks for the tip on Irish Spring soap. I don't imagine that the squirrels would like the scent of that soap. (I don't even like it! LOL) I, too, think I remember someone mentioning it when trying to repel deer. Just like Nicholsworth, I wonder if the plant suffers any ill effects from the soap. I suppose you haven't had any problems using it?

Gardenerlorisc_ia, I suppose you mean that you use the racks before the pips have emerged? Sorry to hear that the squirrels uprooted your caladiums. (I love caladiums!)

I love the birds, and therefore will have to contend with the squirrels, raccoons and mice. But I do find that some bird feeders are much better than others (when it comes to seed loss). I only provide sunflower seeds. That way the birds are not throwing out seed in order to get to the "good" stuff.

From above: "I know though that my squirrels would then bury some nuts in my pots! How about slowly putting the nuts further and further away---ending up far away from your pots? " My neighbor feeds the squirrels whole peanuts in the shell. I am forever finding peanuts buried in MY garden and pots! This is quite a distance away. I didn't know where the peanuts were coming from until they happened to mention it. I don't feed the squirrels. they do so much damage I don't want to encourage any population increase.

Anyone ever try mothballs? I have had great success with them. Now, I can have begonias and caladium and elephant ears and not have them dug up.

linnea, I don't think feeding the squirrels and then slowly putting the nuts further would help deter the squirrels from digging in my pots. The squirrels like to dig in softer soil. Since much of my garden is over run with maple tree roots, that leaves the pots as targets. I am just going to have to protect my pots. I have reread this thread and had forgotten about using irish spring soap. I also like dgregory's idea of placing chicken wire over the pot and the fact that most hosta just grow through the wire.

I have never heard of using mothballs Lori. Are you just putting it on top of the media? How many?

newhostalady..I wanted to say we've closed the squirrel peanut buffet!..now we feed bluejays, titmice, chickadees and Carolina wrens..we've been putting very few crushed nuts on an old wrought iron table I found on the curb on trash day..my husband removed the wicker (holes in it) and made a top of scrap cedar..the perfect height to view from the window when you're sitting in the house..if the nuts don't disappear by evening we scrape them into a dustpan for tomorrow..don't want critters coming in the night..squirrels could certainly get to the nuts but have stopped coming right by the house..we decided not to entice them by calling or holding the jar out for them...they do drink from the birdbath and dig by newly planted plants (grrr..)..and they go after potted annuals..when it's time for annuals next year I'll review your strategies..you've really been working on the perfect solution..one of the squirrels used to run around by our feet as we walked to get the nuts..he would follow us from out in the yard to the back door..was so cute..still ticked at my husband because I asked him to get some video and he would say "later"..later never happened..like linnea I've found peanuts in the shell in my yard and I don't buy them..I used Milorganite for the first time this year and it might have helped..they still bothered the caladiums in pots that were sitting on the deck..even though I put a little Milorganite on top..supposedly repels deer and rabbits..

Thank God for cats. I just wish they were better at catching voles.

I just put a few mothballs on top of the soil in my pots; that seems to keep the squirrels from digging the bulbs up.

lori..I've never used mothballs (inside or out)..do they disintegrate after they get wet?..

Sounds like you did the right thing nicholsworth55 in not feeding the squirrels their buffet! I bet they miss a good thing! Good idea to clean up the uneaten nuts before dark. Hey, I'm ticked at your husband too for not getting that video! LOL It would have been great to have. We had a friendly squirrel a year ago. We gave him one unshelled walnut a day. He would come and tug on my pant leg. Once he climbed up my back. One day my daughter said she wanted to be the one to give him a walnut and she was too slow, and as she was coming outside, the squirrel was coming inside the house! Yikes! That was caught on tape.

I am going to be purchasing Bobbex which was suggested by someone as a repellent. Hopefully that will help?

I am wondering too about the mothballs disintegrating. Can you tell us about that Lori?

I put some mothballs out for other plants in the yard, but when a racoon smells a grub, NOTHING stops him!

I use 1/2" 3' sheets of hardware cloth like the above. Keeps the squirrels out. We have MANY!

-Babka

newhostalady..squirrels CAN be cute..tugging on your pant leg is cute..I was sitting on my garden seat (which is very low) and a squirrel put his front paws on my thigh and pulled his face up towards mine like "hey see me? I want nuts"..so of course I got up and gave him some..I wish they weren't so destructive..

My yard is overrun with them. I don't do anything to encourage them, but I must have more then one neighbor who feeds them. And of course, I'm the only one with a garden, so I'm the only one who has damage.

I planted a couple of special dwarf arborvitae midsummer this year to screen a monstrous cable box in the rear of the yard. I'm not home continuously a lot of the summer but my husband waters and I point out the new plantings for him to check. The shrubs had large root balls so he planted them with me. In late September I was making my rounds of the yard. I happened to walk BEHIND the arborvitae. I saw the roots had been totally dug out and exposed. Dozens of holes. The backs of the shrubs were all dead. The tree rats had been smart enough to not dig in the front where the holes would be seen and filled. That's over $ 100 in shrubs that probably won't survive the winter. We dug them out and replanted them but they probably won't make it.

They dug my newly planted lilies last year. Didn't eat them, just shredded them. I protect tulips and known squirrel candy with wire hardware cloth pinned down, plus sprinkle with cheap cayenne in the holes and on top. Then sprinkle baby powder on top for long enough in the fall that they forget them. That's a lot of trouble. But they are not supposed to eat lilies, as they are poisonous. At $10 to $15 a pop, that made me furious.

I've seen mothballs in the store and wondered. Aren't they dangerous for humans to handle?

Here is info on mothballs

I guess over the entire summer the mothballs do disintegrate but by that time the squirrels don't seem to be that interested.

I do wear my gardening gloves when I sprinkle out my mothballs.

Babka, that hardware cloth is doing a good job! Makes using it easy when the pots are basically the same size. Is that room of yours open all the time?

Nicholsworth55, I think the squirrels are cute, especially when they are tugging on your pant leg! But when I find a big hole in one of my hosta pots---then they're not so cute. But I can't be that quick to blame the squirrel. Could have been a racoon or skunk?

It's unfortunate that you are the only one with a garden in your area, linnea56. That will certainly attract the squirrels. Sorry to hear about your dwarf arborvitae and your lilies. I sure do hope they make it through the winter. You are going through a lot of work to protect your plants. I know it's frustrating. We have enough work without worrying about squirrels!

Thanks for the info on moth balls peren.all. After reading that information, I don't think I would like to use the moth balls. I think it may deter the squirrels, but could be harmful to other animals.

Here is a quote taken from the site peren.all provided. I am wondering what you think of this information Lori?

"When mothballs are used properly inside airtight containers, the exposure risk for people and pets is low. However, if mothballs are used out in the open, the gas is released into the environment where people can breathe the vapors. If you can smell the mothball odor, you are breathing in the pesticide.

mothballs disintegrating around my plants would concern me..

That looks so pretty Babka---and the landscaping is perfect!

If you are smelling anything, you are breathing it.

we've noticed our friendly squirrels haven't been coming around..well I witnessed nature in action yesterday..out raking and I hear an animal "screaming"..then a hawk flies above me carrying a squirrel that was wiggling like crazy trying to get away..on the ground following them another squirrel..tried to follow them but they got away..I think "Nutty" and "Scarback" might be gone for good..

I keep hoping the hawks will acquire a taste for squirrels. But I'm convinced the squirrels here actually intimidate the hawks. I have yet to see one take a squirrel.

and once I found a squirrel leg in my yard..I know for a FACT now a hawk will attack a squirrel..still sad to see the brutality..

I am glad I didn't see the hawk flying away with the screaming squirrel. I know that's nature, but that would bother me. Hopefully it wasn't "Nutty" and "Scarback."

Popmama, I've lived in my house for over 30 years, and it wasn't until this year that I actually saw a hawk eating a squirrel in our backyard. The hawk saw us but continued to devour the squirrel until it was done. Keep forgetting to ask my neighbor if they found a tail in their yard. I found toughs of fur the next day. Got some great photos of the hawk and can post if anyone is interested.

it was sad..love to see your hawk pics..

OK, here's one:

I see something in his claws but can't tell what it is..he was looking right at you!..here's a pic of one in my yard..not absolutely sure but I think there's an out of focus squirrel in the Japanese maple..after yesterday it really seems likely..

According to a newspaper article by the "dirt doctor" last Friday, lava rock as a mulch will deter squirrels in pots. He said that the sharp edges hurt their feet.

I didn't try it. I'm just reporting the article.

bkay

I like your bird picture nicholsworth55. The bird on the birdbath really makes a statement---its size undeniable.

The hawk in my picture has a squirrel in its claws. It took its time devouring it---carefully plucking the unwanted fur.

I found another picture. The hawk must have been on the fence for approximately 15 minutes. Lots of opportunity to take pictures. It was about 15 feet away from our house. It was an interesting show, but not one I want to see too often. Glad I wasn't there to see it snatch the squirrel.

I like this picture (same hawk):

a GREAT picture!..beautiful but don't they look evil?..

Absolutely!