adminRabbits are a common garden pest- just as Mr. McGregor. But keeping rabbits away doesn’t need to involve chasing them with a shovel. There are many easy and humane ways to rid your garden of these cute but destructive pets, and used in combination, will provide the best rabbit defense possible.
The first action to take when you have rabbit problem is to try to determine whether there is a rabbit burrow on your property, of whether they are visiting. Look under the house, in shrubbery, under porches, decks, and any other sheltered areas. If a burrow is found, the grass and foliage all around it should be pulled or cut very short to make it less hospitable. An owl decoy can be placed by it as well. The rabbits will soon leave to find a better home. Any overgrown areas with long grass are attractive places to rabbit, so plants should be trimmed, and areas under steps and crawlspaces should be blocked.
If the rabbits are entering a yard through a hole in the ground, or gaps in a fence, these should be mended and blocked when possible. Using a predator odor in these places will also discourage rabbits from entering. This can be achieved with pellets of predator urine, available at hunting and game stores. Alternatively, strong smelling plants such as lavender can be planted in these areas. These plants are usually, not always, avoided by rabbits.
Pets are another good defense against rabbits. Many breeds of dogs, and even house cats, will chase rabbits away. In fact, cats can help in another way: an alternative to the predator urine pellets mentioned above is soiled cat litter from a cat box.
The flower beds of vegetable gardens themselves can be protected by sprays that deter rabbits either through smell or taste, or both. A common repellent is a mixture of one egg with about a gallon of water, sprinkled on the plants. This mixture can be made with raw or cooked egg, and can be left out in the sun before using, in order to achieve a strong smell. Recent research suggested the egg solid works better than raw egg, and many of the commercial mixtures found for sale have egg solid as an ingredient. Oils, such as vegetable, mint, canola, etc., can be added to this mixture to help it adhere to plant leaves.
Another useful deterrent for rabbits is a sprinkler. Motions detecting sprinklers can be bought in garden stores and through online retailers starting at around fifty dollars. These sprinklers are able to detect motion over about one thousand square feet, and when they detect movement, they activate and spray whatever set them off. These sprinklers are easy to set up, and will deter not only rabbits, but cats, deer, and other animals that do not like to get wet, or that startle easily.
Setting up a combination of the above solutions will provide the best rabbit defense for any yard.
