I have heard about the trick with the pepper only bad part is that you may have to reapply it every time it rains. Also my sister tried the pepper to keep a cat from trying to use one of her flower beds as a litter box, well it didn't work. As a matter of fact the cat just put its face right in it.

I know this is very simple minded but I do know it has helped keep the squirrels and rabbits away from my maters. A pole with a pie tin on it attached by a string!! LOL I know I told you simple minded but I have had a 95% decrease in half eaten tomatoes when I use this technique!!

Heck, if it works, i'm certainly willing to try it! :) Please elaborate on how, where, etc. you set up the pole with pie tin on it. Maybe the squirrels are afraid of it because of the wicked bright reflections from it? Anyway, thanks!

- Steve

I just sit a pole maybe 2 to 3 feet high tie a string on it maybe about 3 to 4 inches long and then attach the pie tin to it. Let it blow in the wind!! We sit one out and it protects about a 7 foot spot!! We have a small area, so maybe if your looking at a larger area you may want to use a few of them.

I figured either the reflections or the noise, something makes it work I don't know what it is but I promise it works.

I have a lot of squirrels and practically no squirrel problem. Several unwanted CD's hung from a tree or pole on a string so they can rotate freely, plus my dogs' loud voices. I am not sure which is the key factor, they probably complement each other.

Thanks, all! :) Seems like the method is to hang some shiny round object up so the sun reflects off it & scares them away. I will try this (and also buy a few cheapie bottles of powdered Cayenne as a backup). Thanks again!

- Steve

I think the idea of pie pans / CDs is great, if it works. If it's the noise that the pie pans make, then the pie pans would probably work better than the CDs. If it's the reflected light, the CD's might work best. Or, maybe it's both.

One thing that's worked well for me is garlic. I use the minced stuff that comes in little glass jars. They are usually in the spice isle of the grocery store. I use a plastic knife to flick the tiny bits out around newly planted things. It does seem to work quite a bit (but maybe not completely). I've tried other things like hair, cayenne pepper, and...well other things...that haven't worked as well. I'd say the garlic has taken squirrel damage from a 7 or 8 (on a 1 to 10 scale) down to about a 1 or 2. I've also tried the commercially available stuff from Home Depot, but it didn't work as well as garlic.

Sweet. Another great trick for me to try. Thanks, brandon. I know how the squirrels get on to my deck and can scatter some garlic in those places & also put up a few of the cd/pie tray poles. I imagine the garlic is a good bit cheaper than the stuff from HD too!

I'm gonna start camping out across from my deck taking them out with a sniper rifle if they don't stop! lol...Tore through my only pot of garlic, my garlic chives & 4 berry bushes today! Grrrrr...

Sounds like your squirrels are not going to be deterred by garlic.

You're not the only one with animal problems. I found two of my baby pomegranates dug up and left to die. I feel like burying bear traps under all my mulched areas.

My neighbor told me to use moth balls. Anyone ever hear of that method?

I've heard various reasons that using either type of moth balls outside is not safe, but I've never looked into the science behind the claims. You might want to do some checking before you put mothballs out.

Steve, I think you jinxed me. I went outside today (I haven't had to use garlic or anything in a couple of months now), and the squirrels had had a field day. The stupid little beasts had dug in pot after pot after pot. It was a miracle I didn't loose any plants.

lol...They got me again too, brandon. :-\ Until I can get some type of deterrent out there, I spread half a bag of old homemade very hot chipotle's all over my deck hoping to keep them away until next rain. They dug up half of my garlic & most of my garlic chives yerterday!!! Grrr...I know the chives will bounce back, but am afraid they might have permanently damaged a few of the garlics.

Well you jinxed me also those rascals got in my winter sown containers and my black hollyhock that was just about to get its first set of true leaves got hit the hardest. My babies were all uprooted.

Well I asked what others did and a person mentioned cinnamon. So I am going to try it. They said just sprinkle the cinnamon around the area.

I know many people will not like this but I have a friend at work with a squirrel problem.
He also has a fairly powerful BB gun and eats squirrel several times a week.

jim_6b

lol...good one, jim. catman, one of my buds from the Tomatoes forum, who lives in Franklin, uses that method. :) I'd have to have the time to sit out there & wait for them though.

From what I understand, a BB gun is frequently insufficient to kill a squirrel. It's more likely to seriously hurt it and maybe lead to a slow, painful death. Maybe a powerful pellet gun would be better (if things came to that)?

I know some squirrel experts, maybe I'll write them and ask for suggestions.

Someone told me once that you don't aim for the squirrel that you aim for the branch underneath it....lol.

I may be the only one that didn't get that...but I didn't get it.

About the repellent...apparently there is no universal, great, common-household-item solution. Garlic, pepper, hot pepper, cinnamon, lemons, people urine, and fox urine all seem to work to some degree for a while. The fox urine, probably works best, but has other drawbacks like expense, not a normal household item, and even possible ethics problems associated with some sources. All have to be reapplied pretty regularly and especially after rainfall. Well, at least I tried to find the magic solution, but maybe there is none.

Thanks for the input, brandon. A gardening friend of mine also reccomended the fox urine (pellets/dried). It is kind of expensive at $16 per bottle, as far as I can tell. I think I may make a homemade spray of sorts with a few of the ingredients you mention in it. Hopefully, that will work. Another friend of mine mentioned that a fake owl would deter them/scare them away as well & that I can get one for $10-15. So, I may try that as well. One way or another, I have to find some way to mostly get rid of them so I can garden this year! It's the only thing that keeps me slightly sane. =)

If it is standing on a branch and you break the branch....... Duh Brandon!! LOL It is a joke!!

I don't know if a fake owl would work to keep away squirrels, but they sure don't keep birds away, which is what they are mostly sold for. I watched for a few days after a guy over in east Knoxville put two up. The birds would land right on top of the owl. It wasn't even working 5 minutes after the owls had just been put out.

Brandon that made me think, I remember I use to live in this apartment that had mice. Well I didn't like using the poison cause of my small kids and it was on a slab with no attic entrance. Well I had a rubber snake that I use to use and I am telling you it seriously kept the mice away. I wonder if it would work for squirrels?? Maybe a large rubber snake??

carolyn: I'm willing to try anything! That might make the list, if the spices, shiny objects, etc. don't work. =)

I don't know if fake snakes work for squirrels, but they can work on neighbors. I had one that I had put in one of my cherry trees for the birds. The birds ignored it and ate the cherries, so I stuck it on the chainlink fence for the heck of it. Well my elderly neighbor came over to gossip and leaned up against the fence. After a few minutes of talking, I looked down, pointed, and said, "isn't that a snake?" She screamed and jerked back. I think she was about to loose it until I finally convinced her it was fake. (-:

Have you considered chicken wire? It worked wonders in keeping our cats out of my beds when we had them...I would simply cut down some wire to size, and then cover that wire with a small amount of dirt to hide it. The cats didn't like the feel of the wire on their feet, so maybe it would at least deter so much digging in your plants :)

"I know many people will not like this but I have a friend at work with a squirrel problem.
He also has a fairly powerful BB gun and eats squirrel several times a week."

I see nothing wrong with shooting them as long as they are eaten.

I won't have to worry about the squirrels anymore. Got my 30 day notice to move this past Monday. :-\ Hopefully I can find a place where I can keep most of my garden! If not, i'm gonna be wicked upset.