Thus far, the short fencing is working like a charm...peas are about 6" high and unmolested...beets have two sets of leaves...I put some blood meal down just in case.

David - novelty store snakes woudl work I bet too..I had old hose laying around though so it was easier to cut it up into various lengths..

Although my garden is as yet unscathed, a neighbor reported to me that it's not my handiwork: apparently a couple of coyotes have taken up residence on the hillside next to the Metra/El just above the garden and are picking up hausenfeffer on the hoof on a nightly basis. Alas, it's too far for me to go see and confirm, but from what I can see of my neighbor's gardens, it appears that the bunny crisis has been grimly and thorougly addressed...

"Nature, red in tooth and claw." —Tennyson

You couldn't ask for a more guilt-free solution. Coyotes gotta live, too. And they are NOT vegetarians. Wish I had a family in MY neighborhood...

Geo

Animals other than rabbits, that's my problem. Squirrels. While we have the occasional possum who nibbles the tomatoes, squirrels do serious damage. This year I'm feeding them, on the recommendation of a friend who told me that feeding the squirrels in her backyard from early spring kept them away from the produce. I'm using the compressed corn cakes available at Menards, and the first one has lasted a month, it's down to a nubbin and will be replaced this weekend.

Squirrels are territorial, and for those unenlightened people (including, until recently, a few people in my building) who insist on humane trapping and removal, you are only creating a squirrel vacuum in the yard. When it (inevitably and in short time) attracts a new population, they typically are very boisterous and destructive, exploring and laying claim to their new territory.

Maybe instead of marketing rabbit repellent, we need to create and market coyote attractant

(Caveat: though I'm not at all squeamish, I did some google-fu when coyotes first were sighted in Evanston - they're not really an appropriate urban inhabitant, as they have been known to attack dogs, cats, and small children -though I only found documentation of this problem in the Southwest. Hopefully ours will remain genteel and stick to vermin)

Himself and I had a dog that was 1/4 coyote and was completely worthless against rabbits. When we lived in the foothills outside Denver, we had a little garden by the path leading to the cabin's screen porch, where the pooch stayed while we were at work. As we drove up the hill to the turnaround in order to access the parking spot at the base of a rock retaining wall (garden was on level at the top of this wall), we would typically see the rabbit that lived in the eaves of the "garage" our next neighbors had dug into the side of the hill. Rabbit would continue munching away until we had parked, then move into the tall grass across the path bordering the garden, in a leisurely way as we went up the steps and past the garden to the porch to let out the dog. Dog, being by now very excited, having heard us, seen us drive by, return, park, and ascend, would run out into the yard and race around. Rabbit would continue making leisurely progress through the grass. When rabbit reached the edge of the yard, where there was little grass by the horseshoe pit, and a dirt track leading to our neighbors house, rabbit would make a break for its hutch. Dog would then see rabbit, go insane with predator instincts, chase, and never catch.

Coyotes' senses are reverse of dogs. Smell is weakest, sight is strongest. That rabbit must have known that. It ate well all summer.

annieb wrote:It ate well all summer.

Oh annieb! Your patience and tolerance is saintly, just saintly compared to mine! About the second time this happened, I would have called upon my good friend Mr. Win Chester to alleviate the problem. As has been mentioned above: hasenpfeffer is soooo tasty! Surely mountain folk near Denver are used to this sort of a solution?

Geo

You can always borrow my Jack Russell Terrier. He hates rabbits and squirrels (and rats) and won't stop going after them - ever. He also likes to burrow (bred to hunt fox) and has no problem digging for the rabbits either. Since he's a city dog, he only gets to go after squirrels and rats but when he was a pup I brought him to the country and he loved chasing rabbits. The problem is when he goes after raccoons and skunks...

For the first time, our garden has been assaulted by rabbits and the results have been catastrophic. It looks now as if we will have very little, if anything, from a whole set of plants (tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplants, peppers, squash)... chervil and parsley decimated as well... lettuce soon to follow...

Squirrels are hardly a problem compared with these critters...

Antonius

Antonius—

Simple 'chickenwire' fences work for rabbits—they're much easier to deal with than squirrels in that regard. Make sure that the bottom is tied onto the ground so they can't tunnel under. It only needs to be c. 30" high. Inexpensive, effective solution. And, if you care to, you can even make it look aesthetically ok.

Good luck!

Geo

Geo -- Thanks... we will try that but I'm afraid that by the time we get a chance to invest the time in that project, most or all of the spring planting will be long gone... as it is, the destruction, in just a matter of days, is approaching (relatively speaking) biblical proportions...

A Winchester would, as you suggested in an earlier post above, be a more satisfying and swift solution...

A

Antonius wrote:Geo -- Thanks... we will try that but I'm afraid that by the time we get a chance to invest the time in that project, most or all of the spring planting will be long gone... as it is, the destruction, in just a matter of days, is approaching (relatively speaking) biblical proportions...

A Winchester would, as you suggested in an earlier post above, be a more satisfying and swift solution...

A

That's terrible. Other forces of nature (wind, rain, cold) have hammered our patch, and we lost just about all lettuce and a beautiful Hibiscus (we took it outside too soon), but as far as varmints, we have again escaped relatively unscathed. I believe that perhaps the two or three big cats that regularly patrol our garden may have something to do with the lack of rabbit action.

David Hammond wrote:That's terrible. Other forces of nature (wind, rain, cold) have hammered our patch, and we lost just about all lettuce and a beautiful Hibiscus (we took it outside too soon), but as far as varmints, we have again escaped relatively unscathed. I believe that perhaps the two or three big cats that regularly patrol our garden may have something to do with the lack of rabbit action.

D -- We have three cats but they have been raised as indoor pets... we worry about ticks and fleas... perhaps overly so, I don't know... but I am sorely tempted to employ them as garden guards...

Incidentally, knowing full-well that the investment would likely be wasted, we purchased a bottle of these stink pellets that allegedly repel critters... they seemed to work for -- no joking -- one day... lol

The fence is surely the answer but, as I said, this year will likely be close to a total loss...

A

Antonius wrote:

David Hammond wrote:That's terrible. Other forces of nature (wind, rain, cold) have hammered our patch, and we lost just about all lettuce and a beautiful Hibiscus (we took it outside too soon), but as far as varmints, we have again escaped relatively unscathed. I believe that perhaps the two or three big cats that regularly patrol our garden may have something to do with the lack of rabbit action.

D -- We have three cats but they have been raised as indoor pets... we worry about ticks and fleas... perhaps overly so, I don't know... but I am sorely tempted to employ them as garden guards...

Incidentally, knowing full-well that the investment would likely be wasted, we purchased a bottle of these stink pellets that allegedly repel critters... they seemed to work for -- no joking -- one day... lol

The fence is surely the answer but, as I said, this year will likely be close to a total loss...

A

The utility of cats is under-rated. Felines functioned as temple guards in ancient Siam and such innate skills could be deployed for the protection of one's household against domestic pests (obviously mice and birds but potentially squirrels and rabbits). What they lack in weaponry they make up for in stealth and speed.

I had an indoor/outdoor cat [the still-lamented, belovéd Howard the Cat] who was a real hunter. He kept the rabbits away from the tomatoes and chiles (yes, rabbits like chiles! but not so much as the field mice, who get addicted *immediately* to the heat), and even put the fear of the gods into the squirrels. But he didn't mess with the 'coons or 'possums who were constantly coming after my wine grapes once they started ripening. The only thing that stopped those varmints was an electric fence. Now *that* did a job!

Mind you, all this nature red in tooth and claw is taking place in midtown Kansas City, less than a mile west of the Plaza!

My sympathy to both of you, DH and Antonius. There's always the Fall cool-weather crop of radishes, lettuce, etc. to look forward to.

Geo

My swiss chard is being decimated by rabbits. Next year I will plant it in a planter on the patio. I've had to move my basil to the patio in containers because it was getting wiped. They say blood meal sprinkled around helps. I notice that nothing really eats the rhubarb.............

We used blood meal when we first planted tulip bulbs, since rodents like to dig them up. None of our bulbs were dug up, so perhaps it worked well. You can get this stuff at most garden shops (we bought it at Gethsemane).

We also have a dog that patrols the area. We went crazy when we put down the blood meal, but also helps to keep rodents out of the garden (though his method requires him to go into the garden every once in a while!).

I was getting my hair cut the other day and the nice girl cutting it told me she has a farmer from down in south Illinois and a few local people with smaller gardens in the area stop by often to pick up the hair cuttings to keep rabbits and other animals away from there crops. She was some what shocked at how many people were stopping in to get the hair. Her place has been open about six months and she thought it was interesting that people are doing this. Not sure if this is true, if it works or how to put the hair down around the garden. The only thing I can think of is it might have something to do with our scents as humans that freaks em out and sends them running?

Just thought I should mention that a friend of mine (a casual gardener) insisted that rubber snakes would do the trick, as evidenced by his garden's fortunes... Well, I had my doubts but, when one is desperate, one will try pretty much anything...

So then, we bought some toy snakes and placed them all around the garden... No surprise in that they did not prevent further (serious) damage caused by our little furry 'friends'... However, let me add that the toy snakes themselves constitute a nice addition to the landscape... lol... I like them very much and, oddly enough, they might possibly have had a small discouraging effect on the local squirrels, with whom I am, by and large, at peace... at least temporarily...

The only strategy that in my experience seems to work is making access difficult, including relatively modest changes in elevation of potted plants... Those in the ground remain vulnerable until such time as fencing becomes possible (not this year!)...

Antonius

We have an extremely fat rabbit that lives in our back area, near most of my plants, who is totally unafraid of our two dogs that hang out nearby. I'd used pepper spray on many of the plants (I started with crops that fruited, and the tulip flowers, which he loves) and once he learned that we had spicy leaves, he never came back. I've not tried this with edible leaves, but I have bought cayenne pepper in bulk at the Indian markets and sprinkled it over the ground.

I do use blood meal and marigolds, just in case - and I moved the Swiss chard to a hanging basket. So far, so good.

Blood meal had no effect whatsoever on our local bunnies... none... though it did smell somewhat nasty to the local humans... lol...

And in the past, back before I came to an agreement with the local squirrels (we are friends now), I tried to deter them with cayenne (in various delivery-formats) and it had no effect... For that reason, I didn't bother trying cayenne on the bunnies...

...un rione italiano e messicano... ognuno qua ama i peperoncini...

A

The only good thing I can say about bunnies is that they learn fast and retain the lesson long. Unfortunately, it seems that the lesson is different for each bunny.

our beet greens are all gone! will they grow back or are we not growing beets this year?

We've had issues with bunnies attacking our plants (food and decorative) for the last few years and it has caused a great deal of frustration and lost plantings. This year we decided on a whim to get one of those plastic owls at the hardware store and finally got around to putting it in the garden last week (after a particularly vicious bunny attack on my carrot sprouts.) So far it actually seems to be working. No bunnies or other creatures have taken so much as a nibble at any of our plants, and I'll be interested to see whether or not the bunnies eventually wise up to the fakeness of our garden owl.

Unfortunately, they'll wise up, and with no warning. Suddenly you'll lose it all. Nothing passive--hair, fake snakes, fake owls, NOTHING--will work for long. The only thing that works (other than bullets) is a physical barrier.

When I plant out young grapevines, I make a cage from chicken wire--just a simple circular enclosure around the vine--and anchor it with a u-shaped wire bent from a coat hanger. Works like a champ.

Geo

Geo wrote:The only thing that works (other than bullets) is a physical barrier.

The rabbit and squirrel overpopulation in our neighborhood has definitely eliminated any romantic notions I ever had about how cute and harmless those creatures are. I'm not usually one for violence but it is definitely becoming more and more tempting.

Sigh, off to figure out how I can fence in my raised beds. What a hassle.

Geo wrote:...
When I plant out young grapevines, I make a cage from chicken wire--just a simple circular enclosure around the vine--and anchor it with a u-shaped wire bent from a coat hanger. Works like a champ.

I created a similar cage to put over my tomato plants on my balcony to keep the squirrels out. I'm certain the squirrels are not happy because they stored food in the pot over the winter. They still got me because I developed a killer blister from the wire cutters I used to cut the screen down to size.

Geo wrote:Unfortunately, they'll wise up, and with no warning. Suddenly you'll lose it all. Nothing passive--hair, fake snakes, fake owls, NOTHING--will work for long. The only thing that works (other than bullets) is a physical barrier.

When I plant out young grapevines, I make a cage from chicken wire--just a simple circular enclosure around the vine--and anchor it with a u-shaped wire bent from a coat hanger. Works like a champ.

Geo

Yeah, that is the conclusion I've come to... physical barriers... But since it has not been possible to undertake the construction of a fence or fences to protect vulnerable areas, I have managed (so far, at least) to save many plants by getting them up higher off the ground... either up onto our deck or, for the many pots that won't fit up there, up onto somewhat high benches, well away from anything they might use as steps to get up into the pot... I doubt this is a fool-proof method but, with a moderate level of activity in the yard, I sense that the rabbits are hesitant to go into areas where they are very exposed... If I catch one, I'll ask him if this is, in fact, their thinking in this regard...

Aside from such tidbits as parsley and chervil, which the bunnies love, eggplants and pepper plants seem to be their favourites here... in many cases, those plants have been eaten down to the ground, with no visible trace left... Many of the peppers that were heavily damaged but since spared from further attacks (through moving onto benches or the deck) are coming back but I suspect the yield from them will be, at best, weak...

Incidentally, our strawberries were also obliterated but I strongly suspect that the damage there was not all the work of the bunnies...

A

I tried a new approach to gardening this year, which I will post on later. In a nutshell, I planted my garden in bales of hay. The bunnies can seem to climb up...or are unaware there is food above them!