An open garden looks beautiful, but it can be quite hard to maintain because of various unwanted visitors. There have been many reports where people struggle with animals creating a mess in their garden or destroying the fruits.
Beginners can get confused in this situation while getting discouraged and dropping this hobby. However, there is a wide range of methods for keeping animals from eating plants. So, if you’re struggling with this issue and want to be keeping animals from eating your plants, follow through with this article as we go over some cost-effective methods for keeping animals away from your plants.
The Best Methods for Keeping Animals From Eating Your Plants
1. Installing Fences
Even though fences might seem like an expensive alternative, it only costs a few dollars per foot of your garden. So, if your garden is not exceptionally large, it should be pretty easy to manage fencing around the whole gardening. Installing fences would make it easier for you to protect the garden from bigger animals like deer. So, if you’re annoyed by a deer problem, then buying fences should be a viable option.
However, keeping in mind is that if the fences are too small, the deer would just jump over them. So, you need at least 7 to 9 inches in height to avoid this problem. Aside from this minute issue, installing fences is relatively easy, and you can do it yourself with minimal effort. It shouldn’t take more than a day to do all the layering and groundwork before installing the fence around your garden.
After the fencing is complete, you won’t have to worry as much about bigger animals. Smaller animals like squirrels can still climb the fences and damage the plant. So, you should look towards other methods and don’t waste time with fences if you are dealing with small animals.
2. Cover the Plant Base
Another viable method for managing the squirrel problems is that you can use tin foil or some other plastic sheet and wrap it around the base of your plant. Anything is good enough as long as it will stop squirrels from climbing up your plants. Most gardeners have mentioned effective results with covering the pots with tin foil. It is a very inexpensive method, and you might even have some tin foil lying around in your home. So, give this method a try if you’re struggling with squirrels.
There are also some organic and chemical sprays available in your local gardening stores that can help you fight this problem. Depending upon the type of animal you’re struggling with. There is a wide variety of sprays that can be used to keep animals away. So, explain your situation to the gardening expert present at the store, and he will point you in the right direction. Other than that, you can also try making your spray.
It is common knowledge that animals don’t like to get near spicy food. So, if you can make some spray with hot sauce or make a paste and cover your plants with it, it will be easier to scare these animals away for good. This is one of the most efficient methods that can be implemented right away.
3. Use A Scarecrow
Nowadays, many scarecrows are available in the market that is highly functional and equipped with motion sensors. As soon as they detect activity in your garden, the scarecrow will activate your sprinklers or make noise to keep animals away from your plants. The best thing about this is getting a scarecrow with all these features below a 100-dollar price range. So, visit your local stores or browse online to find a good deal on a scarecrow.
A common mistake that most gardeners make is going towards chemical spray solutions immediately without considering other alternatives. Extensive exposure to chemical spray only harms the plant, and you will see stunning growth and minimal production if you don’t substitute chemicals for the organic method.
Using hot sauce sprays and managing the sanitation of your plant should be the priority. Other than that, the scarecrow is a perfectly viable method to keep animals away without damaging the plant. So, if your budget allows, make sure to invest in a scarecrow. However, if your garden is enormous, you might need to buy multiple products to cover the whole garden.