In a recent post about our garden, I mentioned that squirrels have been digging into my containers. It’s really frustrating. It’s not like I’ve been stashing peanuts in there or anything. It’s not like those plants are EDIBLE, but they’re dug up and disturbed and don’t get a chance to grow. So I decided to take matters into my own hands.
Step one: research a natural squirrel repellant.
I read that they don’t like human smells so I grabbed a ball of dryer lint and liberally sprinkled it with cinnamon for an extra touch. Some people use ground chili peppers but I didn’t want to hurt the poor things.
I buried it in one of our containers. 24 hours later, I found this:
I totally understand if you’re not sure what you’re looking at there, but it’s my ball of dryer lint, dug up and discarded in a way that I was SURE TO SEE IT. Those squirrels sure know how to play with your mind, don’t they?
So, that didn’t work. Obv. I was still reluctant to pour cayenne pepper into my flower beds but I happened to be at the grocery store when I spotted these:
… they were on the “last chance” produce rack at my local Loblaws, which means they’re one step away from developing green fuzz. At 50% off, I grabbed two packages, thinking that I could bury one or two peppers in each planter. And so I did. (This is the scene before I buried the pepper, for scale.)
That photo was taken before I buried the peppers, and before the huge rainshower we had the other day. I’ve been patrolling the containers and so far so good. I am hoping that the smell of the peppers will send them into spasms of worry and will cause the little varmints to redirect their energies elsewhere. If my plan fails, I’ll have no choice but to put them all in a blender (er, the peppers, not the squirrels) and for a DIY pepper spray kind of concoction. Stay tuned!
