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I may have solved the squirrel issue though. I put hot pepper bird seed in the feeds and that seems to have made my yard no longer a place they want to frequent. I put moth balls down for the rabbits, and so far, so good.
Yes! Formally known as "plants I don't want growing here".
Wind is a big culprit here. I tend to various plots on acreage, and the difference between outdoor beds vs those contained in hoop houses/under cover is definitely noticeable.
We live above a nature preserve and over the years have dealt with raccoon, deer, blue herons in the fish pond, bunnies, woodchucks, possum, chipmunks and mice.
It's irritating but I've kept a kind of "everybody welcome; if you survive, you're in" attitude toward it all. I try to enjoy whatever is happening.
That doesn't mean there haven't been disappointments or that I haven't tried various natural remedies. The most frustrating intruders are the natural diseases and growth habits of the plants.
It's been a forty-something time of mistakes, mysteries, lessons, amusement and surprises. Now it claims itself with a life of its own.
I may have solved the squirrel issue though. I put hot pepper bird seed in the feeds and that seems to have made my yard no longer a place they want to frequent.
The ones in my area laughed at the hot pepper. I tried the seeds/suet cakes with the pepper already in it, as well as just adding cayenne pepper directly into the feeder.
What does work are the Squirrel Buster feeders. I have had them for over ten years and each generation of squirrel tries their best, but they never succeed (other than getting a seed that gets stuck under the bottom). The folks at Brome provide great customer service. No relation to the company - just a very satisfied consumer.
^^I always heard that birds aren't affected by hot peppers/capsaicin. (no spiciness receptors in their mouths)
I can't say the same for goats. One year I grew a chile pepper garden and threw some ghost peppers over the fence for the goat next door. He munched them right up, and definitely had a reaction to the heat!
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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Here the coyotes and bobcats would eat any cats that wander around outside, and though they also eat the rabbits, not fast enough to keep them from eating our Hostas, along with the deer. Worse though is the fir needles and cones falling from the 80-100' tall fir trees, the moles in the lawn, squirrels burying their foods in our flower pots, and the raccoons poking around looking for worms.
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