If you have big shade trees around your house, then you probably have squirrels scurrying everywhere. And this time of year, those bushy-tailed critters are busy getting ready for winter, and they’ll stop at nothing to get a big stash of snacks. So here’s how to protect your turf:
- Sprinkle some cayenne pepper around your garden, or combine 1 tablespoon of the hot stuff with 1 tablespoon of dishwashing liquid in a quart of water, and spray it liberally around your plants.
- Barricade bulbs by laying chicken wire right over your beds. The foliage will be able to grow through the wire, but squirrels won’t be able to dig the bulbs out.
- Stop squirrels from getting a foothold on a tree by wrapping a 5-foot-long sheet of metal flashing around the tree’s trunk. For an extra kick, smear a little petroleum jelly mixed with some cayenne pepper right on the flashing.
- One of the scariest squirrel hunters around is the snake. So put out a decoy to scare the dickens out of the furry felons! Here’s my easy, 2-step, make-a-snake process: Slit an old tennis ball and force it over the end of a 3-foot piece of old garden hose. Then draw two eyes and a mouth on the ball, and place yellow strips of tape (like Xs) down the hose to resemble a snake. Now set this “snake” in your garden, and move it to a new place every day so the squirrels don’t get used to it.
No matter what’s bugging your yard—from squirrels to ants or mosquitoes to yellow jackets—you, too, can have a picture perfect backyard with no bugs, no critters, and NO PROBLEMS! Check out my Bug Off! book — FREE for 21 days! It’s filled with the ammunition you need to win the war against 101 of the most vilified bugs and thugs in gardendom.