Keeping Squirrels away from my garden

United States
February 4, 2011 2:30pm CST
Last summer we grew corn & had much success getting cobs to grow. Though once it came to harvest time the darn squirrels ate up all my corn! I was talking to my MIL about planning on planting the garden this year. Now I'd like to plant corn again BUT is there anything we can do to keep those buggers away from our corn? We've lived here 9 yrs and last year was our first problem with squirrels.
1 person likes this
13 responses
@Hatley (163781)
• Garden Grove, California
4 Feb 11
3SnuggleBunnies are you sure it was squirrels as raccoons are the critters who love corn and even if you find onehe will not budge and will go on eating that corn like you did not exist. We had squirrels on the South Dakota farm as a child. The squirrels never came near the corn but they they had the tiny olive like fruits from our Russian Olive trees. they would pick these and store them for future use.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157027)
• United States
5 Feb 11
Hatley, you took my response about the raccoons. I have always heard that. I do not try to grow corn. The squirrels did enjoy picking pears in my pear tree, but that was okay because it was the ones I could not reach.
• United States
5 Feb 11
I saw the lil jerks in the corn thats how I knew whom was eating them. I have not seen a raccoon around here. Really until the last year or so the only pests we've had were starlings and rabbits.
• United States
4 Feb 11
I have no clue when it comes to harvesting corn but I went to the net and found that the only solution suggests to use some form of electric fence. Sounds crazy but I can't begin to tell you how many articles I looked at trying to find a solution as I was thinking some form of wiring netted fencing but then the corn plants get really tall. So the only solution I read is the electric fencing. Good luck with the corn, which by the way I am an expert at eating them.
1 person likes this
• United States
5 Feb 11
We don't plant enough or want it desperate enough to go that route. Plus I don't know how legal that would be since we are not in the country.
@peavey (16936)
• United States
4 Feb 11
I don't know, but I'll be watching this discussion. We are overrun with squirrels here. I grew corn a couple of years ago and they didn't bother them, but they cut off all the heads to the sunflowers while they were still green and ate them. I wasn't sure it was squirrels until I saw one do it. I want to plant corn in a corner of the front yard this year but I am leery of the squirrels getting it.
• United States
5 Feb 11
You are right that is another thing that they were after as well were my sunflowers. I did grow them for a multitude of purposes including being like a support for my pole beans. But I will say they were left alone until the seeds were starting to darken up just as the corn was left alone til it was ripened.
@peavey (16936)
• United States
5 Feb 11
It's so frustrating to try to grow something, then to see it all destroyed. I grew the kind of sunflowers with big seeds to snack on so I wouldn't have to buy them. I am going to try the corn anyway and see what happens.
• United States
6 Feb 11
All you can do is try. Worst case atleast you got to enjoy them before they were hornswogled by those critters. I've never grown them to eat them just use them in the bird feeders once they've dried out and removing those seeds can be quite a task.
@peavey (16936)
• United States
5 Feb 11
I just happened to think of something someone told me one time. They said to put out ExLax (a chocolate flavored laxative) around the crop and the squirrels would eat that. It won't kill them, but it will give them a tummy ache. This person said that once squirrels find an area that makes them sick, they won't come back. I can't vouch for that, but it might be worth a try!
• United States
7 Feb 11
Only problem is I have small kids & a dog so.... I think that would be out unless I could put it somewhere they couldn't get to.
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
5 Feb 11
At garden centers/stores, they sell artificial life sized owls ($30) whose eyes glow and their heads spin around which looks very realistic and chases the squirrels away. They really work. My neighbor biought one last year for the same problem and the squirrels stayed away from his corn. I have a dog so he keeps them away for the most part. Good luck. HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB!!~
• United States
6 Feb 11
That could be a good point there. My husband burried the dogs tie out under all sorts of yard debris so he wasn't out last year in the back yard much. Perhaps that was the big difference. But the neighbor who's garden is on the otherside of the fence has their dogs out fairly often no most of the day like ours was. Where did they place the owl? In the field or just wherever they could post it in the yard?
@savypat (20216)
• United States
5 Feb 11
Well now you are marked, you will not escape from them again. We had such an influx last year we needed to shoot them. They got under the house and were eating the wires.
• United States
6 Feb 11
OMG I've never heard of them doing that, but I don't doubt it. We can't shoot them exactly unless they were in a live trap perhaps as that's what my Aunt does to the chipmunks. Perhaps live traps would work? I'm not against trying squirrel for dinner *LMAO*
@GardenGerty (157027)
• United States
5 Feb 11
Hmmmm. I have not tried to grow corn. My daughter had MICE sit on the back of her sunflower heads and eat the seeds. She was wanting to attract birds. I would check with a garden center and see if there is some kind of a repellent that smells bad to them. The other thought that I had was to set up a squirrel feeding station that had something that appealed to them, like peanuts in the shell, so that they would leave the corn alone.
@dragon54u (31636)
• United States
4 Feb 11
When I had a problem with critters getting into my garden in the desert--there were coyotes, mule deer and rabbits--I had my boys urinate around the perimeter every couple of days. Being boys, they were more than happy to do it! The only pests I had were bugs, which I took care of with soapy water. Try it!
• United States
5 Feb 11
I'm sure my boy & my hubby would be glad to do that ;0) Thanks for the idea... we also have rabbits as well but as you know they only destroy certain crops.
@GreenMoo (11834)
8 Feb 11
It's funny .. I'm on a course just now and today we have been talking about keeping squirrels away from tree crops. I think it's pretty much impossible unless you really strongly net your crops, but that is hard as squirrels are awfully adept at finding their way through barriers and you do risk them getting tangled up. You could try and kill them of course, if you really wanted to. How about a dog to just chase them as a kinder solution? Once they'd been chased a couple of times they might stay away. Another alternative might be just to plant far more corn than you need and look upon part of it as a sacrificial crop!
@Nadinest1 (2016)
• Canada
27 Feb 11
Many people are not going to agree with me....but either trap them or shoot them. I live in the country and we all know here that no one wants squirrels around the house.....if they get into your home, they will destroy it. We used to keep our bird seed in a plastic Rubbermaid container....the squirrels chewed down through the cover, ruined it. If you want to be nice to the squirrels, buy a live trap and truck them far, far away.
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
8 Feb 11
I had the exact same problem with my tomatos. I was so disappointed that I never had the opportunity to enjoy any of the tomatos that I'd worked so hard to grow. That said, my neighbor actually built a separate fence around her garden to keep the critters out. She had really good luck with her garden where the squirrels decided to feast on mine. If this is something that is possible for you, you might give it a try.
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
5 Feb 11
I have no experience with squirrels, but if it were me, I'd build my own electric fence. It's quite easy, especially if you've already got a good wire fence up. It can be done inexpensively if you get a kit from your local electronic components store. There have been some good articles in electronics magazines on how to build your own electric fences for decades already. If you can't find any archived in your local or state library, PM me & I'll see what I can dig up for you to send via email! If you prefer, I can source the exact issues of electronics magazines in your country or mine. Are you handy with a soldering iron?
@beano777 (37)
• United States
5 Feb 11
squirrels always find a way to your crops. their very hard to keep away. very cute but very annoying!!