Posted by steven on May 29, 19100 at 21:00:40:
Dear Sheri,
I have never had this problem but it is a common question on gardening message boards so I have collected quite a list of suggestions. Best Wishes!
Steven
There is a product called, "Get Off My Garden". It looks
like green Jell-O. It won't dissolve when it rains. Sprinkle it in
the plant/flower bed and refresh it every now and then. You can
purchase it at Walmart. Address for it is -
Rudducks USA, Inc.,
5760 Shirley St., #11
Naples, FL 33942
There are repellent sprays. Check in your seed catalogs or at your
local nursery.
Electronic Sensors spray water when animals are detected.
http://www.gardencop.com/
http://www.scatmat.com/
Chicken wire or hardware cloth buried under the mulch.
They don't like to walk on bubblewrap.
Sprinkle bloodmeal or ground limestone around.
Put plastic forks in ground, with fork end up.
Install some kind of fence, using chicken wire or hardware cloth,
about knee high.
Cats don't care for the smell of citrus. Sprinkle orange, lemon or
lime peelings around.
Till up a small area for the cats to use as a litterbox in the
backyard, and keep it tilled.
Neuter male cats to keep them from claiming (spraying) their
territory.
Sprinkle cayenne and/or black pepper, or hot pepper flakes in the
garden.
Rose or any thorny branches can be spread around.
Spread seed pods from a Sweet Gum Tree. (If you know of anyone who
has this tree, they will most likely be glad to let you pick them up.)
Put in a bottomless sandbox in your back yard. (Not intended for
kids to play in.)
Use cocoa bean hulls for mulch.
Spread pine cones around.
Do you have a dog? Preferably a big dog--like they grow in Texas!
(According to Frank, anyway--you need a big dog for their big cats!)
And lastly, here's a couple of sites to check out. The first one has
a recipe for keeping dogs, cats and squirrels out of the garden -
Trot down to ye old farm supply store or Wal-Mart get a cheap
> electric fencer & wire with insulators. Now put the wire about four
> inches off ground. Plug it in plug it in let the good times roll. The
> charge will not hurt the cats (unless you get the 4 zillion watt kind
> good for forty miles of fence) Cats are smart after a time or two
> they will not go near your garden. That will work for many varments
> that get into your garden.
Dear Frustrated, I posted on this board about a month ago, and was
given several suggestions. I then tested them ALL out. Here is what
worked for me- and i had a very very bad problem:
1) Reppers- sold at PetSmart etc. Grains of repellent that you post
in small green containers around the area. My cats and strays really
did not like them. No muss, no fuss
2) PLUS one of those low wire fences. It WAS true the cats were too
lazy to leap over them. That and the reppers was enough deterrent.
3) Dig out former soil, put down lime to kill smell in worst areas.
( watch your plants, some like acid more) Replace with chips or soil
and get a really good groundcover going- wild strawberry?
4) In the worst area I did all of those and used pea gravel and
pavers. That was smack next to my entryway, and I was just sick of
it. While I prepped the ground the devils did their deed several
times until I got the Reppers installed.
5)Do not replace deceased pets. LOL. I will tell you that Little
and Lowe, master gardeners here, just fenced in a portion of yard for
their dog to trash, and that's it. I peeked behind the fence, and
there was Bowser happy as a clam. Must be a way to make peace with
the pet/garden thing. Cats are so Disobedient!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GO FOR IT>...Suzanne of the Cat Wars.
What worked for me...
Buy some mouse traps.
Set them and place them upside down (flat bottom up)
When they are nudged, they snap up in the air and give the cats quite
a scare.
After a while you won't even need to set them as they will spot them
and stay away.
Before anyone gets upset with me, this wont hurt the cat, the snap
part of the trap just makes it jump up when sprung.
PS. I don't know what these url's are or if they work, but since they are in the cat file I would guess they are about keeping cats out of the garden:
http://floridagardener.com/recipes/potions.htm
http://bluehen.ags.udel.edu/deces/hyg/hyg-63.htm