Stray and feral cats can cause significant damage to flower gardens by digging, peeing and pooping in them, chewing the plants they find there and nibbling at them. Successful gardeners employ various strategies for keeping cats away without harming them.
Some gardeners sprinkle lemon peels or cinnamon around their flowers as an anti-cat repellent, or plant Coleus canina (known as scaredy cat plant ) which has an unpleasant odor that dissuades cats from approaching.
Tape
Many gardeners find that using a roll of duct tape to keep cats out of flower gardens is both cheap and nontoxic, effective, and economical. It works by surprising cats as they try to jump onto containers like urns or window boxes by adhering to their fur and blocking them from seeing where their landing spot may be.
Some gardeners have reported success using natural deterrents such as spraying their plants with rosemary essential oil or burying ground black pepper and cayenne pepper to keep cats away from their flower beds. It’s important to keep up these measures on an ongoing basis for maximum effectiveness.
Oscillate Fence
Cats can do serious damage to gardens, from digging up flowerbeds to leaving piles of waste all over. Luckily, there are various humane ways you can keep cats out without harming either themselves or their plants.
Motion-activated sprinklers can be an effective means of keeping cats away from flower gardens because cats don’t like water. Another solution, called Cat Scat Mat, features plastic mesh with 3/4″ spikes designed to scare cats off by creating noise or visual barriers.
Another method is using an anti-cat repellent that has an unpleasant odor, available commercially but may not work reliably. Some claim that ground black pepper or cayenne works very effectively as well.
Physical Barriers
Cats can quickly devastate gardens and flowerbeds with their claws by digging, leaving deposits, and using plants as soft napping spots. By deploying physical deterrents in your garden, physical deterrents may help keep cats away from your flowers so you can spend your weekends tending them instead of cleaning out their turds!
Orange and lemon peels (cats dislike citrus scents), rue, coffee grounds, cayenne pepper, eucalyptus needles, pine needles, pipe tobacco, cinnamon and lavender can be effective natural deterrents for cats. A motion activated sprinkler that emits high frequency sounds may also prove helpful.
Some have found sprinkling ground black pepper or cayenne pepper over mulch to be an effective deterrent, though reapplication after rainfall or periodically may be necessary. Plastic cloches provide another effective means of protecting specific flowerbeds or vegetable patches without being as visible.
Electric Fence
Cats may be good at hunting pests, but they can wreak havoc in gardens by digging holes and sleeping on plants. A single or double strand electric fence at low voltage may teach cats not to come near your garden – and can easily be activated and deactivated as necessary.
Motion-activated sprinklers that emit an unpleasant sound, as well as spraying citrus peels, coffee grounds or vinegar around the perimeter and using scented repellants, can all help deter cats from entering your garden.
Tape balls made of duct tape can be placed in urns or window boxes that cats use as lookout points; when they jump up they will cling tightly, irritating the animal while remaining nontoxic and easy to use. This nontoxic solution is both cost-effective and quick!
Coleus Caninus
Coleus Caninus, more commonly known as Scaredy Cat Plant, offers an effective means to deter cats without harming them. This frost-tender perennial produces an attractive bush of green-gray foliage and pale blue flowers resembling lavender, while its leaves emit an offensive aroma when touched or bruised, which increases as cats continue to play around it.
Rue, lemon thyme, rosemary and citronella are among the many plants known to deter cats. Additionally, dried leaves of these plants as well as orange and lemon peels, peppermint leaves or cayenne pepper can be scattered about your garden to create an effective deterrent against cats.
Plastic chicken wire or fruit cage netting can also serve as an effective barrier to keep cats out of flower gardens and raised beds. Furthermore, its use serves to protect vegetables while simultaneously discouraging cats from entering them.
Chicken Wire
Cats can quickly destroy flower beds with their digging, unintended deposits and use of plants as soft napping spots. Luckily, there are humane ways to deter cats from the garden without harming either you or them – scent repellents that cats don’t like such as ammonia and citrus can work wonders; alternatively bury items that repel cats such as jars of ammonia solution as well as any smelly substances will do just as well; another good solution would be using motion-activated sprinklers which spray water when cats approach your garden bed – perfect for keeping out unwanted visitors!
Make sure that your garden does not attract cats with food remains or open trash cans, and plant Coleus caninus which has been proven to deter cats using its scent.