If your own or the neighbors’ cats seem drawn to your flower beds, there are steps you can take. Starting with rough surfaces and unpleasant scents and progressing to electric fences and sprinkler systems.
Cover the ground with rough materials such as pine cones or mulch that has prickly needles, plant cat-repelling plants like lavender, lemon thyme or rue as well as Coleus canina–also dubbed “scaredy cat plant”–to repel cats from coming indoors and try Coleus canina which has long been known as an effective preventative solution for cat infestation.
Electric Fence
Cats can be a real menace in your garden, digging up and uprooting plants while littering. By using humane methods to deter cats away from your garden without hurting them directly, you can successfully prevent cats from invading.
Install an electric fence. A unit known as an energizer or charger converts power from batteries, solar panels or main power sources into a pulse of high voltage that runs along a wire. Although each pulse only lasts 150 microseconds, its intensity creates an unpleasant shock for animals that come into contact with it such as cats.
Implement a grounding system as well. Use a digital voltmeter, such as Dare #2411, to regularly check the voltage of your fencing. If your voltage reading exceeds 300V, add more ground rods.
Oscillate Fence
Cats can quickly ruin flowerbeds by digging, chewing and napping in the soil. To protect your flowers from cats’ destruction, you can make the area less inviting by employing deterrents that are safe for felines.
Plastic carpet runners or prickle mats with long, flexible plastic spikes that irritate cat paws are an effective way to discourage digging and lounging from cats, while being easy to place into the garden in a discrete, non-intrusive manner.
Other options to try include using prickly materials like pinecones, sticks, twigs and cutlery; scatter thorny clippings from roses, holly or raspberries as thorny clippings may disturb them; coarse mulches that cats can’t dig through; ultrasonic animal repellents emit high frequency sounds that cats cannot hear but that nonetheless disturb them; and ultrasonic animal repellents which emit an ultrasonic signal that cats cannot detect but which bother them instead.
Tape
Cats make excellent pets if you can train them not to invade your flowerbeds and turn your garden into an outdoor litter box, however stray cats or neighbors’ felines have been known to turn it into one and dig or chew up plants in your garden.
To keep cats away from your flowers, try covering the ground in tin foil or using a carpet runner with plastic spikes that will cause discomfort without harm. Other deterrents might be orange peels, cayenne pepper, coffee grounds, lavender oil or peppermint oil scents which can act as deterrents against cats.
Sprinklers that activate when cats enter your yard will provide an effective deterrent against future visits by these creatures, making this an excellent solution for gardeners who cannot enclose their plots but still wish to stop cats from damaging flowers and plants.
Cat-Attracting Plants
Some plants act as natural cat deterrents, forcing felines to take other routes into the garden. Jacob’s ladder (Polygonum japonicum) produces clusters of tiny daisy-like flowers that are nontoxic to cats and other animals; plant it near shade-lovers such as creeping phlox and coral bells for optimal results. Violas, snapdragons and calendula provide low maintenance options that add color while pet-friendly blooms such as zinnias or true jasmine can add pops of bloom; just avoid night-scented Cestrum nocturnum altogether!
Other plants can elicit an unpleasant response from cats, such as rosemary and scented geraniums. Sea holly and tropical grevillea plants with prickly foliage deter cats from digging up flower beds; cap bottles half filled with water left lying around can also act as natural deterrents for nibbling cats.
Water
Use the same tricks you would employ against squirrels to deter cats as well. Rough surfaces such as pebbles or shredded newspaper can effectively stop cats from digging up your flower beds; plants with strong scents such as lavender, rosemary and citronella may also work to repel cats from digging up flowerbeds.
Some gardeners sprinkle ground pepper into their gardens, although this can be laborious and messy. Essential oils dissolved in water may also be sprayed around to deter cats from entering your flower bed.
If you own an indoor cat, creating a catio can help them enjoy outdoor time safely while simultaneously keeping them out of your garden. If there are stray cats or neighboring cats present, more aggressive measures such as electric fences or motion activated sprinklers may be necessary to manage them effectively.