which bulbs need squirrel repellent?

17 years ago

I'm pre-treating some bulbs with repellents against squirrels: crocuses and tulips.

I have some new ones; do these need treatment too? Does anyone know of a site with a list of which bulbs squirrels eat?

Iris Reticulata

Dutch Iris

Triteleia (also called Brodiaea)

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (6)

owlette23
17 years ago
Dont use chemical repelants on your bulbs (they could be bad for the environment), enclose bulbs in chicken wire so the squirrels cant dig them up :) I don't think the iris needs protection.
0
linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author
17 years ago
The repellant I'm using is made from garlic, so I don't think it would be bad for the environment. Chicken wire is more trouble than I want to go to. I overplant bulbs and would always be running into it. I know DH would just yank it out the first time he ran across it while digging.
0
Related Discussions
Squirrels, tulips and other vulnerable bulbs
Q
Comments (14)
The first time I ever planted tulips they came up beautifully. The squirrels never bothered them all winter. I watched them come up in the spring and was sooo excited (I had planted a Halloween Garden for my husband - all black and orange flowers) when they began to emerge. The day they bloomed I came home from work to a garden of stems!!! Squirrels or deer or some such buggers had eaten the head off every single tulip. I couldn't decide whether to laugh or cry, but my husband laughed so hard he had to sit down. I left the stems in honour of Morticia Addams and her roses, and it *was* a garden of stems!! Every time a tulip bloomed, by evening it was 'off with it's head'. It turned into our Addams Family garden instead. Too bad I couldn't find any daffodils in orange or black!! Ha! For your amusement, Feegle
...See More
Stupid squirrels ATE the daffodil bulbs!
Q
Comments (11)
After having most of my plastic Christmas balls and lights eaten by squirrels from my outdoor Christmas tree I can say that they will eat anything. Oh, they also chew clumps out of my hydrangeas and caragana trees. They also ate a piece of one of my plastic solar lights that I have on a fence, many tulips bulbs and even hyacinth bulbs even though they are supposed to hate them. Last Summer they ate 18 unopened buds from my rose plants and dug out a lily plant, ate the bulb and then left with the whole plant (!!!). I have security cameras around my place and I saw that they were the ones who ate them. I'm in Canada zone 4b. They didn't die after eating all that as I can still see them around. Last year I tried many things to repel them that I found online, from cayenne pepper powder, moth balls (they ate some of them!), ground coffee to even urine and nothing helped. This year I'm trying something that I came up with on my own, which is powder garlic. It's been working so far. I already saw some of them sniffing it and leaving without causing any damages.
...See More
I need a homemade cat repellant !!!
Q
Comments (7)
Hi Ginnibug You might try simply doing a very light dusting of your orchids with cayenne/assorted hot pepper powder. I just put down a hundred crocus bulbs in my lawn (incredible effect when they emerge!) Dang DC tree rats (squirrels) started rustling around and digging for them so I dusted the lawn with cayenne pepper powder. Haven't seen them digging since.
...See More
squirrel repellent?
Q
Comments (5)
It's terrible when this happens as you lose any new culms for the year. Squirrels like young shoots because they have a high sugar content. I've tried a number of things and some work... for a while. The one I had moderate success with is vaseline with a lot of hot sauce and pepper mixed in it. Ultimately, however, their taste for the shoots overcame the spicy kick and they started munching again. The only thing that really works is a physical barrier. If you go to Home Depot or the equivalent, you can find roles of wire screening with holes that are about 1/2" X 1/2"; some are even coated green. Buy the screening and make cylinders 12"-18" high and set them in place around the new shoots. It helps to wire the top to an existing culm, and to bend the top in to prevent access. When the shoots get taller than a foot, they're too hard to be attractive to the squirrels and you can remove the protection.
...See More
ego45
17 years ago
'which bulbs need squirrel repellent?"

From your list, neither.
At first I was somewhat hesitant about brodiaea as I remember disturbed soil in a general area, but then recall planting crocuses there. All other brodiaea plantings were not disturbed, so I think they are out of squirrels interest.
0
lilies4me
17 years ago
I would need to hire Santa's helpers...by the dozens...if I wanted to plant my tulips in nifty little wire cages. We'll frequently put 2-3,000 in each Fall...along with hyacinths, crocus, fritillaria and camassia.

I shoot any little b******* that get near my garden.
0
carol23_gw
17 years ago
I dig a hole, sprinkle a bit of baby powder around , plant the bulb, then sprinkle a bit more powder at the surface. This works for almost anything. Any time you disturb the soil, squirrels are curious and dig around , at least that is my experience here. I use the baby powder when I plant perennials as well. How many times have I found a perennial uprooted shortly after it was planted?

I heard about the baby powder/ talcum powder application from a local arboretum. Just be certain you are not inhaling the powder.
0
linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author
17 years ago
Baby powder! Wow! So much easier than what I have been doing! I know talcum, or talc, is actually a mineral. Can it be any baby powder or only the ones made from real talcum? Some are now made without talcum.

Thanks so much!
0

Related Stories

HOUSEPLANTS How to Force Amaryllis Bulbs Indoors

By creative jewish mom.com

Enjoy vibrant red blossoms even as gardens turn snowy white, by teaching this hardy repeat performer to ignore the calendar

Full Story

GARDENING GUIDES Gardening With Kids: How to Plant Bulbs

By Alison Hodgson

You don't need expertise to get flowering bulbs in the ground in fall — but kids will feel like gardening pros come spring

Full Story

GARDENING GUIDES 6 Unsung Bulbs for Fall Planting

By LuAnn Brandsen

Don't hang up your spade after summer — plant these unusual bulbs in fall for a spectacular spring show

Full Story

FALL GARDENING 6 Splendid Blue-Flowering Bulbs

By Therese Ciesinski

How do you blue? With colors from sky to cobalt, these bulbs will greet you merrily in a spring garden

Full Story

LIFE How to Outsmart Backyard Critters

By Tiffany Carboni

Learn to think like a raccoon, skunk or squirrel to keep your home safe and your garden intact

Full Story

154

GARDENING GUIDES Great Lakes Gardener's March Checklist

By Barbara Pintozzi

Spy emerging bulb blooms, raise an eye to the sky and cut back old foliage to prepare for bigger and better things to come

Full Story

WINTER GARDENING Great Design Plant: Snowdrops Offer a Spring Peek

By Paintbox Garden

Braving snow and ice, these little white charmers are a sure shot of sunshine in the winter garden

Full Story

PLANTING IDEAS Easygoing Tulip Ideas From a Grand California Garden

By Le jardinet

Gather up these ways to use tulips to make a spring garden of any size overflow with beauty

Full Story

GARDENING GUIDES Simple Pleasures: Savor the First Spring Day in the Garden

By Laura Gaskill

How will you answer the call of the garden once the birds are chirping, the bulbs are blooming and the air is inviting?

Full Story

GARDENING GUIDES Great Lakes Gardener's April Checklist

By Barbara Pintozzi

Watch your garden light up with bulbs, go wild for wildflowers and be kind to wildlife visitors

Full Story

which bulbs need squirrel repellent?

Comments (6)

owlette23

linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author

Related Discussions

ego45

lilies4me

carol23_gw

linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

which bulbs need squirrel repellent?

Comments (6)

owlette23

linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)Original Author

Related Discussions

ego45

lilies4me

carol23_gw

linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author

linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author