Oh, lordy, what have I started?? I swear, this thread is lurching off-course like Frankenstien's monster! ;) Larryw, thanks for letting me know your positive experience! I so did not mean for this to turn into a "how to keep rabbits out of my garden, I hate the little buggers" thread! Also, I can't help but feel that sometimes people don't read too closely! :) I mentioned this before, but I have a fence, the edge is buried properly. The mesh used for the fence is too large. Very small (like the size of a soda can to the size of a lady's 8 sneaker) rabbits squeeze through. They eat the veggies, notably the beans. I didn't like putting up the fence enough to want to re-fence with smaller gauge mesh. I made the fence because all the spraying, peppering, soaping needs frequent re-application. I'd rather be weeding, mulching, picking, and enjoying! There is a ton of clover in my yard. They still prefer to snip my beans if they can reach them. I live less than 4 miles from the White House- although I am free to bear arms, should I discharge one this close to this many houses, I will be locked up and unable to garden. (I don't think we have thought police yet, though, so maybe I can just decide like john suggested?) We do not have room for a dog (where's he going to roam? In the garden? No. Bad dog! Out of the Garden!)... and I have a ton of bunching onion seeds which I have no trouble sprouting. And thus, my brilliant(ish) idea!!! (Please note that all of the preceding was meant in a light, humorous tone... if I have missed the mark, I can only say that my power finally just came back on after being out for 7 hours and I'm freezing my buns off here.) Thank you, though, everyone for all of your input! Oh, and scarletdaisies- I don't know about the parasite thing, but I do know that generally speaking hunting season is only in the fall/early winter months. I thought it had more to do with letting animals have a chance to raise their young, but I don't really know. Cheers, all y'all! Sunni

I'm replanting my veggie garden (tomatoes anyway, gotta restart the squash plants from seed) and spraying with liquid fence today. The rabbits only seem to invade the veggie garden when it's pouring down rain. Fencing isn't really an option for me, so I'll try to remember to update this post and let you know if it works or not (-:

I've used plastic forks, tine up, with moderate success. No reason why a more expensive version like your mat wouldn't at least have some success. Rabbits are pretty small, though, will you surround the garden on all sides with mats?

9-16-2024: update. Using milorganite only. Very little if any browsing in my yard this summer. No signs of deer (droppings, tracks, etc.). The socks worked well during cold part of winter and the dry summer last season but with regular rains this summer, the mil. got pretty wet then would harden into a ball. I don't know if that hurt anything as a repellant, it didn't seem to. BUT the newer 'nylon' socks they sold me must not have been a real nylon or at least not the kind that had any UV resistance because the socks sort of 'rotted' out in the sun all summer. They still worked but I couldn't empty them to reuse for a refill for next winter. So, socks are out of the equation this time around. I'm up to 12 pails only, one quart mil. per pail distributed evenly around the yard, just guessing ~25 ft. distance between pail locations. . And that's the important part. An even distribution of the source product must be placed evenly around the entire yard. The deer must be getting a 'whiff' no matter where they stand or move to once entering the yard. If you don't do this, it can be hit or miss whether or not it deters them. I'll find a way to hide the pails better as time goes on. This time of year, visitor numbers are low. ;-) Below 3 of the 5 pails in this area are visible. They are ubiquitous! The oak has not been nibbled once since planted. I know Alaskan Cypress are not real deer favorites. I only have a pail there to evenly distribute the source product in all parts of the yard (there are 3 more pails along the north end near the house. The tree will be large enough to hide the pail next season (if still needed). :o) I did broadcast the old product in various parts of the yard and row and being it hasn't rained in a month; it should still be working especially with the heavy morning dews we get. This is most likely my last report on this subject as it's working well for me as advertised and the only thing that I'd maybe change is to add a couple more pails to decrease the distances between the pails but only if it becomes necessary. p.s. my neighbor the cat farmer, cats, have seriously kept the number of rabbits down to where I occasionally see a smaller rabbit eating the grass around the trees, maybe clover too. I had to do a few things to keep the cats from turning my yard into a little box but a small amount of work to have permanent bunny 'scarecrows' around. :-) eta: I found 2 more pails so it's 14 total. ;-)