I agree. Pine cones work great.

Thank you, Barton.

Wow - so cool, and I have two big pine trees in my front yard. I use the pine needles for mulching my hydrangeas and azaleas, but now I can use the pine cones, too! Thanks for the great tip!

Susan

I use the needles too. I think they, too, do a great job in flower beds, as well as protecting places that are vunerable to erosion. My mom planted around fifty trees and they all lived, so the pine cone and needle supply goes on and on.

Sweet gum balls will keep critters out, but may keep the gardner out as well. LOL

I used moth balls and they worked well but the pine cones sound much more environnmentally correct!

Cat Deterrents for your Garden:

Keep in mind that each cat is different (like people), a deterrent that works for one may not necessarily work for another. On the plus side, most cats will keep pesty squirrels, moles and other critters out of your garden. They're great for keeping out moles, rabbits, squirrels, and other critters which can do more damage in your garden than a cat ever will. If the cats have owners, talk to them without being confrontational. The cat owner who allows his cat to damage other peoples' property is as guilty as the cat hater who kills the cat for trespassing. Remember, cats will be cats, and it is unfair of us to blame them for being what they are and how nature intended them to participate in this world.� After-all, we praise them when they catch mice or rats or other creatures we deem to be 'pests'.

* amonia soaked (corncobs, etc)
* aluminum foil
* bamboo skewers
* black pepper
* blood meal fertilizer
* bramble cuttings
* Carefresh - "recycled" wood pulp
* catnip - donated into your neighbor's yards (so they'll stay in their own yards)
* cedar compost
* chicken wire (metal or plastic)
* cinnamon
* citrus peels
* citrus spray
* cocoa bean shells
* coffee grounds -fresh & unbrewed, not just a light sprinkling (highly recommended by MANY Gardenwebbers!)
* dogs
* electric fence for animals
* essence of orange. essence of lemon, lime (citrus essential oils)
* fresh manure(ditto)
* garlic cloves
* gumballs from the Sweet Gum Tree
* gutter covers
* hardware cloth
* heavy bark mulch
* holly leaves
* keep the area damp, they like dry soil
* lavender
* liquid manure (good for your garden too)
* motion sensor sprinkler
* pennyroyal
* pinecones
* pipe tobacco
* plastic forks
* predator urine
* red wine vinegar
* river rocks over the exposed soil
* rocks, crushed
* rose bush clippings
* rue, an herb (Ruta graveolens) (highly recommended in plant form only)
* short twigs throughout the planted area about 6" apart
* six-inch bamboo skewers (pointy side up)
* Spray on your leaves (not the cat): fill a spray bottle with 1/2 t chili powder, 1/2 t cayenne pepper, 1 t dish soap and water
* squirt gun with water
* talk to your neighbors
* tansy
* thorny berry, lilac, hawthorn, rose clippings
* toothpicks
* upside down vinyl carpet
* vinegar sprayed on areas where they roam
* water bottle on "stream"

NOT RECOMMENDED:
*** chili powder, red crushed pepper, cayenne pepper (NOT recommended), it gets on the cat's paws then they wash themselves and they get it in their eyes, beware cats have literally scratched their eyes out because of this. Even if it's one cat out of 500 infected in this way, that's one too many for me.
*** Don't ever use mothballs or flakes. Those little toxic waste pellets destroy cats' kidney function, could seriously harm people who handle them, and yes, contaminate your own garden soil. Their...

Is it only the irritating texture of the pine cone spines what deters the cats, or is there some other naturally occuring substance in the pine cone which offends the cats?

I have been dreading the day that my row of Loblolly pines start producing pinecones. In Spring of '94 I planted a stagared line of only one gallon pot size trees. Out of the eleven planted, all except two on the lower elevation of the line, which seems to have a higher water table, survived with almost no supplemental watering. The surviving ones now are perfectily proportioned and almost 15 feet tall. They have not produced Pine cones yet, but when they do I will be very greatful to know of such a good use for them.

Only one thing concerns me about that though. Would years of using pine cones for such a purpose make the ground too acidic as over time they breakdown into the soil?

In the list posted earlier, I am also a little concerned about the suggestion to use ammonia to deter cats. I once had a cat that developed epileptic seizures after only one exposure to the fumes created when I used ammonia to clean my bathroom and kitchen floors. Wonder if soaking things like corncobs in ammonia and putting them in the garden could cause the same problem for other cats?

Pine cones are a very interesting solution. Has anyone ever tried magnolia pods? We've got tons of 'em. I wondered about their pH levels. It would be nice to find a use for the otherwise pesky pods.

Erin

If you use pine cones or sweet gum balls, be prepared to dig up a lot of trees. :)