PANSY SUBSTITUTE

I have a planter box on my deck and have tried pansies, but the squirrels are eating them. Could someone recommend a fall plant that squirrels won't eat? Thanks so much.

You can sprinkle pepper or paprika on the soil to help keep the squirrels away from your containers, and to help keep them away from your deck set up a feeder for them. Here is a site with some info on critter control.

http://www.ghorganics.com/page6.html#Squirrel%20Control

possibly mums would be a good alternative.

Mums are wonderful, showy plants. If only they could survive the freezing weather than pansies can.

The cool weather plants that you could possibly try include sweet alyssum, dianthus, annual phlox, snapdragon, and the violas. I think if you give your Cooperative extension office/.county agent a call they could fine-tune that list for your area.

Hello. howl. By violas you must mean what are commonly called johnny-jump-ups, which are miniature pansies, for lack of a better term. They have two advantages over pansies. Although the blooms are smaller, they produce more blooms, so they are almost covered with them, and they are even more cold-hardy than pansies.
Snaps are great, but they don't bloom profusely until the weather lets up in early spring.

Hi DP...yup, those, viola cornuta, and also viola x wittrockiana (pansies) and some of the winter hardy violets.They are all lovely , but i am partial to the johnny jump-ups. grin

This link always blows me away at the sheer number of species in the Viola genus..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Viola_species

the violas reseed like crazy and you'll have them popping up all over the garden all winter. it's a treat.

Violas are such happy little plants, and as Trackinsand says, they do reseed. Sort of like finding small jewels in the garden.

I have found violas blooming in my yard under the snow in winter, they are pretty.

If the squirrels eat pansies won't they eat violas?

I was wondering the same thing JulieQ...I never saw squirrles go after my violas. They do plant acorns all over my yard though, but never where I want them.

Squirrels will eat anything pretty much if they get hungry. That is why we put food out for them during the late fall and winter. keeps them out ofthe beds and containers...a few bags of cracked corn/sunflower seeds are much cheaper than replacing plants and bulbs, and I can sort of contain where the squirrels hang out....in back by the compost bins rather than the patio/deck.

I don't see very many squirrels, I don't have enough to interest them I guess, not enough trees either. I have more problems with bunnies & groundhogs.

I have a squirrel feeder; well, it was supposed to be a bird feeder, but the squirrels decided it would be theirs! They eat the seed, and my plants are left alone! I have a squirrel nest high in my Bauhinia purpurea tree. They undoubtedly chose that tree since I provide them an endless supply of food!

the squirrels in our backyard are having more fun throwing sticks at our dog!

poor dog!

Have your considered the ornamental peppers. The peppers are red, yellow, and Purple. I used this year instead of pansies just because I love the colors the tiny peppers have. I planted Purple Heart between the peppers which trails down the pot. I'll try to get you a pic.

BSD, can you tell me the kind of ornamental peppers? I'd love to try them in a garden at church for late color. Tks!

Cathy, I am working on that for you. Not sure of the name, but they are only about 1" long. I will have a pic for you tomorrow. We had our first frost last week and I think they made it OK. The purple heart will die back but will return in the spring. Talk to you tomorrow.

No rush, thanks!

Cathy, here is a link to images, each image a link in itself...Ornamental peppers are easy to grow and the birds love them.

http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&hs=z31&resnum=0&q=ornamental+peppers&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=miwuS4G9IcqPtgf9yKGCCQ&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CCUQsAQwAw

Cathy: The name of the peppers is Calico, They are an ornamental peppers. The website above has some that look similar to them but they don't seem to be as small. I will gladly send you some seeds if you would like.
I will post two pictures for you. You can tell in the close up that the peppers are small and abundant. This pot was planted in late Sept. (Three small plants.)
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Those are really bright colored, how neat. Can I send a few stamps? I would love to try these, I have a perfect spot.

I love the ornamental peppers!! If your in my zone I plant them in a pot with sage and other herbs and then I bring the pot in just after thanksgiving. It's nice to have something living like a pretty plants near your holiday decorations!

raebeags: That sounds really pretty. I used the giant lirope in the center which has actually survived our 20 degree nights. The purple heart did not work as it looks a bit leggie to me. I like your idea of the herbs. Maby lavender in the center and I have learned to love lavender cotton which has a fernie (is that a word?) look. I think I might try bacopa to flow over the pot. One system I learned for combinations in pots is thrill, fill, and spill. Works here in the south anyway. Anyone else have ideas to share in plant combination ?

This message was edited Jan 13, 2010 9:22 PM

BSD~
I like that thrill, fill and spill!! I used creeping jenny (not edible but pretty) and creeping thyme for the spill. The sage was the dark and light green one (I can't remember the variety) but your right about the purple heart that's what is in the pot it was getting kind of leggie. I think I may try the giant lirope next year! Thanks!!