Plants that like dog pee?

Am I hoping against hope?

We have a huge fenced-in back yard, and I have a lot of perimeter plantings. I have quite a few prairie plants at the south end, and have added Baptisia in hopes it will help fix some of that extra nitrogen. But pee and poo have ruined lavender, sweet flag, daylilies and milk weed so far. Catnip seems to stand up to it fairly well, but I don't think my neighbors would be crazy about it seeding into their lawns.

Dog pee but not daily dose for me to observe has not hurt pieris or our kaleidoscope abelia.

I've had to fence our dog off from some areas so I can garden. A male great Dane can pee on even tall plants, and he LOVES to lay ON plants. So he's just not allowed in some areas. In places, there's an actual fence, in other places I've laid tomato cages in the beds so he can't walk around in there. The plants grow up through them although it looks fugly at first. It's that or no plants at all.

You may be able to put something in front of peed-on plants, like a couple of stakes or even branches stuck in the ground. Something else to pee on without the dogs being able to get close enough for the pee to go on the plants.

Some stuff just has to go in the front yard here. Is that an option for you?

Love the sweet great danes, and I imagine they can do a lot of damage. I am trying to let sweet woodruff take over the areas where ours likes to lay around.

Yes, we have a lot of space and since we've moved in I have tried to reduce the amount of lawn we have to mow. The front is filled with ornamentals, and the back where dog has access has more prairie plants and some of the tougher ornamentals. The vegetable beds have fences around them, which of course are great to pee on.

I have planted along the border chain-link fence lines to keep from having to weed-whack all of that. I'm going to try a thicker chunk mulch that may keep some of the urine off the stems and roots.

There are a few products available that act as a deterrent to keep dogs out of flower beds. A mix or red and black pepper and garlic will also work. It can be sprayed directly on plants with no apparent damage to the plants.

http://landscaping.about.com/od/pestcontrol/a/dog_repellents.htm

themoonhowl, thanks for the link! Our neighbor's labrador killed a 3-foot thuja this spring and did serious damage to a newly planted hydrangea (alas the Invincible Spirit prevailed!), a Hetz Midget, and pachysandra planted next to a large tree. He seems to prefer woody plants. I planted a row of 8 mock orange and only two are doing well and I don't know if it's the dog or the chipmunks or not enough water on the hill where they're planted because those I planted in a pot are thriving.

DoGooder

You are most welcome Dogooder. It seems to be a losing battle getting folks to understand that dogs should be kept in their own yards. My neighbor's Lab decided to take a dip in our small garden pond....in her exuberance she unpotted some water lilies and drug them out of the pond (destroyed them) and in her splashing washed a couple koi out also.

The neighbor wanted to know if I was sure it was her dog....there were bit of hornwort stuck to her collar....and said she would keep an eye on the dog.....I was livid, but told her I would not send her the bill for the $200+ damage, THIS TIME....you might find your receipts for the damaged dead plants and offer them to the neighbor for reimbursement (not that it would get them replaced) but it might hit home if it hits their wallet.

Hope the links are useful to you.

Moon

Cooper our neighbors dog is huge! He has lept into our pond (no fish/no plants) but I was terrified he would be too heavy on the rocks with the liner - it takes my weight just fine but I am not leaping and digging In either. Plus - what about the algaecide and bleach - could that hurt him. Then he takes a flying leap at the screened porch and goodbye screens. We have a wooded site and I think he must do his business in the woods because don't notice damage on the plants.

themoonhowl, yes the article was helpful! I will take note to also treat the perimeter of our property even if there are no decorative plants there. I guess another way to dog-proof our plants is to keep them in pots. Last year I decided I was going to stop using pots because they're too much effort to water, but now I've changed my mind because the plants are better protected in a high pot and I created a new irrigation system to make it easier to water the pots.

DoGooder

Cool. It is a shame when you have to revamp your gardening to accommodate the neighbor's pets. Mine suggested I put up a fence to keep her dogs out. Our property is just over an acre....I suggested she put up a fence to keep her dogs in....we have 2 dogs and 3 cats....my dogs have a 40x30 ft fenced yard and are only allowed off my property on a leash....my husband's suggestion was less kind.We compromised on a paint ball gun rather than something more drastic. At least now when i say they have been eating the cat's food and chasing the cats and digging in the flower beds....not to mention using the yard as a pit stop....I can prove it.

themoonhowl, my mom got two puppies last year and they destroyed her garden so my parents had to build a kennel for the dogs. Our neighbors promised to only let the dog out on a leash but I still see him nosing around our yard. This week there are two new one-foot dead grass areas on our front lawn. There are many dogs in our neighborhood but these problems only started after our next door neighbors moved in with their labrador.

DoGooder

Things like that are so frustrating. I do hope the pepper mixture or one of the other products works for you. Good on your parents for taking responsibility for their dogs.