Squirrels

I'm planning an area to plant the Three Sisters but we have a terrible problem with squirrels. Does anyone have any suggestions to keep them away from my corn? Margaret

I bought a book about combatting squirrels for a friend of mine. (Search Amazon for "Squirrel Proofing") I have trouble with them eating bananas and pineapples. (Tree rats!) I'm like Wile E. Coyote with my ACME rockets, trying to fight them all the time. They smashed my chickadee feeder!

The best suggestion I've read is to provide a food source for them far away from whatever it is you don't want them to eat, or just plant enough for everyone. In other words, if you have three rows of corn your family was planning to eat, plant a couple extra rows and just share! Put peanuts and dried corn and bird seed in a special tree rat feeder about 25 feet away from the corn. This way, they don't have to raid your corn to find food, you're providing a buffet for them that's much easier to get to and has been set out just for them.

This may or may not work and will also probably attract racoons, possums, armadillos, and who knows what other hungry critters.

Shooting them is illegal in most municipalities and relocating them is not the answer either. Tree rats are territorial and introducing a stranger to an establish colony in another location is like a slow death sentence for the interloper you're trying to relocate. They starve to death slowly because the established colony won't let them near any food sources. . . if they don't get jumped by a gang of leather-clad territorial tree rats, who skipped school to smoke cigarettes in an alley somewhere. (You can tell those apart from the other squirrels by looking for all their prison tattoos.)

Best way I've found to keep tree rats out of my fenced-in yard: let the dogs out to chase 'em around. Great fun for the dogs and the tree rats stay about five feet off the ground (and away from my pineapples!).

Great suggestions Dogzilla. Thanks. Margaret

Word of warning: don't let the squirrel feeders get empty! I use the easy-feeder-for-squirrel, difficult-feeder-for-birds method, but the squirrels have been known to go on a garden-wide rampage if "their" feeder was empty.

Your planting area may be too big, but I use dried blood (from the garden center). I reapply it after rain. If I'm not vigilant, though, the nasty things come right back.

Also, second hand, my friend has used fox urine (don't worry, also from the garden center) and this worked well for her. It's expensive and you can smell it, but if it's not on your front porch, that might also help.

Good luck.

Thanks lindanat for the suggestions. I'll check them out the next time I get to the garden center. Margaret

Keep me posted!

Finally found a squirrel proof bird feeder. Put it back in the box and store it in the garage, wala - no squirrels get to it. ;-) I love watching the squirrels as much as I do the birds. I just have to be very, very careful not to let the corn cob feeders get empty. As long as they have corn they tend to leave the more difficult to get to bird feeders alone. Problem I got now is a couple of raccoons that have developed a taste for the black sunflower seeds I put out. They raid the bird feeders and empty them in one night. grrrrr.

I have a very bad squirrels problem.Every bird feeder I have used they have destoyed.A couple of years ago I read that squirrels do not like safflower seeds and will not bother the feeder if they are used.Since that time I have used it exclusively in all my feeders and the birds are loving it and no squirrel is interested.I do get alot of safflower seedlings growing.

I finally got tired of being the crazy lady who runs into the backyard in her bathrobe to chase the squirrels from the feeders . . .

I had seen in catalogs and finally found on the shelf in Wegmans (big supermarket) the birdfood that is infused with some sort of hot pepper oil. The squirrels tried it once or twice and did not come back. It's amazing how much longer my birdseed lasted (to make up for it being more expensive).

Apparently, birds do not taste this. It had no effect on who (with wings and two legs) showed up at our feeders. We got the usual crowd.

I've been reading about hot peppers and squirrels. Apparently, they don't like peppers. If you grow peppers, you can crush them and leave them around the yard to deter the critters. Birds will eat the seeds as the capsaisin in peppers doesn't bother them. But mammals hate it. I'm just happy I can grow peppers without having them eaten by the little tree rats.