cats

I would love to know if there are any remedys for keeping cats out of a flower bed, I would send my dog out but he would just eat them and that would not be good. My neibors muliple cats love to use my flower bed as there personal litter pan . Any advide.

There's a product called Cat Scat mats, I think Gardeners Supply sells them. They're little rubber spiky mats, they won't hurt the cats because the spikes are made of rubber, but they don't like to step on them.

My Daughter who lives in the city, has lots of visiting cats, swears by the hosepipe method, she finds an old garden hose (green) and cults it into longish lengths and lays this in among her beds, evidently, the cats think it may be a snake or other predator and soon scarper away from the bed, she said she needs to move these every few weeks or the cats just get used to them. other than that, there are several commercial products on the market, heard good and bad reports re how well they work, but like my daughters, they will work for some, but am sure not everyone, it will be trial and error. good luck. WeeNel.

Hmm I have tried several of the commercial products to deal with this problem of my neighbors 3 cats using my raised flower boxes for litter pans, but none seem to work. I think I will give the hose lengths a try....thank you for that tip.

I use garden stakes for barriers. In raised bed, flower bed, or newly planted row in veggie garden, I put garden stakes in ground at an angle so cat cannot easily get near plants. Five or six garden stakes often keep neighbor cats away from a short row. (Dozen or more for a larger area.) The object is to prevent open space big enough for a cat. Works well for small flower beds.

Paul James on HGTV did a segment on this and had LOTS of suggestions. Go to HGTV and click on the Paul James archives. It wasn't that long ago, so hopefully you can find it. I do remember that he said cats don't like citus so throw your orange and lemon peels in the beds. I think he also mentioned vinegar, but be careful because it is an herbacide too. Only put it on mulch, not plants. Good luck.

Catherine

By nature, cats are attracted to bare soil to do their business. I have cats and have tried all the various deterrents available commercially, and have found that the ones that "confuse" their sense of smell work the best...like "CritterGitter"...or "Get off my Garden"...but they dissipate quickly with watering and exposure, and need to be reapplied frequently, and it can be costly.

The cheapest and most effective thing I've found that works really well is to save (or get from someone) rose canes and stems with thorns on them. You can cut them up into manageable size pieces (remove the leaves) and place them where you need them, thus making it really difficult for them to dig without getting pricked by the thorns. They give up pretty fast after they've been zapped a few times and will eventually go elsewhere. Cats are pretty smart and I think mine now know just by looking at the pieces lying there not to even attempt crossing over them.

Also, you need to remove any droppings immediately when you spot them, since cats are attracted to places other cats have been, and want to remark that territory with THEIR "contribution" !

I don't know if it will work for cats, but you can purchase a bottle of fox urine from the plant nursery and place it around according to directions.It does keep the squirrels and bunnies out of the veggie garden!

chicken wire work good too for cat , and squirrels.

Yes, chicken wire is an excellent deterrent . I have also heard egg shells work because the cats do not like to step on them so I have been saving and tossing my egg shells on the flower boxes and that gives an added benefit to the birds as it builds up their calcium.
Now, I just recently heard that setting mouse traps works. The cats panic when they hear the snap...you do not put any bait in them and these people swear they have never hurt a cat or squirrel.

If you have a source, placing pine cones throughout your garden works well with cats. They don't like stepping on them. It's organic and won't have to be replenished as frequently as sprays (and with luck, you can find them somewhere for free). I've used this successfully for many years. I know it works--I have 5 cats of my own.

I've never had a problem with neighbor cats entering my yard since we have 3 resident dogs. But last summer we adopted a kitten and as she grew she took to destroying several plants. At least she doesn't use the flowerbeds as her litter box but if a breeze moves a flower or branch slightly, she pounces and often chrushes them. One ornamental grass she completely smooshed down in the middle and would take afternoon naps in the middle of it. Its like her little fort, she just loves to lie in wait for the chihuahua to scamper by. I'll have to get a picture this summer.

Awwww Evesta...that is really so cute...who could resist such a sight !
Would love to see a picture !