The last few days, in the evening, a big ol’ fat rabbit has been sitting in the front yard, enjoying the grass and flowers. When I come out, he looks at me with those big black eyes as though I am the intruder! Me! The one who planted and cares for everything. Me! I stare right back and charge towards him, and he hops off. But I know he’ll be back, and I know exactly where he will go to eat.
Yes, he will go the vegetable garden. And he will invite all his bunny friends to join him. And they will string up party lights and they will party and they will eat, and then eat some more.
Right now, there isn’t too much to eat out there other than some lettuce and spinach. But as soon as I try to grow some green beans, the rabbits will eat every single young bean sprout off. Every single one! I have not had green beans from my garden in over 3 years, all because of the rabbits.
One year, I bought a ‘rabbit proof’ black plastic fencing designed specifically to keep out rabbits and put it around each raised bed that contained plants I wanted to protect. I am not kidding when I write that the rabbits chewed little doors and windows in the plastic fencing. I am not kidding! Then they went right in through their new doors and ate everything they could. I even wrote the fence company about it and they refunded my full purchase price!
I’ve also tried blood meal, cayenne pepper, and commercial rabbit repellent. Still they eat! I’ve tried to fence off the entire vegetable garden by stapling strips of hardware cloth to the bottom of the privacy fence so they can’t get in that way, and putting up a temporary wire bunny fence across the front side of the garden. I later watched a rabbit jump over this fence to get into the garden. He jumped over the fence! One big, flying leap and he was going to town.
This year, I plan to cover the bean patch with horticultural fabric to keep the rabbits out at least long enough for the plants to get to a size where a little bunny nibbling won’t hurt them. That’s it, my last idea. I hope it works.
Anyone have any other ideas?
When I saw the cute little bunny sitting in your little front yard tree bed among the pretty tulips, I thought it was a special Easter display you put together — until I realized the bunny was REAL! He/she just sits there so still for SO long at a time.
You are plagued by bunnies and for me it seems every single year a momma robin makes a nest somewhere on the front of my house…this time it is a little flat downspout area between two roof peaks. Last year it was a front window tucked behind a Japanese maple. This year, everytime I come out or in my front door she flaps and squawks at me…always making me jump even though I know she’s there! Drives me crazy!
Try putting hair from your hairbrush around the garden. They don’t like the smell of humans. If you don’t have alot of hair in your hairbrush, next time you go and get your hair cut, ask them for some they have swept up that day.