Gardeners usually try to embrace nature as much as possible. They live with the soil under their fingernails, welcome the rain as much as sun, and invite birds and bees into their yard. Yet they also try to avoid, as vehemently as possible, some of nature’s not so-savory aspects. Because the good, like rose blooms and apple blossoms, always comes with the bad, like aphids and rodents.
Often we turn to extreme measures to get rid of our four-legged and two-winged “friends.” A friend of mine recently told me that her mom bought a BB gun to use on the squirrels eating her apricots. While I’m not totally convinced she’s up for the task of blowing a squirrel’s brains out (they are kinda cute), I did remember how close I was to reaching for my grandma’s air pistol when I saw a big rat in my blackberry bush. Guarding the fruits of one’s labor can make even a pacifist turn quite violent.
Yet the poison and death route can get more than a little messy, and can sometimes even be toxic for the animals we do want, like Fido or Kitty. So what to do? Are there more natural or safer ways to get rid of the critters that plague our landscapes?
Gophers
Pocket gophers leave a telltale sign of activity—mounds of fresh dirt in garden beds or on lawns. (Remember Caddyshack?) As they tunnel beneath the surface, they can disrupt patches of lawn, pull down small plants into their burrows, and eat the roots of vegetables and ornamentals.
The best way to stop pocket gophers from eating your greens and bulbs is to line the bed or planting area with chicken wire. Dig down one or two feet and line the entire area—making sure there are no holes—with chicken wire. Stabilize sides with wooden posts and then fill in the hole with the soil you’re using.
You’re up against more of a battle with the gophers in already planted areas, like a big lawn. Traps are the most effective way to catch the critters, but you do have to deal with body disposal. There are many animals that prey on gophers—cats, dogs, raccoons, coyotes, hawks, and owls among them. Setting up a barn owl box can encourage these predators to visit your yard. Note that if you do use poison, like strychnine, you can also poison the predator that eats the gopher.
Deer
Deer aren’t a problem for most urban dwellers, but in the country, they’re a serious menace. Even when I lived in Berkeley, California, a fairly developed area, deer could be seen chomping their way through the yards of hillside homes. The best way to prevent deer devastation—and they are hungry and fast eaters—is to plant things that they don’t like. Deer have preferences, and some plants they’ll generally avoid, at least until they get really hungry. You’re often in the clear with plants that are native to your area. Some of my favorite plants that deer consider the Brussels sprout of the plant world are the sages (salvias), California lilac, and yarrow.
But what about edibles? If you want to eat them, so do the deer. The obvious prevention tactic here is a fence, but if you have a large yard, you also have to have a large fenced-in area, not to mention a high one—deer can jump as high as eight feet. Digging a trench around the outside of the fence can also help deter jumping does.
There are also many over-the-counter products, which vary in efficacy. Some release an unpleasant odor and others make plants taste bad. DeerStopper is an organic solution made of eggs, mint, and rosemary that’s supposed to work; you could also try making your own noxious concoction with things like eggs, chilies, mint, and biodegradable soap. Reapply as necessary.
