Ok DU Gardeners. How do I keep the squirrels from eating my tulips?

[FSogol]

There is plenty of sunflower seed around, but they break off a tulip, take a few bites and then decide they don't taste that great. Any way to keep them away?

[Squinch]

1. Little assholes. They did the same to my begonias last year.

I yell at them, but they just yell back.

[spooky3]

2. I've read that some types of peppers discourage them.

[Nitram]

10. It's dumb to consume capsaicin? You don't know what amazing cuisines of the world

you are missing!

[Nitram]

16. I'm not sure why you think you have more experience with peppers than I. I'll write that off as

more bombast. I'm into flavor, not pain. Spent a lot of time in West Africa, Thailand and India.

[Nitram]

18. Ah, but the old world found various and wonderous new culinary uses for our wonderful peppers.

I'll repeat: it's not how hot they are, it's about how they taste in combination with other ingredients.

[Nitram]

20. Keep in mind that you wrote, "Only humans are dumb enough to consume them."

I can't let such an idiotic statement pass.

[CrispyQ]

3. I've grown tomatoes for years without any problem.

Last year, the squirrels got almost every one! They would take one bite & leave it on the ground. I found one tomato on a fence post, a couple of bites taken out of it. Little shits. They've never done this before. ???

[NutmegYankee]

15. They do that in drought conditions.

I lost two Pink Brandywines that way.

[BeekeeperInVermont]

4. There's a product I used to keep deer from eating my plants

called "Plantskydd" and it is made for a variety of different annoying animals including small rodents. It comes as a powder that you sprinkle on and around the plant, also as a liquid spray and is certified organic if that matters to you. Although I never actually saw deer eat my plants, the damage to leaves was consistent with deer nibbling. The stuff seemed to work: the plants put out new foliage and I didn't see any more damage.

[cilla4progress]

5. I don't know if it works yet but

I made a concoction of garlic powder, hot red pepper, egg (to make it adhere) and water. Spray it around the tulips. Friend told me about it.

In the past I was successful with shaved Irish Spring soap, but it seems the deer got used to it.

[FSogol]

22. I'll try this one first. Thanks. n/t

[SeattleVet]

6. Eat the squirrels?

Really good in a stew, or fried. I used to like to put them in the slow cooker with some herbs and a little garlic.

Also excellent with dumplings - squirrel and dumplings instead of chicken.

[hedda_foil]

7. Don't they taste a little fuzzy when you cook them?

[SeattleVet]

14. No...

sort of like mildly-flavored beef. Unless it's a red squirrel that lives in pine forests; they taste a little like they are already seasoned with rosemary.

[OregonBlue]

8. I sprinkle with ground Cayanne pepper. I order it by the gallon on ebay. It's cheap. Comes in a big

sprinkle jar and I put it all over my bloomers. Squirrels hate it and so do the deer. I also put it around the perimeter of my lawn since every cat in the neighborhood had started pooping in my nice beds. They sniff it once and they don't come back. Just don't use too much. You don't want to hurt them. Just teach them your lawn is not a fun place to be.

[teezy]

12. Bulbs are something I am just getting into

I read online that the reason squirrels dig up bulbs is because when they see fresh soil, they assume some type of food has just been buried. They don't actually like bulbs, which is why they take a bite and leave it... but they rummage through trying to find whatever it is that's been buried, and in the process ruin your garden.

The solution I've seen over and over, which I'll be doing very soon, is to dig up the area you want to plant and lay chicken wire or something like that down. Bury it, plant the bulbs, and then put another layer of chicken wire on the top and bury it. The tulips will grow through the chicken wire. And then according to a youtube video I watched, cover it with mulch so the squirrela don't see the turned up soil.

Gotta say, they never disrupted my garden beds when I mulched them. Nervous to try, but hopefully it works.

[pansypoo53219]

13. plant daffodils. we keep getting gifts from squirrels. we had a new crocus.

i think the alliums were all squirrel gifts. they GAVE us a lot of alliums. moved them + not stolen again. gotta check. think squirrels gave us tulips. they do not like daffodils.

[FSogol]

21. Thanks for the replies everyone. I'll try a few of these. n/t

[Botany]

23. moth balls that are crushed up.

n/t