All the mammals, insects, and gastropods are a natural part of our world – even those that  wreak havoc in your garden. But just because they are natural living creatures doesn’t mean they have a natural part in your garden. There are a number of ways for dealing with the nuisance animals, but before you bring out your poison sprays and other toxic chemicals, consider trying out these cheap and natural ways to deter pests.

1. Build nets and/or fences

Before planting, make sure that you have designed your garden carefully. Don’t give small spaces for the animals to rest or hide, and don’t leave holes for them to sneak into.  To keep bigger animals from coming into your garden, build fences or nets around it. The height and design of your protective barrier will depend on the type of unwanted critters that you want out of your garden. You may also choose between a permanent fence or a temporary fence depending on the type of your garden.

2. Scare them off with a scarecrow

Scarecrow is a foolproof trick to scaring birds away. Whenever birds see those scarecrows, you will definitely find them flying to a different direction. However, birds can be smart so you need to make sure your scarecrows move around your garden occasionally, or the birds will think it is only one of the garden decors.

There are also scarecrows that sprinkle water to intruders. You may want to look for those with a battery-powered motion sensor to get the best use out of your scarecrows.

3. Spray organic animal or DIY repellent

Animals are somewhat sensitive to scent. So spraying your plants with something that hurt their nose is an effective method to keep them away from your garden. However, make sure to only use organic or natural DIY repellers. Never use sprays that contain harmful chemicals that could ruin your plants or harm even those insects or animals that you want to visit your yard.  There are a lot of organic repellents in the market, check your local pet store for some effective recommendation. Or, you may want to create your own natural recipes. The most common and easiest recipes are the cayenne pepper and the garlic cloves. The mixture of the two recipes also works great on repelling almost everything.

Other repellents are the following:

  • Bloodmeal
  • Bars of scented soap
  • Cheap perfume
  • Predator urine (i.e. fox and coyote)
  • Coffee grounds
  • Copper

4. Set-up traps

Sometimes, for some animals, repellents only push them away to another location. The best deterrent for these specific type of animals is a trap. Slugs, for example, can be easily trapped using an orange rind or some shallow container. Simply fill the rind with some beer or grape juice and put it in your garden. The slugs will flock to them, and the moment they dive in, it will be too late for them to realize that they are trapped to drown.

Although trapping looks really effective, it can be an arduous, repetitive task. Trapping one animal only opens your garden to another. To solve this, you can dig a trench at the base of your fence and put up an underground wire barrier. Make it at least 10 inches deep extending all around your garden. It could be very costly at first, but it will save you a lot of time trapping those wildlife nuisances.

5. Plant only those your wildlife friends won’t eat

Ever heard of pest resistant or repellent plants? Some plants are natural deterrents to pests probably due to their tough fibers, bad taste, thorns, or some other features that animals don’t like. There are two ways to use deterrent plants in your garden:

  1. Choose only deterrent flowers to be planted in your garden and nothing else to keep the wildlife nuisance away for good.
  2. Yield to companion planting, where you pair the naturally repellent plants with the vulnerable plants that you love.

You may ask your local nurseries or nature centers for some help on the best deterrent plants that grow locally in your area.

Even if you don’t particularly care about getting yourself exposed to harsh chemicals, you don’t want to expose your pets, children, and other people from it, especially if you use the flowers for your flowers delivery Melbourne business. Plus, you certainly don’t want to break the natural cycle of the food chain. By poisoning those in the lower end of the chain, you are also keeping the natural predators away from your garden. As much as possible, you want to keep the natural cycle of things flowing while getting rid of the pests.

Do you have a similar experience? How did you deal with it? We’d love to hear it in the comments.