Rabbits prefer young, tender shoots and are particularly fond of lettuce, beans, and broccoli. Flowers they like to nibble include gazanias, marigolds, pansies, and petunias.
Answer: Marigolds do not repel rabbits, deer, or other animals. In fact, rabbits occasionally browse heavily on marigolds. Erecting a chicken wire or hardware cloth fence around the vegetable garden is the best way to keep rabbits out of the garden.
An edging of marigolds may deter rabbits. Plant deterrents. Onions, garlic, marigolds, lavender, catnip-many plants are credited with being deterrents to rabbits. What they all have in common is a strong scent.
Geraniums. Geraniums are thought to deter rabbits with their pungent smell, although gardeners enjoy varieties with a citrus, rose or other appealing fragrance. Zonal geraniums are bushy plants that typically bear soft, rounded leaves marked with a dark band.
Rabbit repellents work by releasing a scent that rabbits find repulsive (often dried blood or garlic oil) or making plants taste bad (hot pepper or dried blood sprays). Flavor-based repellents are usually more effective. Just be sure to follow instructions carefully, especially as it relates to reapplying after rain.
Plants that rabbits dislike include lavender, penstemon, artemesia, hyssop, sages, shasta daisy, gaillardia, common butterfly bush, blue mist spirea and columbine. “A lot of them I find are going to have gray, fuzzy foliage,” McMillan says.
If you're looking for an effective rabbit repellent, look no further than your kitchen cupboard. That's right - a simple mixture of water and citrus juice can help keep rabbits away from your garden. The citrus scent is unpleasant to rabbits, and the spray will discourage them from eating your plants.
As their twitching noses indicate, rabbits sniff a lot. Try sprinkling dried sulfur around or on your plants. Rabbits also dislike the smell of onions, so try planting these around your garden to further deter the furry creatures. To discourage pesky rabbits, try dusting your plants with plain talcum powder.
Camelia - Non-toxic, can be fed. Climbing Roses - Non-toxic, can be fed. The spines are harmless and only need removing if the rabbit or guinea-pig has some dental problems. Rosehips can also be fed.
Sprinkling coffee grounds among your plants may help to ward off rabbits and other small mammals due to coffee's powerful scent. Plus, it composts naturally over time, giving your plants some extra nutrients!
Plants like nasturtiums, garlic, onion, rhubarb, oregano, basil and geranium are effective at keeping rabbits out of garden beds. Also, sprinkling cayenne pepper around the garden (or even on the plants) will send rabbits packing. They'll sniff this spicy stuff and high-tail it out of there.
Snails and slugs eat irregular holes in marigold leaves and chew new flower buds before they open. They feed at night and affect the marigold plants at all stages of development. Slug injury is sometimes difficult to diagnose because slugs hide during the day.
While rabbits love to dine on impatiens, they will pass by the lookalike vinca plant, with its leathery leaves and tough stems. What's more, vinca plants are not bothered by the disease problems that have plagued impatiens in many gardens.
Rabbits prefer young, tender shoots and are particularly fond of lettuce, beans, and broccoli. Flowers they like to nibble include gazanias, marigolds, pansies, and petunias. Young rabbits are curious and tend to sample many plants, even ones reputed to be rabbit-resistant.
Mother Nature's Cuisine Oh No Deer Repellent Concentrate is a great cinnamon-oil based solution to keeping intrusive critters, such as rabbits, woodchucks and deer, away.
Marigolds Attract Bees & Other Pollinators
Their blooms are therefore an excellent resource for bees and pollinators throughout the growing season. Some marigolds are better than others for certain pollinating insect species – but many can help to draw them into your garden.
Trunk damage is the most severe form of rabbit damage. Shoots of shrubs can be pruned and the plant will recover. But once damage has been done to the main trunk of a tree, the vascular system is compromised and the plant is less likely to ever regain its full strength.
Consider raising the salad bar out of reach by selecting standard plant varieties, such as standard Hibiscus, Bougainvillea, and Gardenia, since the trunks are typically not appetizing to rabbits.
The plants that rabbits prefer to eat are grasses, roses, clovers, daisies, dandelions, kale, spinach, broccoli, beans, and lettuce.
But don't run to the store for repellant just yet—vinegar is an easy way to deter rabbits from stealing your veggies! Simply soak a cotton ball in white vinegar and place it in a small jar or canister with holes poked in the lid. Place these around the garden, and the vinegar scent will help to keep the rabbits at bay.
What are rabbits afraid of? 'Rabbits are naturally fearful of anything coming from above, like their predators would. If we bend down to pick them up, that action is scary,' says Rosie. 'They also dislike being lifted up, as that's what happens when they're in a predator's mouth.
Plastic tree guards/spirals (biodegradable spirals based on potato starch are available) or wire netting should be used to protect the trunks of young trees and shrubs. Rabbits can gnaw through plastic and fabric netting but this may give some short term protection.
You can protect shrubs or saplings by wrapping their bases with aluminum foil. The foil should at least be as high as your waist because deer are very adept to feeding on plants that are shorter than they are. This foil force field can also deter other pesky nibblers like mice and rabbits.
Rabbits are herbivores – they are vegans. They don't eat animal products. Therefore a repellent made of egg, milk or blood keeps them away.