I guess a squirrel is a pest, at least in some situations it is. I had two kind of pathetic coneflowers planted close together in one of my block planters. Something dug a hole at that spot and there are no two pathetic coneflowers at all to be found. They dug a hole and took the flowers.
Sorry Vicki! I have trouble with raccoons too. They love bonemeal and fish emulsion. I cut back on that stuff and they aren't as bad lately. I hope someone has some other advice.
Name: Bob Kansas...The Land of Ahhhhhs I'm retired Fishing is my job.
I have a terrible squirrel problem and the only way I've been able to solve this problem is by placing large rocks around my plants or even using firewood logs where I can. Anything that limits their ability to dig. Even then if I happen to leave a few inches uncovered they'll dig there. Insects are sometimes less damaging than squirrels and easier to control most of the time.
There's a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore looking like an idiot.
I am feeling sorry for the squirrels right now. A couple of weeks ago, one was out in the yard working so hard trying to find places to bury stuff. I've been aiming to look to see if I can find a squirrel feeder to put out for the winter.
Name: Susan Southeastern, Va. zone 8a HAVE SOME CHOCOLATE !
They love to bury stuff! That is what they do, so if they have something to bury then they are happy, if they have nothing then worry. My squirrels go for the sunflower seeds no matter what. I put out corn one time and they turned their nose up at it and continued stealing sunflower seeds. I have a NONO feeder and they can pull out a few with their hands but they cannot chew it up.
I wish I could trick them into planting some bulbs for me!
If you want to help them out a little in the winter get a good strong feeder that they cannot tear up, then just get some cheap black sunflower seeds and you can make everybody happy with that. Except the woodpeckers, they like the suet, but the squirrel can eat the whole cake in one day so I must discourage him by purchasing the hot pepper suet.
Susan, when you have time, can you give me a link to a NONO feeder like you have. I'll google around for price comparisons. I just googled to see what NONO feeders are and of course there are multiple choices. Some of the NONO feeders have roofs and some are just round balls.
A couple of weeks ago, I went to our local hardware store. They had two different kinds of squirrel feeders. They were both wood and were both of very poor quality workmanship. They were expensive. I passed on them.
If you have something that works, I'll give it a try.
Once you have checked that squirrels are the issue an action should be taken in order to prevent them from gaining access to a home. First, locate the main hole the squirrels are using to get into the home and then seal all the holes.
I also had a serious problem with squirrels. First, I tried to control the problem on my own, but that doesn't prove to help me out. Then one of my friends told me to hire Exterminator Trumbull CT services. I called up the professionals and they helped me eliminating squirrels out of my garden.