Rabbit Troubles

It’s always frustrating to come out and enjoy your garden and all the hard work you put in, only to find that rabbits have come through and eaten all your beautiful flowers. There are many ways of dealing with these little guys and here is a few:

1. Alter the habitat.  Eliminate any brush piles, stone piles and weed patches near plantings, as well as establish planting away from the edge of thickets and woods.  These areas are where rabbits are known to be. They are known to eat a variety of plants when under environmental pressure, so if your flowers are nearby, they may get eaten.

2. Exclude the rabbits.  The only consistently effective control measure available is chicken wire.  Wire of one inch or smaller may be used around the perimeter of your garden or around individual plants.  Such material Such material should be at least two feet in height and buried into the ground about three inches.

3. Repel the rabbits. While repellents so not eliminate rabbit problems, they do help in deterring them from your plants. Here are a few products we recommend at Vern Goers Greenhouse. Using a combination of granular and liquid products tends to be most effective:

a. Liquid Applications: Liquid Fence,  Messina Wildlife’s Animal Stopper, Bonide’s Repels All, Hot Pepper           Wax, Coyote or Fox Urine

b. Granular Product: Bonide’s Repels All or Granulated Coyote or Fox Urine,

4. Choose plants less susceptible to rabbit damage.  There are virtually no plants that are guaranteed against rabbits, but here is a list of plants that are poisonous to rabbits, as well as some they usually avoid.

 

Perennials Poisonous to Rabbits:Anemone ● Dicentra (Bleeding Heart) ● Primula ● Butterfly Weed (Asclepias) Foxglove (Digitalis) ● Sage ● Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis) Hyacinth ● Sorrel ● Christmas Rose (Helleborus) ● Iris ●  ChrysanthemumSweet Pea (Lathyrus) ● Lily of the Valley ● Tiger Lily (Lilium tigrinum)Clematis ● Oriental Poppy ● Trumpet Vine (Campsis) ● Columbine (Aquilegia)Oriental Poppy ● Virginia Creeper ● Daffodil (Narcissus) ● Oxalis ● Wisteria

Perennials Seldom Damaged by RabbitsAster ● Forget-Me-Not (Myosotis) ● Pachysandra● Yarrow  Astilbe ● Hollyhock (Alcea) ● Creeping Phlox  Bell Flowers (Campanula) ● Indigo, false (Baptista) Russian Sage (Perovskia) ● Daylily (Hemerocallis) ● Lavender  Salvia ● Ferns (Except Maiden Hair) ● Nepeta (Catmint) ● Sedum

Annuals Poisonous to Rabbits: Agapanthus ● Cyclamen ● Lantana ● Schefflera ● Begonia ● DieffenbachiaMorning Glory ● Snapdragon ● Caladium ● Dracena (Spike) ● Nicotiana Peace Lily ● Calla Lily ● Elephant’s Ear (Colocasia) ● Oleander ● Tomato Castor Bean ● Four O’Clocks (Mirablis) ● Philodendron ● CrotonDusty Miller ● Rosemary

Annuals Seldom Damaged by RabbitsMarigolds ● Heliotrope ● Vinca Periwinkle ●Ageratum