How to Keep Squirrels and Chipmunks Out of Garden Pots

How to Keep Squirrels and Chipmunks Out of Pots

The most reliable way to keep squirrels and chipmunks out of garden pots is a physical barrier over the soil: chicken wire or hardware cloth with openings of 1/2 inch or less, weighted so it cannot be flipped aside. A layer of small rocks is the next best option. Planting bulbs at full depth, choosing bulbs the animals ignore, and removing food attractants all reduce the pressure. Taste and scent repellents come last because they wash off and have to be reapplied after every rain.

It helps to know what the animal wants. A University of Georgia wildlife specialist explains that squirrels digging in pots may be looking for food they buried earlier. Nebraska Extension adds that tree squirrels chew on spring-planted potted plants and dig up seeds and bulbs. Chipmunks are smaller, about 9 to 10 inches long and 3 ounces according to Mississippi State University Extension, and they eat plant bulbs, acorns and sunflower seeds. In both cases the plant in the pot is often collateral damage. Making the surface hard to dig is what solves the problem.

1. Wire Mesh Over the Soil

Iowa State University Extension states that the best way to prevent squirrels from digging up bulbs is to cover the planting area with chicken wire or hardware cloth and hold it down with bricks or other heavy objects. In a pot, cut the mesh to the inside diameter of the rim and weigh the edges with stones.

Mesh size matters more for chipmunks than for squirrels. Nebraska Extension recommends mesh no larger than a 1/2-inch weave for enclosures meant to keep squirrels out. University of New Hampshire Extension specifies 1/2-inch galvanized hardware cloth for bulb cages. Kansas State University goes down to 1/4-inch hardware cloth over seeds and bulbs against chipmunks and advises covering the cloth with soil.

For bulb pots, Iowa State’s instruction is to remove the mesh promptly in early spring before the foliage begins to emerge. For pots of annuals or herbs, cut slits so the stems pass through and leave the mesh in place for the season.

A cage is the alternative for bulbs. New Hampshire’s method is to set the bulbs root end down inside a cage of 1/2-inch hardware cloth and bury the whole cage at the correct planting depth. For fruiting plants on a patio, a full mesh enclosure with a 1/2-inch weave or smaller does the same job above the soil. Related barrier options for vegetables are compared in row covers for pest protection.

2. A Layer of Rocks

The Georgia specialist lists small rocks placed across the soil surface among the methods that discourage digging. Stone works for the same reason mesh does. It adds weight and removes the loose surface an animal can scoop out.

Rocks suit pots where the plant has one main stem or a tight crown, such as a rosemary, a dwarf citrus or a pot of established perennials. They are awkward in a pot you replant several times a year, and mesh is easier there. One practical caution: stone hides the potting mix, so check moisture with a finger below the layer before watering.

3. Plant Bulbs Deeper and Firm the Soil

Depth is free protection. Iowa State gives 6 to 8 inches for tulips, daffodils and hyacinths, and 3 to 4 inches for smaller bulbs such as crocuses and grape hyacinths. After planting, tamp the soil firmly and water it. Iowa State notes that correct depth and firm soil make it more difficult for squirrels to dig the bulbs up.

In a container this means choosing a pot deep enough to give tulips their full 6 to 8 inches of cover with room for roots below. A shallow bowl that leaves bulbs 2 inches under the surface is the pot that gets emptied.

Skip the bone meal. New Hampshire Extension warns that bone meal can attract rodents that dig up bulbs, and it adds that most soils there already hold enough phosphorus.

4. Choose Bulbs They Leave Alone

New Hampshire Extension reports that freshly planted tulips, and to a lesser extent crocus, are regularly eaten by voles, chipmunks and deer, while daffodils, snowdrops, glory-of-the-snow, Siberian squill, grape hyacinth and allium are usually safe without added protection.

Often dug up or eaten	Usually left alone
Tulips	Daffodils
Crocus	Snowdrops
	Glory-of-the-snow
	Siberian squill
	Grape hyacinth
	Allium

Resistant bulbs remove the food reward. They do not stop a squirrel from burying an acorn in the same pot, so mesh is still worth using for the first weeks after planting. Planting ideas for these bulbs are in fall-planted flower bulbs for spring color.

5. Remove What Draws Them In

Bird seed is the strongest attractant near most patios. Kansas State recommends placing bird feeders at least 15 to 30 feet away from buildings, which in practice also means away from the pots on the porch. Penn State Extension notes that a 2-foot-wide metal collar keeps squirrels out of a feeder.

Kansas State also advises against ground cover, shrubs and trees planted in a continuous line from a wooded area to the house, because chipmunks use that cover to travel. Mississippi State reports that chipmunk tunnel systems can reach 30 feet in length, so a burrow entrance may be well away from the pot that is being raided. Moving a planter is the simplest test. The Georgia specialist suggests moving the planter to a different spot for a few days.

6. Repellents, the Least Dependable Option

Repellents can help, with limits that every extension source repeats. New Hampshire Extension says they must be reapplied frequently, especially after every rain. Kansas State notes that repellents can be expensive and usually do not provide a 100 percent reduction in damage. Penn State reports that capsaicin products vary in effect depending on what other food is available.

There is also a food-safety limit. Nebraska Extension restricts taste repellents such as capsaicin to seeds, bulbs and flowers that are not destined for human consumption. Penn State states that a capsaicin hot sauce repellent can be applied to fruit trees and vegetable crops only before the fruit or vegetable is on the plant or after it is off. That rules out spraying a pot of ripening tomatoes or herbs you plan to eat.

Mothballs do not belong in pots. The National Pesticide Information Center states that mothballs are not wildlife repellents, that they are meant for closed, airtight containers, and that used in the open they can harm people, pets and wildlife that touch them, eat them or breathe the vapors.

What About Trapping?

Trapping and moving animals is regulated by each state. Nebraska Extension states that translocating squirrels is illegal there and that a trapped squirrel must be released within 100 yards of the capture site or euthanized. Check with your state wildlife agency before setting a trap. For a few pots on a patio, a square of mesh is faster and cheaper.

Results differ from yard to yard. As the Georgia specialist puts it, squirrels and chipmunks are individuals with different behaviors, and a persistent one may ignore a deterrent that works next door. Start with mesh, add rocks or deeper planting, and treat repellents as a supplement. If deer are also browsing the pots, see how to stop deer eating flowers.

Quick recap

• Cover the soil with chicken wire or hardware cloth, 1/2-inch openings or smaller, and weigh it down.
• Lift mesh off bulb pots in early spring before foliage emerges.
• Use small rocks across the surface where mesh is impractical.
• Plant tulips, daffodils and hyacinths 6 to 8 inches deep and small bulbs 3 to 4 inches deep, then firm and water.
• Favor daffodils, alliums, grape hyacinth, snowdrops and Siberian squill over tulips and crocus.
• Keep bird feeders 15 to 30 feet from buildings, and reapply any repellent after every rain.