How to Keep Squirrels off Your Pumpkins…results are in!
I told you I had murderous squirrels in my yard. Did you doubt me?
Only SIX days after I put my jack-o-lanterns out – they were totally mauled and left for dead.
Remember, in my last pumpkin post, I said I was going to try four different squirrel deterrent methods: craft lacquer spray, ammonia, hot sauce, and vaseline.
I think you’ll be surprised at the results…
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
#1 Ammonia. Pathetic. I think it merely cleaned the pumpkin up right nice for the little critters.
#2 Lacquer Spray. Shocker! I would have bet my best Jimmy Choos that lqcquer was going to win. Clearly squirrels like the crunchy coating. Like an M&M, I presume.
#3 Natural. I believe the hairy criminals were rather disappointed by the bland texture of the natural pumpkin after the excitement of the lacquer.
#4 Hot Sauce. Worked surprisingly well, especially considering it rained two days. The smell and hot oils must have penetrated enough. They did nibble off the teeth, though. Poor pumpkin looks like he lost his dentures.
#5 Vaseline. Unbelievable. HANDS DOWN WINNER! Squirrels must hate the sticky substance. And, the best part is, Vaseline is cheap and doesn’t wash off in the rain. I lathered it up with quite a good coating and it worked like a charm.
You better believe I’ll be lubing up all my pumpkins with Vaseline next year!
I love squirrels, but I can’t believe the damage they did to your pumpkins! You came up with some really clever remedies–I would have never thought of Vaseline. The picture of #4 might be my favorite though. They went right for the teeth!
I know – shocking how quickly they destroyed them! #4 is cute. Kind of like an old man now! Thanks for reading!
Ok, that is some useful knowledge. I feel like we spent $100 on squirrel food this year. I COATED them in Liquid Fence, which is an all natural spray that keeps rabbits off my hostas, stinky stuff, and the squirrels were undeterred. Next year it’s Vaseline!
Wow, you would have thought Liquid Fence would have helped a little! We will have to compare notes next year :)
We have some very aggressive squirrels and have waged an all out battle over a bird feeder that they have claimed as their own. After many laughs watching them slide their fat bellies down the WD40 coated bird feeder pole, but then still inching themselves back up and proceeding to hang upside down to eat the bird food we decided to try your vaseline remedy. Thank you for the always useful information. We will report back.
I wish you would get that on tape – hilarious! I can’t believe the WD40 doesn’t work! Let me know how it goes…