Neighborhood cats. Need I say more, town gardeners? To be clear, I love cats. I am guilty of treating my cat like a beloved family member, feeding him treats, cooing him, letting him sleep on my bed. I do not love when he makes my garden bed one of his beds. He has a sixth sense for knowing when I planted a new seed bed, which in turn becomes his prefered location for an afternoon nap and nest, sending my germination rates plummeting. For years I have experimented with different techniques. For a long time mulching well with straw seemed to do the trick. Apparently, his tastes (and the taste of our neighbors’ cats) have changed. The straw is no longer a deterrent.
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I must credit a dear friend for the inspiration. I headed to our hardware store where the 24 inch fencing was reasonably priced (albeit plastic). I purchased a few posts for the corners, then buttressed the sides with a ramshackle assortment of scrap wood stakes. The fence is high enough (for the moment) to dissuade cats. The raised beds themselves add some extra height, which is helpful, though you could also get similar fencing that is taller. The seeds are coming up in the nice rows and patches in which they were planted. (Yey!) Do you know of a humane trick that helps discourage neighborhood cats? Do tell!
What a simple solution! I had a similar problem at a previous residence. I had some lovely stone planters on the front of my house, and my plan was to fill them with beautiful flowers--which I did. A neighboring cat decided that these flower beds were the perfect place to go potty, and was, of course, ruining my flowers. My first thought was to use fencing, but the house was in a city, and the planters were in the front, so I thought fencing would spoil the effect I was trying to create. I discovered a product that was made with citrus oil (orange, I think), and I sprayed it around the flowers. It had three benefits: it did not poison the soil, it smelled very nice, and it kept the cat away. I had to reapply it after rain (which in Tacoma, Washington was fairly frequently), but it was worth the trouble.
ReplyDeleteI love your other garden pictures as well. I used to have a pretty extensive garden, but have been so busy the last few years that gardening has taken a back seat. Your pictures are inspiring me for next year's planting!