Lee Burkhill: Award Winning Designer & BBC 1's Garden Rescue Presenters Official Blog
Welcome to the Garden Ninja Gardening Forum! If you have a gardening question that you can't find answers to then ask below to seek help from the Garden Ninja army! Please make your garden questions as specific and detailed as possible so the community can provide comprehensive answers in the online forum below.
Welcome to the ultimate beginner gardening and garden design forum! Where no gardening question is too silly or obvious. This online gardening forum is run by Lee Burkhill, the Garden Ninja from BBC 1's Garden Rescue and a trusted group of experienced gardeners.
Whether you are a beginner or an expert gardener, it's a safe place to ask garden-related questions for garden design or planting. If you have a problem in your garden or need help, this is the Garden Forum for you!
Posting Rules: This space is open for all garden-related questions. Please be polite, courteous and respectful. If you wouldn't say it to your mum's face, then don't post it here. Please don't promote, sell, link spam or advertise here. Please don't ask for 'cheeky' full Garden redesigns here. They will be deleted.
I have a large and now empty flower bed at the front of our house about 7 x1metres which I’m planning to turn into a wildflower meadow. The slight problem is it’s next to the public pavement and we have a lot of dog walkers and cats in the area and I want to prevent it from becoming a very large litter tray! I’d rather not erect a barrier all around it until plants are established. Any ideas?
I have a large and now empty flower bed at the front of our house about 7 x1metres which I’m planning to turn into a wildflower meadow. The slight problem is it’s next to the public pavement and we have a lot of dog walkers and cats in the area and I want to prevent it from becoming a very large litter tray! I’d rather not erect a barrier all around it until plants are established. Any ideas?
Thats an eternal tricky problem, how to stop cats and dogs from using your flower beds as a toilet. Apart from a barrier ie hedge or fence there are a few other tricks up our sleeves.
In my experience, it's usually a hedge or full flower bed that stops the furry friends from getting proper access; cats love open ground, you see, such a full flower bed usually deters them. Here are a few other opinions to consider.
Create Physical Barriers: Install fencing or barriers around your garden to prevent easy access for cats and dogs. Consider using materials like chicken wire or mesh netting to block off specific areas. Can be unsightly though?
Use Natural Deterrents: Cats and dogs are often deterred by certain scents. Scatter citrus peels, coffee grounds, or cayenne pepper around your garden beds to create unpleasant odours that pets will want to avoid. Probably the best thing whilst wild flower seeds are scattered and germinate.
Provide Alternative Areas: Encourage pets to use designated areas for toileting by creating a designated spot in your yard with loose soil or sand. Place it away from your garden beds and keep it clean and well-maintained. Not very effective in my experience, but if your neighbours have empty borders, happy days! 😉
Motion-Activated Sprinklers: Invest in motion-activated sprinklers that turn on when they detect movement. The sudden spray of water will startle cats and dogs, discouraging them from returning to your garden.
Install Ultrasonic Devices: Ultrasonic devices emit high-frequency sounds that are unpleasant to cats and dogs but are generally inaudible to humans. Place these devices strategically around your garden to deter unwanted visitors. These can be really useful as a temporary measure and they are usually solar powered too!
Use Commercial Repellents: Explore commercial repellents specifically designed to deter cats and dogs. These products often contain natural ingredients like citronella or peppermint oil, which pets find unpleasant.
Thats an eternal tricky problem, how to stop cats and dogs from using your flower beds as a toilet. Apart from a barrier ie hedge or fence there are a few other tricks up our sleeves.
In my experience, it's usually a hedge or full flower bed that stops the furry friends from getting proper access; cats love open ground, you see, such a full flower bed usually deters them. Here are a few other opinions to consider.
Create Physical Barriers: Install fencing or barriers around your garden to prevent easy access for cats and dogs. Consider using materials like chicken wire or mesh netting to block off specific areas. Can be unsightly though?
Use Natural Deterrents: Cats and dogs are often deterred by certain scents. Scatter citrus peels, coffee grounds, or cayenne pepper around your garden beds to create unpleasant odours that pets will want to avoid. Probably the best thing whilst wild flower seeds are scattered and germinate.
Provide Alternative Areas: Encourage pets to use designated areas for toileting by creating a designated spot in your yard with loose soil or sand. Place it away from your garden beds and keep it clean and well-maintained. Not very effective in my experience, but if your neighbours have empty borders, happy days! 😉
Motion-Activated Sprinklers: Invest in motion-activated sprinklers that turn on when they detect movement. The sudden spray of water will startle cats and dogs, discouraging them from returning to your garden.
Install Ultrasonic Devices: Ultrasonic devices emit high-frequency sounds that are unpleasant to cats and dogs but are generally inaudible to humans. Place these devices strategically around your garden to deter unwanted visitors. These can be really useful as a temporary measure and they are usually solar powered too!
Use Commercial Repellents: Explore commercial repellents specifically designed to deter cats and dogs. These products often contain natural ingredients like citronella or peppermint oil, which pets find unpleasant.
Hello, we have the same problem with neighbours' cats using our raised vegetable beds as a toilet, especially during the winter when there is not much growing in them, but also when we just have small seedlings in them. Lee's advice is great as always, and as he says, it is empty space that attracts the cats. So we have found that barriers are the best deterrent. We use a variety of barriers - netting laid flat on the earth and pegged down is the least obtrusive, but we also use garden canes and assorted sticks laid criss-cross so the cats don't have space to dig and scratch. I've also tried planting clumps of chives and other around the garden - not sure if the smell deters cats, but the chive flowers are lovely and attract the pollinators! I use coffee grounds too, and a friend recommended 'Vick sticks' - smear a bit of Vick on bits of twig and stick them in the ground at intervals. I find the 'smell deterrents' work for a while and then the cats seem to get used to them. Same goes for the ultrasonic devices - you need to reposition them after a while when their efficacy decreases. Hope this helps, and enjoy your wildflower garden - we have one at the front of the house and it's wonderful!
Hello, we have the same problem with neighbours' cats using our raised vegetable beds as a toilet, especially during the winter when there is not much growing in them, but also when we just have small seedlings in them. Lee's advice is great as always, and as he says, it is empty space that attracts the cats. So we have found that barriers are the best deterrent. We use a variety of barriers - netting laid flat on the earth and pegged down is the least obtrusive, but we also use garden canes and assorted sticks laid criss-cross so the cats don't have space to dig and scratch. I've also tried planting clumps of chives and other around the garden - not sure if the smell deters cats, but the chive flowers are lovely and attract the pollinators! I use coffee grounds too, and a friend recommended 'Vick sticks' - smear a bit of Vick on bits of twig and stick them in the ground at intervals. I find the 'smell deterrents' work for a while and then the cats seem to get used to them. Same goes for the ultrasonic devices - you need to reposition them after a while when their efficacy decreases. Hope this helps, and enjoy your wildflower garden - we have one at the front of the house and it's wonderful!
Lee Burkhill: Award Winning Designer & BBC 1's Garden Rescue Presenters Official Blog
To my Newsletter
To my YouTube channel