Hei friends, There are a lot of skunks and raccoons in the backyard of the house. I have a pet dog at home. He is a very obedient dog. We call it Jacky. My dad used to take Jacky with him for morning walks. I haven't seen him playing in the garden or spoiling the flowers. Last day, when I came from my office, I saw my wife sitting very gloomy. When I asked her what the reason was, she said that her garden is completely in the spoiled state. When I went to check that I saw droppings in certain parts of the garden and raccoon footprints. I doubt whether the garden is being spoiled by the raccoons or not. Although I got my area cleared of raccoons and skunks by humane wildlife control of Richmond Hill, I would like to know whether these animals destroy the garden and our surroundings. Are there any ways to prevent the entry of these animals to your yard?
You do not want 'coons in your garden. they will destroy things you never thought of. if you use fish emulsion they will dig up the plants looking for the fish, if there is fresh compost you will be drawing them and other varmints looking for dinner, they carry diseases such as rabies, they will destroy the the corn crop the day before it is ready to be picked by you, they will snack on each and every ear just to make sure you don't get any of it. if you have chickens they will do a fine job of killing and eating everyone they can get ahold of. (speaking from much experience here). we put an electric fence around our corn. we grow an acre of it in 6 different plantings to sell. I need to harvest a crop. we take down and put up fence all summer long. if you have a "small" garden you can fence the perimeter of your yard for the entire summer to keep the wild life out of your yard ( and then weed eat under it every week to keep the grass from shorting it out).. fence comes in a 1/4 mile long roll. stakes are about 2.00 each at the farm store and a fencer can be 50 - 100.00 or maybe more depending on what kind you get. solar or electric. we trap and kill them. I hate coons.
I don't have raccoons, but we have wild boars and deers. A good fence is the best thing for the garden otherwise We don' t eat. Also many beasts that eat chickens.
If fencing your garden is a better option by all means fence just the garden... It is impossible for me to fence the entire garden or the yard. just do what works for you.
Is it just the droppings you are worried about or are they eating the corn as well ? Since the corn grows above the soil any droppings they leave will not affect the corn as long as it doesn`t touch the ground and droppings ! We grow a huge corn patch every year and we always lose a few ears to raccoons. But its a negligible amount !! Maybe 5 to ten ears, the rest we eat and freeze ! I remove it from the cob,, cook and season it before freezing but add no butter. Then I just heat, add butter and serve !
Electric fencing or traditional fencing are equally as good. Electric fencing is good because it is easy to move. Any kind of fencing needs to be checked for integrity occasionally.
I agree with Carolyn here ... raccoons are very clever and opportunistic creatures. They will make a mess of your garden and eat all your crops if given the opportunity. I don't even think a fence will keep them out if they want in bad enough. Trapping them is the only effective way.
An electric fence with 2 strands about 4" - 6" and then again 12"- 15" or so off the ground is very effective at keeping them out of the garden. too short to go under and too high to clear going over it. it works well for the corn patch. last year we had a patch ready to pick and the coons and skunks ruined it the night before we were to pick for a market. EVERY ear was ruined. probably a 60 x90' patch. wasted.
Used to have deer come through and chomp down on everything. They can and will ruin an entire garden in a single evening. I bought some stuff at the Garden supply store that I sprayed on all the time that give all the plants a really yucky taste. Bit of a rotten egg smell when you're spraying it on and you do have to spray it on after every rain but it is/was a good deterrent for rabbits and deer. Not sure about raccons but if your garden is really small it might be worth a try. Veggie garden I'm not sure about
