Does Garlic Keep Wildlife Away?
If you’ve ever dealt with wildlife on your property, you know what a hassle it can be, keeping the critters at bay. Many homeowners struggle with finding a repellent that works, but one that also doesn’t impact the quality of their plants, and garden patch.
Mind you, if you’re regularly dealing with pest wildlife, and don’t know why, it might be a good idea to reach out to someone like Wildlife X Team. Since pests are a recurrent problem, it’s likely that something on your property is attracting them, so you will need to identify and take care of that, or else, you’re doomed to keep attracting wildlife critters, no matter how much you try to prevent it.
But if this is your first time dealing with pests, and you’re looking for a natural solution, you’ve come to the right place.
Garlic is an often-touted “solution” to all wildlife problems, with many specialists recommending garlic as a great natural deterrent. But is it really as efficient as all that?
What’s the theory behind garlic repellents?
Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be much scientific literature to support this claim that garlic keeps wildlife away. The general idea that this claim is based on is that garlic is a strong-scented plant, and strong scents typically remind wildlife of danger. This is also the reason why things like lavender, peppermint, or ginger, are recommended for deterring wildlife – their strong scent baffles intruders.
This also works because many wild animals, like squirrels, bats, raccoons, or rats, all have a very keen sense of smell, developed largely to compensate for other, dwindling senses.
How do you use garlic to repel wildlife?
How exactly can garlic work against nuisance wildlife? You’re not going to play the old vampire card and just hang some garlic cloves around, are you? Well, you could, but that wouldn’t prove particularly effective.
Now, the most common garlic repellent is to make a garlic spray, using a few crushed garlic cloves, and some water. Additionally, you may choose to add dishwashing liquid (which would make the garlic spray stickier) or finely chopped red pepper (which contains capsaicin, another deeply hated chemical for pests). Simply boil the garlic for about 15 minutes, then remove from the water, add to a spray bottle, and apply to any problem area. If you don’t have cloves at your disposal, this may also be done with garlic powder.
This is said to work well as a snake repellent, also.
Another method of using garlic to prevent wildlife on your property is to just plant some garlic. Sounds pretty easy, right? This is what’s known as a “companion plant”, and works on the fairly simple concept of planting something a pest despises next to a plant it typically loves. So if you’re struggling with pests attacking your garden patch, planting some garlic might be the ideal solution. The strong scent of the garlic plant will “rub off” on the plants that the pests love, thus making them undesirable, and deterring pests from approaching.
What animals does it keep away?
On to the good bits – what pests will this keep away, exactly? Well, quite a few of them, actually. Squirrels, for one, are said to be repelled by garlic in the garden, as are most crawling or flying insects that are bothering your garden. What makes garlic a fairly efficient natural pest repellent is exactly this broad action base. Its strong scent makes it a good insect repellent, but may also work against larger pests, like squirrels or opossums. Generally, if you’re concerned about a specific pest, like a rat, it’s a good idea to visit naturalratrepellent.com to learn what works for rats.
It’s worth knowing that rabbits, for instance, are allergic to garlic, and that even large animals like deer may be kept at bay by the consistent use of garlic spray.
While garlic spray won’t work against burrowing animals, since it doesn’t affect the underground, planting garlic can be somewhat effective against these animals.
How effective is garlic, overall?
While garlic spray (or planted garlic) won’t be as effective as a store bought deterrent, it will definitely be more organic, and thus pose fewer threats to your garden. Generally, garlic is a good, worthwhile option to try, especially if you’re focusing on a budget-friendly, organic way to get rid of pests and nuisance wildlife from your yard.
But at the end of the day, calling a professional wildlife removal company is the only surefire way to effectively remove wild animals from your property. So consider your end-goal, but if you’re not looking at an excessive pest problem, and you’ve got garlic on hand, then garlic spray can be a quick and effective solution to most outdoor nuisance wildlife problems. As can planting garlic, and at the end of the day, even if it doesn’t work, at least you’ve got homegrown garlic.
