Tips for Dealing With Raccoons in Your Home Garden
The best offense when dealing with raccoons is a good defense.
- Don’t leave outdoor pet food that is an easy meal for raccoons.
- Make sure you don’t offer them a safe haven under your deck or shed. Seal up entry areas before they decide to move in.
- Raccoons are good climbers so you really need an electric fence at the top of your fence to keep them out. (I have a client – Cindy in Windsor – who did just that and has had good luck with keeping the raccoons out of her yard.)
- You can deter raccoons from your garden and keep them out of your fruit trees by placing cardboard below or around plants or trees and wetting the cardboard with ammonia. One of our TreePro clients – Linda in Santa Rosa has been able to keep the critters out of her peach tree after using this tip. Additional applications of ammonia to the cardboard may be needed.
- Motion activated sprinklers may work for a while until the raccoons figure out how to avoid them.
- Scat from Mountain Lions and Coyotes are also a good deterrent for raccoons. Place the scat near areas where raccoons are pooping and around garden areas they have frequented. Apply a second time in two weeks. For more information on obtaining Mountain Lion or Coyote scat contact Sonoma County Wildlife Rescue in Petaluma at 707-992-0276.
- If all else fails, you may need to contact a Licensed Wildlife Removal Company for help in trapping and removing the raccoons. Look for a company that is licensed by the California Fish and Wildlife.
