An eco-friendly way to deter wildlife from your gardens that really works

June 17, 5:18 PMSeattle Garden & Kitchen ExaminerJerry & Kristy

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   This Scarecrow motion-activated sprinkler is an easy,
    eco-friendly way to deter four legged garden visitors

Once in awhile a product comes along that is so amazing, you just have to tell everyone about it! The Contech Electronics CRO101 Scarecrow Motion-Activated Sprinkler is such a product and now we are telling you!

If you are like us, you have some unwanted garden visitors. Not the kids grabbing a cherry tomato type but the four legged type that seem to hit when we are in bed, making it harder to deter them. This year we have been hit by both deer and bunnies who seem to be working together to devour our vegetable plants, with beans and greens being their favorite!

With organic gardens, we don’t use and products which contain chemicals and a fence wouldn’t work so we weren’t sure how esle to deal with them in an eco-freindly way. After trying a few tips from neighbors (that didn’t work) I stumbled on the Contech Electronics Scarecrow Motion-Activated Sprinkler

What this little gem does, spray a short burst of water whenever it detects an animal in the area t is set up to protect. The spray (and noise/movement of the sprinkler) startles the animals, causing them to run away. The idea is that the animals will remember the water spraying as a negative experience and not return.

We set our Scarecrow to cover most of the back vegetable garden which seems to be a favorite of the deer and bunnies. I will tell you, the scarecrow DOES work although our deer were persistent and it took getting sprayed a few times before they decided the area just wasn’t worth it. The bunnies were quicker to get the connection and moved on right away.

The funny thing is, they only moved to another of our gardens! When this happened, we simply moved the Scarecrow to their next choice and it soon moved them away from that one as well. After moving it three times, I can now say the deer and bunnies have moved onto someone else’s gardens! This little sprinkler has saved our gardens!

If you are having four legged garden visitors, this is a great eco-friendly way to deal without them. You can also use the  Scarecrow Motion-Activated Sprinkler to deter animals and birds from your ponds or even cats from using your gardens as a litter box.

If you have a major problem, you might consider changing your landscape. It will take a few seasons but it may be the answer. Check out Deer-Resistant Landscaping: Proven Advice and Strategies for Outwitting Deer and 20 Other Pesky Mammals for some great ideas.

Bringing back Victory gardens