This cute little baby bunny was found by my girls last spring, nestled under their playground picnic table. His eyes were not open yet, so probably only a day or two old. Super cute, I love bunnies. But what I don't love is that they eat my plants.
Last year was especially bad. One of my favorite cut flowers in my yard are the lilies: Asiatic, LA, Oriental. I grow hundreds of them. Apparently the rabbits love them too, as they ate all of them off level with the ground, just as they were emerging. So I had no lilies last year, save a few real hardy ones. This year, I am not going to let that happen. I am waging war.
There are several options to choose from: live traps, fencing and sprays. Tried the live trap but the rabbits just walk around it. So that is not working. Fencing is really too expensive for a yard my size. I do use it on certain small areas, though, like the newly planted sweet peas. Our most success is in using sprays.
They are all natural, made with Cayenne peppers and other not so pleasant smelling products. Makes my eyes water when I spray it on the plants. Have to reapply it often when it rains, which seems to be everyday recently. But it seems to be working. The lilies are coming up nicely this year. Yeah! Now I have to work on keeping the chickens away...
So if you are growing flowers for your wedding or beautifying your yard for an outdoor event, keep watch on your young plants. There are lots of animals that love them too: rabbits, slugs, snails, chickens, etc. Even my dogs sometimes step on them. You will be rewarded for your vigilance with amazing blooms later in the year. Definitely worth the effort!
