If you have ever grown anything in a container, then you have likely had the experience of coming out to check on your plants and finding potting soil and maybe even a plant or two scattered around the container. Because potting soil has such a loose consistency compared to soil found in the ground, critters that like to bury nuts and seeds for the future, like chipmunks and squirrels, will dig in and thank you for making their lives easier by making a mess of your container garden.

Think about it, would you rather dig into a nice airy potting soil or a hard patch of clay? Below, I will share a few reliable methods that will help deter small animals from your plants. However, keep in mind that, despite our best efforts, nothing is ever 100% critter-proof. Nature always finds a way around even our best efforts to control it.

Keep away rodents with these scented products

There are several granular products available in stores or online that contain smells to deter rodents. They can simply be sprinkled onto the surface of the soil. They will need to be reapplied every so often depending on the weather and the product. One is Critter Ridder, which uses a blend of capsaicin (peppers). It makes digging into soil an unappealing endeavor for small animals. Another granular is Shake Away, which smells like the urine of specific predators. This depends on what you’re trying to keep away. (e.g. the smell of fox and coyote urine will repel rodents). There is yet another product called Predator Pee. This is available as a granular, liquid, and small pre-packed canisters that can be hung in or near containers.

If you’re wondering how animal urine is collected or worried about the welfare of the animals it is collected from, never fear, I wondered the same things and did a little research. The urine is collected by the caretakers of animals in zoos and nature preserves. It’s part of their daily cleaning routines and then sold to the companies that process it for these products. So there isn’t some strange operation where animals are being “milked” for pee. (Although I’m not sure if I would feel worse for the animals or humans in that scenario). There are several other similar granular products on the market. These three seem to have better consumer reviews overall.

Other ways to keep critters out of containers

UScram is another well-reviewed product. It consists of triangular pieces of cork soaked in natural plant oils that can be tucked into containers on an included wooden dowel. It is also very effective at deterring cats from using your containers as a litterbox. Lastly, a plastic owl or snake can be pretty effective at deterring small animals. The trick is to move them around at least once a week. Otherwise, the critters will figure out that it isn’t a threat. (Or get the bobblehead version of the owl or one that includes a small motor to rotate its head).

You might be wondering why I didn’t recommend using wire mesh to keep critters from being able to dig into the soil altogether. While this is an effective control method, I find cutting wire mesh frustrating and it’s just never as easy as it sounds. In addition to cutting it to fit the container, holes must also be cut large enough for plants to mature or else it can damage stems and leaves as the plants grow, not to mention that I always manage to cut myself on the sharp edges in the process.