What to do about Rabbits!

      By Gareth Rasberry - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=27851654

Rabbits can be a real pain when they gobble up your vegetables, fruits and flowers.  Rabbits reproduce rapidly so a small problem can quickly become a big problem.  In this article, we will explore the biology of rabbits and how to stop them from devouring your plants.


When you think of rabbits you should keep in mind: Rabbits are a prey species.  They have evolved to reproduce in large numbers in order for the species to survive.  A very large percentage of offspring are eaten by predators, but some do survive and reproduce.  Ecologists call this mode of species survival “r-selected”.  


The most abundant rabbit in North America is the eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus).  They can produce up to three litters of six babies each per year in the north.  That’s 18 bunnies!  Their gestation period is 29 days and the first litter usually is born in March.  Eastern cottontails do not dig burrows to live in like European rabbits.  They prefer the security of a brush pile or hedge row located close to a food source.  They usually feed during the early morning or in the evening and rarely leave their shelter in broad daylight.


Imagine you are living in the 1800s.  You have a rabbit problem in your garden.  What do you do?  You trap the rabbits with a snare and eat them.  People were much hungrier in the 1800s than we are currently.  The rabbits were just another food source and humans just another predator.


Today, we do have predators to keep rabbit populations down - predators like foxes, hawks, owls, snakes and coyotes.  In city areas, we oftentimes do not have enough of these predators so the rabbit populations explode.  You may own a predator that can keep the rabbit population under control.  If you have a dog with a hunting instinct, she will put the rabbits on notice that your yard is not a place to hang out.  Cats can also help to reduce the rabbit population.  These felines will primarily catch and kill the small bunnies.  


No matter what, some of the bunnies are going to survive so you will want to take additional action.


A fluffle of bunnies

A good place to start is to eliminate any potential nesting sites for rabbits.  Get rid of any brush piles or low growing shrubs that can harbor rabbits.  If you see rabbits in your yard, eyeball where they might be sleeping and disturb or recreate that area.


The best way to keep rabbits out of your garden is to enclose the garden with a fence.  Eastern cottontail rabbits cannot jump very high so a two foot tall fence made of chicken wire will do the job.  Eastern cottontail rabbits can dig under the fence so you will need to bury the fence 6 inches into the ground to stop the rabbits from digging and slipping under the fence.  You will need to purchase 3 foot chicken wire fencing.  


If you are really motivated, you can buy a portable electric fence to surround your garden.  An electric fence will keep other critters out too, like deer.  You need to inspect your electric fence daily to make sure it remains charged.  It can become grounded if a stick or some other object falls on the fence and will stop working. 


An alternative to using a fence is to buy tall raised beds  - at least two feet tall.  If you  have a small garden and you don’t want to bend over while gardening, a tall raised bed can be a good solution to your rabbit problem.


                      By Jiaming Zhang - , CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=111194180

I would not bother buying repellants to scare away rabbits.  Bad smells, flashing lights and noise makers might repel rabbits for a while, but this is not a good solution for an entire growing season.  The rabbits will get accustomed to your repellant.  They will get hungry enough to feed even if there is something scary.


If you do not want to build a fence or buy a tall raised bed structure, there are some plants that rabbits dislike.  You can plant rabbit resistant plants as an easy solution.  The list is long so I will only mention the vegetables, herbs and then some of the more common ornamental plants:



VEGETABLES

Artichoke

Asparagus

Corn

Cucumbers

Garlic

Leeks

Onions

Potatoes

Rhubarb

Summer squash

Tomatoes


HERBS

Basil

Ginger

Lavender

Marjoram

Mint

Oregano

Parsley

Rosemary

Sage

Savory

Tarragon


ORNAMENTALS

Azalea

Artemisia

Begonia

Butterfly bush

Daffodil

Geranium

Marigold

Milkweed

Primrose

Rhododendron

Salvia

Sedum


Rabbits are a reminder that we share this planet with many different species.  In a natural habitat, predators balance out the number of rabbits so they are not overpopulated.  With the near absence of predators in an urban/suburban environment, you need to take measures to prevent rabbits from decimating your garden.  The most effective long term strategy is to eliminate nesting areas for rabbits in your yard and build a fence to exclude rabbits.  As a last resort, the simplest solution to a rabbit problem is to grow plants that rabbits find unpalatable.


Thanks for reading.  If you want to learn more about gardening and plants, you can find my books at:


https://www.amazon.com/stores/Edwin-McLeod/author/B08TCJTKSW?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true









   

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