Plant talk: Natural Raccoon deterrent

Mint is an effective raccoon deterrent.

Early one morning my Frenchies and I discovered white balloon like shapes on our grassy knoll. After researching, the white balloons turned out to be yellow-bellied slider turtle egg shells that had been removed from their underground nest and eaten. The paw prints next to the hole were clear, it was a raccoon.

The same day, we saw a slider lay her eggs on the knoll. To save the eggs from the raccoon, we read an article from UGA advising to place chicken wire over the nest to help protect the eggs.

We also wanted to implement natural pest control. SFGATE.com shared an article talking about plants that raccoons do not like. The article mentions peppermint.

 We planted Peppermint, Spearmint and Sweet mint. The mint and the chicken wire have worked very well. The raccoons have not disturbed the nest.

The only downside to mint is that it is an invasive plant. Take care to dig a barrier around the roots or keep in separate planters if planted near other plants.  

Colleen with  growforagecookferment.com  shares an instructive article on 10 reasons to grow mint (without fear) that gives clear guidelines and helpful tips for growing mint.

Bottom line, mint can be a great resource for many reasons, for us, it is natural raccoon deterrent.

We would love to hear how you have used natural deterrents. Please share in the comments section.

Deer Estate Farms