In the Garden with Pat Rubin

Bee garden writer Pat Rubin writes about everything that grows, from flowers and trees to vegetables and lawns. Pat volunteered for several years as a Placer County Master Gardener and has written about gardening for many national and regional publications. In addition to gardening, she spends time raising and showing miniature horses and miniature donkeys.

In the Garden will include news, events, advice and other gardening tidbits. Pat will also answer reader questions.

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January 14, 2008

Readers weigh in on raccoons in the garden

From Charls Whelan, State of the Earth, Sacramento:
Raccoons forage for food - remove the food source. Grubs (food source) are difficult to control with poisons because a "perfect storm" scenario is necessary for success.
A much more effective control method is the release of beneficial nematodes - now your window is wide open because the nematode seeks out it's prey with great effectiveness. I have been using this approach for more than 20 years with a better than 90 percent success rate.

From Janet Smith, Citrus Heights:
Just read your column on racoons in which you suggest people call a professional to trap them. That was very disappointing to read. I have been feeding racoons for years. I use dog food because cat food has been said to be too fatty for them. I have always had cats but no cat of mine has ever been attacked by a racoon. They growl when they are new to the routine and are a little afraid, but after a while they just eat while I stand there and talk to them. They have been delighting our kids, neighbors, and study group youth. Sometimes a brave one will come to the patio door, stand upright, and put his paws on the window. I've touched paw to finger through the glass. But once the door is opened, they back off.
They belong here. They get hit by cars, killed by dogs, poisoned, and shot. When they are babies, they are adorable. I've seen them peacefully share the food with possums and skunks, including baby skunks, who have poor manners and are utterly lacking in fear.
There is no reason to trap racoons. Road kill keeps their population in check.

From Ilse Wurzbach, Fairfield:
I have an old almond tree in my garden which has been attacked over the years by birds, pests, and last year by the neighborhood raccoons. In 2 nights 7 raccoons plundered my precious almonds. The garden looked like a hurricane had swept through. Not a single nut remained on the tree.
I called several professional people. I ended up with the Calif. Agricultural Dept, being connected to Wild+Game and to a trapper. He brought several cat cages and used catfood as bait. Sure enough, we caught 6 raccoons, a mother and 5 teen-agers.

From Dave McKie, Gold River:
Your column revived some memories of my “turf war” with the raccoons. They liked to slice and roll back the sod, which left my lawn looking like a real battlefield.

Although I used grub killer, I also tried several commercial products that claimed the ability to repel various pests, including raccoons. My best success seemed to come from one that included garlic in its mix. But the stuff cost about $20 including tax, and so I decided to try just plain granulated garlic. It worked! Although the garlic is washed away with rain or sprinklers, I just apply it when needed. It seems to do the trick and lately I’ve not been pestered very often by the raccoons. Maybe they’re learning that they can avoid my “garlic gauntlet” if they go elsewhere. One downside is that the yard has a pungent, although relatively short lived, smell after application of the garlic. Also, I don’t put much garlic on the grass. Rather, I focus on spreading it around the periphery and on paths where I expect the raccoons would walk. Perhaps they don’t like to get it on their feet?

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