It’s that time of year again; the weather is cooler and your gardens are looking healthy and bountiful. Unfortunately, there is one problem looming large – opossums! These creatures love to dig through your garden beds and feast on your vegetables, fruits, and flowers. You can’t seem to keep them out or away no matter what you do! Can anything be done?
Is there any way to stop Opossums from invading your garden this winter?
First, let’s learn a little about Opossums. Opossums are mammals that live in North America and have some very desirable traits for breeders. Opossums are one of the few creatures immune to almost all poisonous snake bites .
Opossums are also great mothers; they carry their babies on their backs until the young Opossum can care for themselves. Opossums are usually viewed as “trash pandas” because of their taste for garbage and scraps, but Opossums eat dead animals that could spread diseases. Opossums will also clean an animal carcass by eating the meat and leaving only bones behind. This is great for gardens, as Opossums will remove rodents that can harm your garden’s ecosystem! Opossums are one of nature’s best pest control services!
Now you might be thinking Opossums sound great – they eat dead animals, don’t get sick from poisonous snakes, and are great at pest control- so why is Opossum control needed?
The problem with Opossums is their tastes have no bounds. Opossums will eat almost anything- including fruits, vegetables, flowers, live animals… anything! Opossums are even known to kill pets such as cats and dogs! Opossums also destroy your property by tearing up and digging through your garden beds and lawns. Opossums can make it difficult to walk outside without stepping on shredded plants or seeing Opossum fecal matter. Opossums don’t eat most of the things they dig up, instead, Opossums will play with their food before eating it, making a mess of your yard while playing Opossum. Opossums are even known to destroy entire gardens in one night!
There are ways to get Opossums out of your garden beds without killing them or harming any other animals. Opossums can be scared away by loud noises, smell repellants, and light sand scattered around the edges of your garden beds. Opossums are also afraid of humans – Opossums will stay away if they think you’re watching them. Opossums don’t like to be alone either, so Opossums can be scared away by getting a second opossum and placing it in the area the Opossum is currently inhabiting. Opossums will be scared away by a new Opossum entering their territory. Opossums will also avoid Opossums with similar coats, so if you have two Opossums in your area it may help get rid of both!
If you don’t want to scare Opossums out of your garden beds, there are things you can do to Opossum-proof your garden. Opossums are mammals, so Opossum fencing or wire mesh is a great way to keep Opossum out of your garden beds. Opossum fencing should be buried at least three inches down and have holes no larger than one inch long, with small mesh being best for Opossums. Opossum fencing can be used to edge flower beds, vegetable patches, and other garden spaces. Opossums will try to dig under fences, so Opossum fencing should also be buried at least two inches down. Opossums are excellent climbers, but if Opossum fencing is caged in with chicken wire Opossums won’t be able to climb over Opossum fencing. Opossums are also susceptible to drowning, so Opossum fencing should go at least twelve inches deep for Opossums to escape Opossum fencing. Opossums can also be scared away by plants like Coleus Canina, which produce scents that Opossums dislike. Opossum fencing or Opossum wire mesh combined with Opossum-proof plants makes it almost impossible for Opossums to get into your garden beds.
If you can’t afford Opossum fencing, there are other ways to keep Opossums out of your garden beds. Opossums will avoid areas that smell like humans, so Opossums can be discouraged from gardens by sprinkling human or Opossum hair onto plants and around garden beds. Opossums also hate the smell of rosemary, so Opossums can be scared away by planting rosemary near garden beds. If you don’t have any hair to sprinkle or plants to grow, Opossums will also avoid areas that have been burned recently. Opossums are also afraid of loud noises, so Opossum fencing can be protected by placing small radios near Opossum fencing or playing bird noise CDs.
What should you do if you have an Opossum problem?
You should call CPL Pest Control to rid of your Opossum problem! We promise to trap and remove your Opossum in the safest manner possible! Give us a call today for your FREE Consultation and Quote! Call 281-683-6737, as always, ask for Chris!
Thanks for reading!
