With years of experience in observing and interacting with squirrels, I can confidently say that yes, they do eat bulbs! If you want to protect your garden from these furry little rodent rascals, then you’re in the right place! In this post, I’ll show you a few simple tips on how to keep your garden safe from the damage that our fuzzy rodent friends can cause. Whether they’re eating your bulbs or digging up your soil, I’ve got the solutions. So don’t worry – if you want to protect your garden from squirrels, just follow my advice!

Squirrels are omnivores, meaning they eat both plant and animal food. They often consume plant-based foods like nuts, seeds, fruits, and fungi. Bulbs may be included in this diet depending on the species of squirrel and the availability of other foods. Some specific examples of bulbs that squirrels have been observed eating include tulips, and crocus.

Do Squirrels Eat Bulbs?

Squirrels love to feast on tulip and crocus bulbs planted in gardens, as these provide them with abundant sources of food. The answer to whether squirrels eat bulbs is a definite yes! While squirrels feed mainly on nuts and seeds, most are known for munching bulbs. Squirrels diets include acorn, rose, daffodil, tulip, lily-of-the-valley and crocus bulbs.

The diet of a squirrel isn’t limited to just bulbs. It also includes mushrooms, plants and sometimes even insects. This means that gardeners need to take extra care when it comes to protecting their garden.

How To Protect Your Plant & Flower Bulbs From Squirrels

Squirrels are great rodent rascals, but they can wreak havoc on your garden if you don’t protect it from their relentless munching. To keep the furry critters at bay, it is important to understand which bulbs squirrel eat and how to prevent them from further raiding your beloved garden.

1. Cover Your Bulbs

One of the most effective methods to deter squirrels from eating your bulbs is by providing adequate coverage. Planting your bulbs in raised beds with a mesh lid that covers the entire bed will provide added protection against these furry intruders. It is also helpful to keep the mesh lid locked during the summer months when the risk of a squirrel attack is higher.

Another way to cover your bulbs is by using landscape fabric or burlap. The fabric or burlap should be enough to cover each bulb securely and should have holes for air circulation. You might also consider covering the soil around each bulb with thorny branches, such as rose trimmings or barberry branches, which can act as an effective barrier against persistent squirrels.

2. Avoid Smelly Fertilizers

Squirrels have a very sensitive sense of smell and are attracted to smelly fertilizers. Avoid using industrial strength fertilizers that give off odors that could potentially attract rodents into your garden. Try sticking to more natural fertilizers such as compost, bone meal, wood chips, or seaweed extract as they are less likely to elicit any responses from passing critters.

In addition, it is helpful to use mulch over your beds once planted. This layer helps to keep weeds down and retain moisture in the soil while simultaneously protecting your bulbs from hungry squirrels.

3. Plant Your Bulbs Among Other Plants

To make it more difficult for critters like squirrels to identify food sources and distinguish edible plants from non-edible ones, try planting your bulbs among other flowers or shrubs rather than having them in one large group all by themselves.

Take advantage of companion planting techniques where you mix selected plants together that naturally repel one another. This technique has been found successful for many growers as it makes it much more difficult for pests like squirrels that feed off of certain plants, leaving other unharmed.

4. Use Natural Repellents

Try sprinkling different types of spices or herbs around the outside perimeter of plant beds where the squirrel may approach such as cayenne pepper or mustard powder. You can also apply diluted essential oils onto wooden stakes around your beds such as grapefruit oil, garlic oil, peppermint oil, etc. These natural repellents may help create an unpleasant environment around your beds that will hopefully ward off hungry critters.

5. Add Sharp Gravel

A great deterrent method against curious rodents trying to reach into the bedding area is placing some sharp gravel on top of each bed. The sharpness is painful for their little feet, so they often avoid digging through this type of material. You may need to reapply this every few weeks depending on weather conditions but should prove beneficial for keeping away those pesky creatures.

6. Provide Alternate Food Sources

One way to distract hungry squirrels from consuming bulbs is by providing alternate food sources like nuts and seeds near where they commonly visit. By doing so, you will take away their incentive to search out meals near flowerbeds and plants around your garden instead.

7. Clean Up Your Planting Areas

Any leftover fruits and vegetables left in areas around gardens serve as an open invitation for scavenging animals like squirrels looking for food sources that are easily accessible. Keeping plant beds free from debris will help reduce their attraction towards a particular area.

7. Plant Bulbs That Squirrels Don’t Prefer

Certain species of bulbs such as daffodils and albums produce toxins in order to protect themselves from being consumed by predators like deer or rabbits but do not work as well against squirrels because many species are immune due to adaptation over time. Try planting tulips instead since they are not affected by toxins produced by daffodils making them an attractive option for keeping away small pests such as squirrels.

8. Delay Planting Time

As last resort measure try delaying the planting season until late summer after the majority of young ones have grown up and left their mother’s nest before considering re-planting in early spring again when feeding behaviors become stronger amongst adults during mating season.

FAQ

Can sprinkling pepper prevent squirrels from digging up tulip bulbs?

The use of pepper as a deterrent can help to keep squirrels away from tulip bulbs. When sprinkled around the planted area, red pepper flakes and crushed garlic are an effective way to repel these critters. This method is known to be successful in deterring the animals from digging up the bulbs.

What can I use to prevent squirrels from eating my bulbs?

There are a few natural solutions you can use to keep squirrels away from your bulbs. Sprinkle red pepper flakes or crushed garlic around your plants, or spray deer repellent into the planting hole to deter pesky critters. All of these solutions are effective and should help keep squirrels at bay.

Do squirrels unearth and consume tulip bulbs?

The answer is yes, squirrels do dig up and eat tulip bulbs. These critters are attracted to the fresh soil left behind after bulb planting and will feast on the new bulbs as a tasty snack.

Conclusion

So, do squirrels eat bulbs? The answer is yes. To protect your garden from these pesky rascals, try planting plants with strong scents like mint, lavender, and garlic. Or use a net fence around your garden or planting beds.

Ultimately, controlling rodent damage in the garden requires vigilance and persistence. If prevention fails, there are many solutions that can be used to manage a rodent problem. As long as you’re diligent about protecting your garden from potential pests like squirrels, you can enjoy beautiful blooms for years to come!