What are the most persistent minor animal offenders? Squirrels, chipmunks, voles, rabbits, nesting birds? We’ll discuss some of the biggest offenders here and how to control them without using poisons, which have far-ranging consequences on other, unintended victims.

Deer

Firstly, if deer are your issue, there is almost nothing but exclusion methods like fencing that will work. Fences should be at least 6-feet tall, or, if that’s not feasible, they can be shorter, if there is a cord/wire/ribbon hung above it with the lowest part hanging about 6 feet off the ground. Double fences (a fence within a fence with a distance of about 3 feet between them) also can work.

Rabbits and voles

I got to know them better when I planted 60 tulips one winter and found five in the spring, along with some very fat rabbits. The voles loved crocuses.

I found a permanent solution – daffodils. Since they are poisonous to rabbits and voles, both of which have a keen sense of smell, I found that growing daffodils in a triangle around beds of tulips allowed me to grow tulips that I had always been eaten before. I like “W. P. Milner,” a Division 1-type of daffodil from 1869 that only grows to about 5 inches and has very small foliage that melts away weeks before the foliage of standard daffodils. It’s also very inexpensive.

Birds in hanging baskets

I had a problem with nesting mourning doves in my four hanging baskets on the west side of my house. Scaring them away definitely didn’t work; they would return every morning and give me the hairy eyeball.

So at the beginning of nesting season, I took some sheets of aluminum foil and bunched them up until they were about the size of a baseball. Not only are they uncomfortable to sit on, but they’re shiny. My plants did not have any trouble growing around them, and they were light enough so that tidal wave petunias just grew around them.

The doves went elsewhere, and everyone was happy. Once nesting season was over, I removed the aluminum balls. It worked like a charm and didn’t harm the birds.

Viburnum beetles

Are you familiar with the viburnum beetle? Adult beetles are approximately 1-quarter inch long and yellowish-brown in color. The larva are slightly larger, yellow with black dashes and spots.

The most susceptible viburnums are the popular arrowwood viburnum (Viburnum dentatum) and both the European and American cranberrybush viburnum (V. opulus). Instead, choose less susceptible varieties like Koreanspice (V. carlesii), blackhaw (V. prunifolium), and nannyberry (V. lentago).

Cultural control involves scouting twigs with egg masses and pruning them out from October until the following spring. Chemical control is also possible with horticultural oils, insecticidal soap and/or Spinosad. Read and follow all label directions before use.

Slugs

Slugs can be difficult to control, so prevention is best. Eliminating rotting debris like leaves and old vegetables, while increasing the spacing between plants to allow better air circulation, can help make the environment less hospitable for them.

Beer can also be left out in shallow dishes to attract and trap slugs.

For more information, check out the University of Illinois Extension Horticulture YouTube Channel for videos on other horticulture topics.

• Donna Mack is a certified Master Gardener and Jamie Viebach is the University of Illinois Extension Horticulture Educator serving DuPage, Kane, and Kendall counties.