rats in my roses?
April 2, 2008 8:00 PM Subscribe
Is there anything I can do to prevent rats from nesting under my rose bush?
We've recently purchased a rowhouse in Baltimore. The backyard, like everyone's on the street, consists of a cement slap surrounded by a 4' cement block wall. Unlike everyone else's "yard" mine has built up planting boxes. These are about 2 1/2 feet deep and made of more cement block. At one end is a rosebush. Everyone I talk to says that rats will come and nest under it, especially if there is a foodsource nearby. I was also planning on growing some vegetables. I keep the yard very clean and securely stow my garbage. The neighbors aren't as careful as I would like, and don't have trash can lids. I fully expect a rat or two to climb over the wall every once in a while, but I REALLY don't want them to nest here. Also, I would not like to put out poison that could leech into my vegetables or get eaten by my dog. Thanks in advance!
We've recently purchased a rowhouse in Baltimore. The backyard, like everyone's on the street, consists of a cement slap surrounded by a 4' cement block wall. Unlike everyone else's "yard" mine has built up planting boxes. These are about 2 1/2 feet deep and made of more cement block. At one end is a rosebush. Everyone I talk to says that rats will come and nest under it, especially if there is a foodsource nearby. I was also planning on growing some vegetables. I keep the yard very clean and securely stow my garbage. The neighbors aren't as careful as I would like, and don't have trash can lids. I fully expect a rat or two to climb over the wall every once in a while, but I REALLY don't want them to nest here. Also, I would not like to put out poison that could leech into my vegetables or get eaten by my dog. Thanks in advance!
My dad swears that mothballs will repels rats and squirrels. Since you don't want stuff to leach into the soil, maybe wrap some mothballs in cheesecloth and suspend them from the branches of the rosebush?
I've also had good luck with live traps, but that takes some work, and you're not likely to get rid of ALL the rats, unfortunately.
posted by mudpuppie at 8:59 PM on April 2, 2008
I've also had good luck with live traps, but that takes some work, and you're not likely to get rid of ALL the rats, unfortunately.
posted by mudpuppie at 8:59 PM on April 2, 2008
I don't love the idea of rat poison, but if the two issues are your dog and leaching, what some people do is put poison in the very end of a Coke can that has the top cut off. A rat can crawl in there and get the poison, but a dog can't get his nose in there, and it won't leach through the can.
I do not believe that anything can 'repel' a rat or a squirrel. These organisms are eating machines, finely honed through millions of years of evolution. They are not going to be taken in by your little devices.
posted by ikkyu2 at 12:43 AM on April 3, 2008
I do not believe that anything can 'repel' a rat or a squirrel. These organisms are eating machines, finely honed through millions of years of evolution. They are not going to be taken in by your little devices.
posted by ikkyu2 at 12:43 AM on April 3, 2008
The neighbors aren't as careful as I would like, and don't have trash can lids.
It sounds to me like they will be more attracted to your neighbors' property, and you won't have to worry about them.
posted by amyms at 1:28 AM on April 3, 2008
It sounds to me like they will be more attracted to your neighbors' property, and you won't have to worry about them.
posted by amyms at 1:28 AM on April 3, 2008
I don't think your plot is as attractive to rats as your neighbours make out. I would just keep a close eye on it; if you see a rat around there with any regularity, then the poison goes down. It works.
Fwiw, I live in a terraced house with a concrete backyard broken up by a few flowerbeds. Nearby is a small man made lake. There are lots of rats about, I am sure. A rat did set up home in my backyard one time. I put down rat poison. It died.
I would always, however, wash my hands after working the yard and wash the garden furniture before using it to eat off, on the presumption that rats are at least passing through. That said, I haven't seen one for years. This may be because of our neighbours' cats (who treat my yard as their own, but that's a separate issue).
posted by tiny crocodile at 1:47 AM on April 3, 2008
Fwiw, I live in a terraced house with a concrete backyard broken up by a few flowerbeds. Nearby is a small man made lake. There are lots of rats about, I am sure. A rat did set up home in my backyard one time. I put down rat poison. It died.
I would always, however, wash my hands after working the yard and wash the garden furniture before using it to eat off, on the presumption that rats are at least passing through. That said, I haven't seen one for years. This may be because of our neighbours' cats (who treat my yard as their own, but that's a separate issue).
posted by tiny crocodile at 1:47 AM on April 3, 2008
Keep in mind that the rats just won't be sleeping out in the open under your rose bush. They'll dig a burrow and nest in that. If you suddenly find a good sized hole in your flower beds, you should start looking for other evidence of rats.
We had a wood deck off the back of our house when we bought it. Our yard is kept clean but the deck was so low the dogs couldn't get under it. They wanted too, though. We found a rat had chewed through our drier vent tube and was eating the cat food in our utility room. We also found a burrow entrance right next to the deck. At the time, we had 2 indoor cats and 2 dogs. They didn't stop the rat from visiting. We changed the drier vent and set poison out under the deck. That fall, we tore out the deck and installed a patio. One rat darted as we tore out the deck. We found the remains of 9 others. YUCK! YUCK! Yuck! No rats since. They do not have a place to hide anymore.
posted by onhazier at 8:20 AM on April 3, 2008
We had a wood deck off the back of our house when we bought it. Our yard is kept clean but the deck was so low the dogs couldn't get under it. They wanted too, though. We found a rat had chewed through our drier vent tube and was eating the cat food in our utility room. We also found a burrow entrance right next to the deck. At the time, we had 2 indoor cats and 2 dogs. They didn't stop the rat from visiting. We changed the drier vent and set poison out under the deck. That fall, we tore out the deck and installed a patio. One rat darted as we tore out the deck. We found the remains of 9 others. YUCK! YUCK! Yuck! No rats since. They do not have a place to hide anymore.
posted by onhazier at 8:20 AM on April 3, 2008
Catnip (Nepeta cataria) is said to repel rats, and of course it attracts cats, which also repel (or eat) rats. I would try growing some catnip (and maybe get rid of the rose bush). I don't know what you think of cats, but better to run a cat saloon than a rat flophouse. Catnip is also good for the environment (for example, bees like it), whereas rat poison is poison to other things as well.
posted by pracowity at 11:59 AM on April 3, 2008
posted by pracowity at 11:59 AM on April 3, 2008
There are several rat repellents that work to different degrees. Because of the dog and not wanting to leech stuff into the ground, you could use a predator scent based one like this, or a botanical like this.
Keep this in mind from UC Davis "Rats have an initial aversion to some odors and tastes, but no repellents have been found to solve a rat problem for more than a very short time. There are no truly effective rat repellents registered for use in California."
Your best bet is to use poisoned bait in a dog-proof bait box. Read the UC Davis link for more info. My rat terrier survived with no problem after eating a small dose of Warfarin, after using a good bait station, this never happened again.
posted by Dr. Curare at 1:18 PM on April 3, 2008
Keep this in mind from UC Davis "Rats have an initial aversion to some odors and tastes, but no repellents have been found to solve a rat problem for more than a very short time. There are no truly effective rat repellents registered for use in California."
Your best bet is to use poisoned bait in a dog-proof bait box. Read the UC Davis link for more info. My rat terrier survived with no problem after eating a small dose of Warfarin, after using a good bait station, this never happened again.
posted by Dr. Curare at 1:18 PM on April 3, 2008
Forgot to mention my favorite, but illegal where I live now, method of rat control: deck chair, good tobacco, glass of rum, patience, and a 6 foot blowgun with some sharp darts.
posted by Dr. Curare at 1:20 PM on April 3, 2008
posted by Dr. Curare at 1:20 PM on April 3, 2008
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Asparagirl at 8:44 PM on April 2, 2008