It looks like an animal is eating my perennial plants this spring, and some plants seem to be completely gone. What could this be and how can I protect my plants?
— Beth Jackson, Evanston
I understand the desire to protect your plants, but as with any pest problem in the garden, it is important to correctly identify it before implementing any control efforts. I have seen a lot of rabbit damage in home gardens this spring and I suspect you have a rabbit or rabbits in your garden or close by. Rabbits are easy to spot in the garden if you look for them in the very early morning or at dusk. On occasion, you will see them out in the garden during the day. The damage they cause appears as neatly clipped stems on tender shoots and small, chiseled, gnaw marks on woody plants. Early-season growth of perennials can be eaten to ground level. In general, rabbits eat herbaceous plants in spring and summer and cause damage to woody plants in fall and winter.
Cottontail rabbits generally live less than two full years in the wild and may rise from two litters up to as many as five or six litters per year. You may find a nest dug in your lawn. The young leave the nest in two to three weeks. Rabbits generally spend their entire lives in an area of 10 acres or less, so if there is a suitable habitat in the vicinity of your garden, you are likely to encounter rabbits. Rabbits like open, grassy areas with cover such as that provided by groupings of shrubs, ground covers, grasses or brush piles typical in the home landscape. During cold weather, they use natural cavities and burrows of other animals for their dens.
The best way to prevent rabbit damage is to exclude them with fencing. Use 2-foot-tall hardware cloth (vinyl-coated wire fencing) or chicken wire fencing with the bottom buried 2 to 3 inches deep. I have also had success protecting beds without burying the fencing. The wire should have holes that are 1 inch or smaller.
Another option is to spray repellents that make the plants distasteful to rabbits. Early season is a critical time to protect your plants, while they are small and actively growing, with rabbit damage having more impact on the plant’s health. Most garden centers carry repellants in a pre-mixed spray bottle. Wear plastic gloves to apply the spray, as it has a very bad odor that will be troublesome if it gets on your skin. You need to reapply after rain and to protect new growth as the plants continue growing. You should be able to reduce the frequency of spraying later in the season.
I’d suggest the following plants to add color to your rabbit-infested garden: annuals — geranium, ageratum and wax begonia; perennials — hardy geraniums, epimedium, bee balm, peony, Russian sage and perennial salvia; bulbs — daffodils and ornamental onions; vegetables and herbs — tomatoes, potatoes, basil, cilantro, rosemary and squash. Rabbits left the lettuce alone in my garden but decimated the peas, beans, eggplant and peppers.
For more plant advice, contact the Plant Information Service at the Chicago Botanic Garden at plantinfo@chicagobotanic.org. Tim Johnson is senior director of horticulture at the Chicago Botanic Garden.
