My Garden

Prickly groundcover

Last post 07-11-2009 9:56 PM by Marg. 6 replies.

• 04/11/2009 09:31 PM

  Marg Location: South East Kent Joined on: 30 Oct 2009 Posts: 2

  Reply | Contact My daughter is allergic to cats and our garden seems to hold  'cats conventions' every day. We have a long fence backing onto three cat owners' garden ends, and over a wall a cat lives in a very tiny house and garden (rented out as 'no pets'). The worst thing is picking our herbs and putting a hand/knee into cats poo - the herb garden being just over the wall where the cat lives. Does anyone know of a ground covering plant which is prickly? Also, annoyingly to get back home the cat climbs up my climber wires and my climbers have given up. I have put stronger garden wire and am now growing a rampant rambling rose up the wall. There are plenty of prickly things to deter cats from walls and fences, but does anyone know of the quickest growing pricklies?  I most certainly don't dislike pets, but I do have more than my fair share from these furry friends. Marg

• 05/11/2009 07:50 AM

  In reply to

  Phot's-Moll Location: The sunny South coast. Joined on: 06 Jan 2007 Posts: 3,347

  Reply | Contact  You'd need to cover all the garden in the prickly stuff, I think, as if it was just a patch or edging, the cat could jump over it. I found that putting down garlic chips deterred cats. They need to be re-applied every few days. If there seems to be just one, it'd be worth doing that as after a while the cat would find somewhere else to go and your garden would be off his patch. There are a lot of cata near me, so if I persuade one to clear off, another takes over. Grrr Another possibility is to put up a thin wire on the top of the fence. It needs to be raised up a couple on ifnches. This apparently makes it difficult/unpleasant for the cat to walk along the fence and he might then find another route out of his own garden and into someone elses. Whatever you do, other people's cats will continue to go into gardens where they're not welcome and leave mess, kill birds and cause damage.  Whether you think you can do a thing, or think you cannot, you are right.

• 05/11/2009 08:54 AM

  In reply to

  EvaInNL Location: Holland Joined on: 25 Sep 2009 Posts: 59

  Reply | Contact Hi Marg, I'm with Phot's-Moll on the wire solution. We did the same at my parent's house last year. On top of that my dad and I took turns with a super soaker filled with water, not anything nasty I hasten to add, and scared them. We've not seen any cats since. Or magpies for that matter... but we only go after them in the spring when the smaller birds are nesting in the garden. As a fellow allergy sufferer I just want to mention the desensitisation therapy every allergy doctor offers. It's a bit of a palaver, took me 4 years back in the day, but so worth it! I've heard of reports that if you start early with that course it prevents you getting allergic to other things later on, but I've not got a scientific report to share. Good luck with the cats!

• 05/11/2009 10:44 AM

  In reply to

  Arrem Location: West Midlands. UK Joined on: 12 Jul 2009 Posts: 90

  Reply | Contact  I did read somewhere that a degree of success had been achieved by dropping offcuts of rose prunings around the garden.  I like the super soaker idea, has an element of the white hunter about it LOL. Dont get me wrong, I love cat's and have had them in our family for at least 35 years now. But my current two are both indoor cats so never get the opportunity to spoil our neighbours gardens. There is no such thing as useless - you can always be a bad example.

• 05/11/2009 10:55 AM	In reply to
  miranda Location: Oxfordshire Joined on: 17 Nov 2004 Posts: 2,976	Reply | Contact I've had some success with putting old teabags with a few drops of Olbas oil on near seedlings. The cats don't like the smell and it stops them digging the plants up. It looks a bit strange, but the cats stay away. Pyracantha and Berberis prunings work well too.

• 06/11/2009 06:03 PM	In reply to
  Phot's-Moll Location: The sunny South coast. Joined on: 06 Jan 2007 Posts: 3,347	Reply | Contact  I think the soaking with water would work well (and might be therapeutic to do) but I've never managed to do drench a cat. I was trying to just chuck some water from a dish, maybe water pystol type thing would be more effective. Whether you think you can do a thing, or think you cannot, you are right.

• 07/11/2009 09:56 PM	In reply to
  Marg Location: South East Kent Joined on: 30 Oct 2009 Posts: 2	Reply | Contact Thank you, everyone, for your helpful replies. The prickly prunings would be a good idea in one particular area and I shall enjoy trying the other suggestions. Marg.