Squirrel-Proof Bulb Planting: 10 Spring Bulbs Pests Won't Touch

On a cold October Saturday you were on your knees in the dirt, filling the front bed with 50 of your dollars worth of tulips. By March half of them are dead and the local squirrels are suspiciously well-nourished. When that sounds like you are in good company in suburban America. This guide will provide you with ten spring flowers that animals abandon, and a simple planting plan so that your work really pays off.

Quick Answer: Daffodils, decorative alliums, snowdrops, grape hyacinths and crown imperial are your surest bets, as they are either bitter, have a strong odor or irritate the mouth. Plant them at least six weeks prior to ground freezing, plant each bulb about three times its height, and wire mesh over the bed. Plant favorites of the squirrels, such as tulips and crocuses, in containers or sheltered areas.

Do Squirrels Eat Daffodil Bulbs? What Critters Really Avoid

Squirrels dig two things, to find food and to bury their own. There are two tests that a bulb must pass. It should be bitter and the soil surrounding it should not appear as a good hiding place.
There are those bulbs that fly the first test. Alliums, daffodils, snowdrops and their families have bitter alkaloids, or mouth irritating crystals, or sulfur-based onions. They are normally avoided by deer, rabbits and voles (Source: university Extension services).
The bulbs that are bitter-tasting, odoriferous, or irritate their mouths are avoided by the squirrels, and the starchy bulbs (such as tulips and crocuses) are attacked. Autumn is the best time to dig as the squirrels are preparing to spend the winter and the recently turned garden soil is easy to dig in.
A single note of candor: no flower is one hundred percent safe. Anywhere a hungry or curious squirrel can dig a test hole, and so the steps of protection later in this guide are as important as the bulbs you use.

10 Bulbs Squirrels Won't Eat: Our Top Picks

The following are ten reliable choices, in a more or less order of reliability. Zones are the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, and as a result, find yours and then you can shop (Source: USDA).

1. Daffodils (Narcissus)

The gold standard is daffodils. The plant has lycorine, a bitter compound in every part and which is detested by the squirrel, deer, rabbits and voles. They are in blossom in March and April and multiply without human intervention and thus one bag may be a sweeping mass in a few years. Use Ice Follies to have a traditional appearance or Tete-a-tete to have a small, potable version.

2. Ornamental Alliums

Squeeze an allium bulb and you'll be able to smell why squirrels run away: it is a relative of the kitchen onion. Late in spring (when tulips are dying), round, lollipop-shaped blooms grow on long stems. Purple Sensation' and Globemaster are sure hits, and bees like them. Big bulbs 6 to 8 inches deep should be planted in full sun.

3. Snowdrops (Galanthus)

Snowdrops are the earliest flowers of the year, and may even bloom through late-winter snow. Their bulbs produce galanthamine, a natural chemical that renders them undesirable by most of the animals. They grow well in partial shade under trees, or on the edge of a woodland, and should be planted at least 25 at a time to get the effect of a natural carpet.

4. Grape Hyacinths (Muscari)

The grape hyacinths are cobalt-blue, fragrant bunches, resembling small inverted bunches of grape. They are normally disregarded by the squirrels and the deer and they propagate in a polite manner every year. Do not fret when there are grassy leaves in the fall. It is normal, and the foliage copes with winter quite well.

5. Crown Imperial (Fritillaria imperialis)

This giant is 2-3 feet high with an orange or yellow bells ring at the base of a leafy top. The bulbs emit a very strong smell which is skunky and this scares away the squirrels, deer and the voles. Drain it well and put the large bulbs in about 6 inches under the ground, but sloping them slightly to allow the water to run out of the top.

6. Hyacinths

In March and April, hyacinths provide knock-out fragrance and fat spikes of flowers. They have calcium oxalate crystals in their bulbs, which irritate the mouth, and most critters pass. Wear gloves to plant, as the bulbs may irritate bare skin. One might sometimes be tested by a hungry squirrel, and to be on the safe side, bed should be covered.

7. Siberian Squill (Scilla siberica)

Siberian squill raises nodding bells of electric-blue in early spring, sometimes even before the lawn has opened its eyes. It is usually left alone by squirrels and deer, and sews itself into pretty patches with time. It is durable, frost-resistant, and it fits well in the shade of trees.

8. Glory-of-the-Snow (Chionodoxa)

These blue, star-shaped flowers with white centers are seen in March, sometimes among the last snow-cover. They are normally ignored by rodents and deer and are easy to naturalize in lawns and rock gardens. When you plant them in grass, mowing should be delayed until the foliage is yellow in order to recharge the bulbs.

9. Winter Aconite (Eranthis hyemalis)

Flowers of buttercup-yellow open in winter as early as February by winter aconite. All parts of the plant are poisonous and therefore it is shunned by squirrels and deer. Keep the small tubers in water overnight to be planted, and then bury them 2 to 3 inches deep in part shade, under the deciduous trees.

10. Snowflakes (Leucojum)

The snowflakes resemble snowdrops on higher stems, and white bells sprinkled in green. They have bitter substances like daffodils, hence avoiding animals. They are also resistant to wet places where other bulbs falter and this makes them an ingenious option to low areas.

Deer Resistant Spring Bulbs to Plant in Fall: Quick Comparison

Deer usually shun all the bulbs on this list due to the same reasons as the squirrels do; bitter, toxic or strong odor. Select the time of the year to mix the blooms so that your beds are colored between February and May.

Ranges are general and depend on the variety and therefore, check the label on your bulbs (Source: university Extension services). To get more specific information on varieties, the Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder is a reliable and free source of information. The early flowering plants such as snowdrops should be combined with daffodils and alliums to provide months of color in your spring flower beds.

How to Plant Bulbs in Fall: Timing, Depth, and Spacing

The time of plant selection is as important as the plant selection. University Extension advice is to wait until soil temperatures drop to about 60 F. That is typically September to October in northern states and to October to December in the South (Source: university Extension services). Plant at least six weeks before the ground freezes to allow roots to establish, and eliminate the guesswork with an inexpensive soil thermometer.

Next do these five things

1. Choose a well-drained location. In damp soil the bulbs rot. Turn the soil 8 -10 inches deep and add compost to make it more compact.
2. Digger to the correct depth. The bulbs should be planted roughly three times their height (Source: university Extension services). When you have dozens of bulbs to plant, a bulb planter makes the task quicker.
3. Draw the tip up. The sharp end is facing the sky and the flatter, bottom end is down.
4. Plant not in rows. Seven to ten is a natural group, and more effective. To get inspired on how to lay out your garden, visit our garden design and landscaping ideas.
5. Hard, wet and wrap. Tramp the soil, sprinkle with water, and place the cover of wire, as described below.

How to Keep Squirrels From Digging Up Bulbs

Even unpleasant-tasting bulbs may be dug up accidentally, as squirrels put their noses into all fresh soil. These practices enhance your fortunes, and they also safeguard tulips and crocuses. To get further assistance on backyard critters, see our guides to garden pest problems.

• Place a piece of lay wire mesh over the bed. Install landscape staples to pin chicken wire with approximately 1-inch openings around planting area then cover it with a small layer of mulch. In spring you can leave it there, and it grows through right up the shoot.
• Construct cages of bulbs of choice. Plant tulips or other favorites in a small wire basket, or wrap the planting hole with mesh, so that critters cannot reach the planting hole on the side or bottom.
• Plant yet deeper. A few more inches or few can cause the bulbs to be difficult to locate, particularly in loose soil.
• Eradicate the traces. Clear away husks and fragments of paper, as smell and newly mounded earth are an invitation to enquiry.
• Forgo the bone meal. Its odor may attract burrowing creatures and thus one should substitute it with compost or a slow-release balanced fertilizer (Source: university Extension services).
• Apply repellent as an alternative. Capsaicin sprays provide poor performance and dissipate when it rains and hence apply after a storm.

Pest Resistant Fall Bulbs: Mistakes That Invite Trouble

Majority of bulb failures are linked to few slip-ups that can be avoided.

• Bed mixing of favorites. A clump of tulips is able to drag squirrels along the entire border. Store tulips and crocuses in potting or netting.
• Planting too shallow. Shallow bulbs can be sniffed easy and dug easy. Observe the three by-height rule.
• Not planting bulbs that are not planned. An open bag on the doorstep is an invitation. Keep store bulbs in a cool garage or basement until planting day.
• Ignoring pet safety. Most of the anti-squirrel bulbs are also poisonous to animals such as dogs and cats. Look at the list of toxic plants of the ASPCA and avoid keeping pets in freshly planted beds (Source: ASPCA).
• Prematurely clipping the foliage. The leaves nourish the bulb to the following year flowers, thus leave them until they turn yellow, not less than six weeks after flowering (Source: university Extension services).
• Planting in wet soils. Bulbs are rotted by standing water more quickly than any critter can turn them up. Select dry places or elevate the bed.
  None of the bulbs are indeed invulnerable, but the correct choice and a wire cover take you incredibly close.

Squirrel Proof Bulbs to Plant in Fall: Your Weekend Game Plan

The recipe is quite straightforward: pick up bitter, smelly, or poisonous bulbs, plant them at the appropriate depth when the soil becomes cooler, and place the bed under the wire mesh. Do it this weekend and you can have a spring show and not a yard full of holes. You are prepared to do your next fall job? Use our seasonal gardening guides to find out the pre-first-frost checklist and the time to plant so nothing gets past before winter.

References

• USDA Agricultural Research Service, USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (hardiness zones)
• University Extension services, including University of Minnesota Extension, Cornell Cooperative Extension, and Penn State Extension (fall bulb planting timing, soil temperature, planting depth, foliage care, bone meal and digging animals, and animal-avoided bulb characteristics)
• Rutgers Cooperative Extension (deer-resistance ratings for landscape plants)
• Missouri Botanical Garden, Plant Finder (bulb height, bloom time, and zone ranges)
• ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center, Toxic and Non-Toxic Plants list (pet toxicity of daffodils, hyacinths, and tulips)