I’m laughing as I read through this, remembering all I have posted on how to chase away garden pests without harming them: water balloons, rubber snakes, jingle bells, etc. Here’s a new idea…yes, you can laugh, I never win 100% with the rodents or the bugs.

In the 1960s, our family’s favorite visitor was my Mom’s cousin, Norma. Norma lived in California, which alone made her quite the novelty since we lived on the other side of the USA in New Jersey. She always visited, armed with plenty of stories to entertain us. On one visit, she brought a hysterical book called ‘That’s Ugly.‘ The witty prose and the illustrations captivated us.

I say all that to introduce my latest pest and squirrel/chipmunk deterrent. Now, don’t get me wrong–I adore my squirrels. I walk around with peanuts to toss out to the friendliest backyard inhabitants. I don’t want to harm anything by using non-organic means to deter them.

Quite by accident, I discovered a perfect deterrent while filtering powdered garlic through a coffee filter. The resulting garlic water, combined with a drop of dish detergent, 1 tsp of baking soda, and a touch of oil, makes the underside of my rose leaves inhospitable to the sawflies laying their eggs on said leaves. After spraying the roses, I noticed that the garlic powder had dried to the coffee filter as if glued and still retained its potent smell.

I was thrilled. I now have made up several of these stinky filters. I put them in pots of newly planted sprouts; I hang them on hooks and skewers near flowers I don’t want nibbled. It is working. The adorable squirrels still get peanuts, but don’t bury them in my garden pots now. The problem is, the sight of them would be a perfect addition to the book ‘That’s Ugly!’ Honestly, it looks like my garden pots have been toilet-papered on Mischief Night. I hope I can remove the filters in a week or two, and the plants will be left alone.

*One note, the garlic actually becomes glue. If I don’t remove the filters from the pan while still damp, they dry and stick to whatever surface I have laid the on.

Long post short: Give it a try. It seems to organically keep the sawflies and digging rodents at bay.