Epsom salt is a natural deterrent that will keep rabbits away. You can sprinkle it on plants to keep rabbits away, which takes far less time and money than building a fence. Plants also benefit from Epsom salt since it contains nutrients that improve soil quality.
Although rabbits are cute little creatures, it can be very frustrating when you’ve spent a lot of time tending to your plants or garden to yield a good crop, and then a rabbit comes in and wreaks havoc on everything.
Thankfully, there are several ways to deter rabbits and protect your garden, including Epsom salt.
What You'll Learn
Why Should You Keep Rabbits Away From Your Plants?
Rabbits are herbivores, meaning their diet only consists of grass, plants, and leafy weeds. This means that if you have a garden or plants in your yard, they’re at risk of being eaten.
Since rabbits love plants and consume so much, they can do some severe damage and destroy what you have worked so hard to grow.
What Plants Do Rabbits Eat?
Rabbits love to eat a wide variety of plants and produce. If you have a garden, there’s a high chance that it includes something that rabbits love to eat.
Their specific tastes depend on several factors, including where they live, the geography and weather, and what food they are used to eating in the wild.
Rabbits prefer young and tender plants such as lettuce, broccoli, beans, spinach, and strawberries. They also love various flowers, including morning glories, pansies, sunflowers, and petunias. This is just a small sample of the types of plants that rabbits love to feast on.
There are a few plants that rabbits avoid. If you have them in your garden, they will likely be safe from being a rabbit’s next snack.
Interestingly, rabbits do not enjoy peppers as much as other plants. When pepper plants are younger and do not have fruit, rabbits may eat them, but once they begin to bear fruit, it’s much less likely that a rabbit will try to eat them.
Rabbits especially hate chili peppers. They also do not like marigolds, lavender, and plants with strong scents.
What Is Epsom Salt?
Epsom salt, also known as magnesium sulfate, is a chemical compound originally found in England. It is found in a crystal (or rock-like) formation, and it is not actually salt. It just has the appearance of salt, giving Epsom salt its name.
Epsom salt has many benefits and is used in a myriad of ways, including easing sore muscles and promoting sleep and stress reduction.
The magnesium and iron in Epsom salt also provide nutrients for the soil, improving the health of the soil and improving your overall yield.
It also helps minimize the loss of the green color in plants. The nutrients can improve the overall health of plants and produce to the point that there is increased production, particularly for peppers and tomatoes.
Another significant benefit of Epsom salt is its use as an animal deterrent when sprinkled on plants or in a garden.
How To Use The Epsom Salt To Deter Rabbits
The smell and bitter taste of Epsom salt deter rabbits from eating plants with the substance. They find it very unpleasant.
To use it as a repellent, all you have to do is sprinkle some Epsom salt on the leaves and other parts of the plants you’re hoping to protect.
If you are worried that your plants may be sensitive to Epsom salt, you can also dilute it in water before you apply it to be safe. Epsom salt is not harmful to rabbits in small or very diluted amounts, so even if they do ingest some, it shouldn’t cause any harm.
It is important to remember that you should consistently treat the plants with Epsom salt for it to work. If it rains, the Epsom salt can quickly wash away, so you should re-treat the plants after it rains to replace what was removed.
What if Epsom Salt Doesn’t Work as a Rabbit Deterrent?
There are a few other options you can try to keep rabbits away as an alternative. The first option would be to build a fence around your plants, which would keep rabbits (as well as other animals) physically out of your space.
If building a fence, the most important thing to remember is that the fence must be higher than the highest point a rabbit can jump (at least 4 feet). You should also ensure there are no holes or small gaps that a rabbit could squeeze through.
If you aren’t interested in building a fence, there are a few other natural repellents that may keep rabbits away.
For example, rabbits do not like the smell of garlic, so placing some garlic (or garlic powder) on and around your plants could save them from being destroyed.
Another effective homemade remedy is mixing garlic and chili powder (or cayenne pepper) with a drop of liquid soap and spraying this around your plants.
Some people think that mothballs may work to repel rabbits, but they have not been proven to be effective and also have toxic chemicals that could harm you and animals when used outside. We do not recommend using mothballs to deter rabbits from your plants.
Epsom Salt is a Great Natural Rabbit Deterrent
Since rabbits are herbivores and love to snack on whatever plants they can find, a great way to deter them with a natural substance is through the use of Epsom salt. Simply sprinkling Epsom salt onto your plants (or spraying it on after you’ve diluted it) will keep rabbits at bay with its bitter smell. A bonus is that the Epsom salt will simultaneously provide key nutrients to the soil and plants, improving the overall health of your yield.