Deer-proof lettuce

Here’s how to make a natural deer and rabbit repellant that will keep rabbits and deer at bay—without adding harmful chemicals to your garden…or your diet. [Note: it won’t cause any permanent damage to the pests, either. It just gives them a rather hot mouth for a little while!]

Ingredients:

2 eggs, beaten

2 cups water

2 Tbs. hot sauce

2 Tbs. ground red pepper

2 Tbs. garlic powder

 

Deer repellant mixture

Instructions:

Mix the above ingredients and let the sauce sit out for two days. (Note: The mixture will smell like rotten eggs and garlic, so either keep it covered or set it outside.)

Mixture with mustard bottle

Pour natural repellant into a squeeze bottle. (A clean, recycled mustard or ketchup bottle will do nicely.)

Protected peas

As soon as plants emerge from the soil, squeeze a small amount of the natural repellant on each one. There’s no need to reapply after a rain storm, since the egg will make the hot sauce, garlic, and peppers stick to the plant.

The hot sauce won’t hurt the growing plant, but it will deter pests from eating the entire crop. An added benefit is that bees don’t seem to mind the smell, so they’ll still pollinate the plants.

Stored deer and rabbit repellant

I store any remaining natural deer and rabbit repellant in a sealed canning jar, like this one.

Note: You want to apply this to the plants as soon as possible, before any blooms appear. I don’t recommend putting it directly on the part of the plant you plan to eat. The good news is that the deer especially have good memories. Once they taste the hot sauce, they probably won’t be back, thanks to the strong, pungent garlic smell.