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Don't bother with the sign. Squirrels can't read. ;)

Do you live on the ground floor, or are the squirrels coming by trees, or over the buildings?

If you have a neighbor who loves the squirrels, I doubt putting up signs would help, It might even annoy (especially if these signs are passive aggressive).

If I were you I would look into methods of deterring squirrels. I hear red pepper flakes mixed in dirt and birdseed helps. Also, have you ever thought of getting a cat?

Maybe try talking with your neighbors who experience similar problems and see if they have any tips.

If I was in your situation, I would write this woman a letter explaining how disruptive the squirrels are.

Somehow, I don't think the squirrels or your neighbors will respond to a sign - and your "crazy squirrel lady" is probably just lonely.

I'd let go of the idea of potted plants, become friendly with your neighbor lady (posting signs is just plain immature and Passive/Aggressive) and learn to enjoy the squirrels.

Red pepper flakes will slow them just a tiny bit, if you apply them freshly every day (which gets more expensive than buying new plants every couple weeks, from what I have found...) If you pack the plants in so tightly that they can't find the dirt, that helps a little too. Cat pee might be a good deterrent, but I haven't tried that yet...

What about planting a red pepper?

I would talk directly to the woman. A public poster meant for a single person isn't always a very good idea. Even tho it is something that is likely effecting the whole neighborhood I would imagine she might feel really singled out and be less likely to cooperate if she feels like shes being publicly called out for her behavior. I think a more personal communication might be more appropriate, I think its always good to give someone a fair chance to correct something before doing something like a public poster or something that makes the issue less private.

I dont know much about squirrels but perhaps you could encourage her to feed them something that they would be more likely to consume right away not try to bury and save for later in your window box?

I don't know what's cuter, the squirrel or the peanut kabob!

Seriously, though, there is very little you can do about that neighbor. She probably thinks supporting the squirrels is her calling. I had a next-door neighbor in Chicago once who just adored pigeons--yes, the dirty, noisy urban ones. Somehow they just didn't know to keep their droppings on her stoop instead of ours. It was awful. The only thing we could do was move.

I understand your frustration here, but you will become the annoying neighbor if you post even "polite" signs. Accept that you've got to share your new digs with the squirrels and work around them. They were there first.

Squirrels are more important that your stupid plants. Are you nuts? Really.

I've used cayenne pepper sprinkled on the soil, but you have to keep applying it (one of those giant containers from Costco can finally be useful). I've also used metal mesh cut to fit on top of the pot, with a cutout for the plant trunk/stem. Neither are foolproof, but they do help a lot. (I have one of those neighbors too.)

We used to have a baby chipmunk (adorable!) who took it upon himself to dig up a certain potted plant at every opportunity. He didn't eat it or hide anything in it, just dug it up and flung it out of the pot. The moral: there's no accounting for what rodents decide to do.

I would definitely talk to this neighbor. Rather than going on the offensive (i.e. your actions are ruining my plants), ask for her advice on how she deals with the squirrels squirreling away her peanuts in her gardening. If she has advice for you, then great, but if she's surprised and wasn't aware of the problem, that's when you can politely ask if she would mind lessening or even nixing the squirrel snacks for the sake of the neighborhood flora. There's always the chance that she's an old crackpot who will say no, but she also might be blissfully unaware.

I have heard that if you put in those plastic shinny spin wheels, they tend to scare off the squirrels from getting into your garden, its at least worth a try since they're so cheap.

We have a similar issue with the 'cat lady' who lives next door. She has a little cat hotel set up on her back porch where she feeds and waters every stray cat in the neighborhood (which has greatly increased that number). An employee at our local hardware store reccomended we use moth balls to deter them. As soon as the weather warms up and we ready our porch for summer living, I plan on trying the moth ball trick. I'm not sure about squirrels, but possibly moth balls would deter them as well?

oops...left out the fact that the cats pee on our front porch, poo in our flower beds and wake us in the middle of the night with their mating rituals...which is why we're trying the moth ball trick!

I've used bulbs (daffodils) around the perimeter of my flower beds to deter rabbits, and small bars of soap in old pantyhose staked randomly around to deter deer. The closest remedy I can think of that has worked for me is a variation on the wire mesh, which I've used to keep away moles. I would think that a combination of covering the tops of the container with a fine mesh (with a hole for the plant to come up) and perhaps...a very thorny bush of some kind would keep the squirrels from digging up your plants.

With respect to learning to live with the squirrels...they are indeed rodents and I would be concerned about disease, especially if the rats started looking for the peanuts also. If it becomes a problem (a real problem rather than a nuisance) you may want to investigate consulting with the health or sanitation department.

Or an electric fence.....or you could start throwing jelly....

There may be city laws against feeding the squirels, which I don't know how they would be enforced but perhaps you could call your local animal control? It causes over population and also harms the animals by teaching them not to rely on their own hunting/gathering skills to find food as they learn to rely on humans providing for them.

I live in a neighborhood in Va Beach VA that has several small "lakes", which give us a good bit of wildlife for being in a suburb. We have an enormous duck/geese poplulation that I take pleasure in observing on a daily basis, but the nasty piles of slimey goo poop they leave in our front yard, driveway and even sometimes on our doorstep on our doormat, as they are so bold to stand at our front door face to face with our two pugs begging for food, isn't so wonderful!

Recently my husband and I noticed a man feeding them from a large garbage bag in the trunk of his car. He hadn't even gotten away from his car to feed them, but was parked at the curb near the water and was standing in the street feeding hundreds of ducks, geese, and seagulls. I was so disgusted, and even more disgusted when we drove back past later on that day and found two dead seagulls in the road who had been hit by cars as a result of either this man feeding them in the street or who knows what he was feeding them out of the trash bag that may have caused them to become ill. I have seen him a few times after that incident doing the same thing. It makes me so mad!

I agree. Signs do very little but antagonize to no good end. I'd try talking to her, but it sounds entrenched

But there might be health laws about feeding them, if you want to get that contentious- check your city department of animal control and your department of health services to see- its not like they generally support unsustainable breeding populations of rodents in close contact with humans. Squirrels are part of the critter family that support plague fleas among other fun diseases.

I'd say your best bet is hanging plants on poles with squirrel baffles on them, provided there are no overhanging trees for them to access the plants. Or electrify the railing on the balcony. Those buggers are cheeky.

Oh, speaking of squirels, my mother recently ended up at the emergency vet this past Sun afternoon after her toy poodle had started screaming in pain after she let it out in the backyard and then the dog refused to put her back left leg on the ground and was shaking uncontrollably. Turns out her joint was popped out of place and some tissue torn in the process and the vet suggested that she might have become caught on something in the yard, a small hole, a rock, etc., that caused her to stumble and injure her leg. When we got home from the vet with little Mona in a splint twice the size of her little 7 lb body, my mom went investigating in the backyard and found a squirel hole in the yard at the exact spot where her dog had yelped in pain and fallen down.

I have squirrels in my backyard (I named them all "Farley" so I guess I'm that crazy neighbor) and have learned you just have to learn to deal with them. I also have a container garden on my back deck, each with chicken-wire cages over them. And I've had to come up with more creative ways to hang my birdfeeder to avoid Farley getting to it. There are plenty of ways to deal with squirrel misbehavior.

The squirrels aren't going anywhere - there's no reasoning with them - so you just have to learn to deal with them. They're actually pretty cute when they aren't ripping apart your crap.

As for the neighbor, if you know who it is, don't post a sign - its ridiculously passive-agressive. Treat her/him like a human being, not some half-breed squirrel fanatic. They could just be nice folks.

Dog fur worked to keep the buggars out of my planters. If you know anyone with a shedding dog this time of year, I'm sure they could spare more than you need.

I think that talking to the lonely, crazy squirrel lady will yield little result. I would concentrate on anti-squirrel measures like putting down hardware cloth/chicken wire in your beds and pots to prevent digging. My mother, who has her own squirrel issues due to lots of walnut trees in her yard and surrounding yards, has had success with larger rocks surrounding plants (fill the beds/pots will rocks).

I've never used anti-bird roost prongs for squirrels, but would imagine that they may be an effective deterrent as well. If they were pooping all over my patio, I'd try the prongs to make my patio a less inviting hangout spot. Good luck! They're quite a clever adversary!

If you weren't in DC I'd think the crazy squirrel lady was my mother!
She hasn't had any problems with the squirels digging up her plants but she has a really big yard. Sometimes she gets volunteer field corn though.
It's my understanding that squirels don't carry diseases the same way rats do.

I've created wire mesh hoop tunnels to keep pidgeons and mourning doves out of my window boxes untillthe roots were well established and that worked pretty well.

I speak from experience when I say that feeding squirrels means they are also feeding, and causing a population explosion, of rats and mice. (And the rats do no care about chili pepper at all..)

See what your city Animal Care and Control Dept. has to say and be prepared to speak to your neighbor. Also check for any natural deterrents that might keep them away - and metal mesh over the containers preventing access will help.

enmnm has the right idea. Call the health department. It worked for my mom and the owner of the two Rhodesian ridgebacks next door to her. No dug up plant issues - poop issues. They're big dogs, and neighbor-lady just left their human-sized piles of poop all over her driveway.

Big poop piles blacktop summer heat = stinky times

It got so my mom couldn't open the windows or work outside, much less grill or enjoy the patio.

She called the health department, got the lowdown, and then had a firendly (but firm) conversation with the neighbor, ending with, "If you don't keep after it, I WILL call the health department, in fact I already HAVE."

No poop piles since.

I've had luck with hot pepper powder on my containers, as someone else noted. I would also say don't waste time trying to trap and release squirrels. They are territorial and as soon as you get rid of one, another would take it's place. Even if your neighbor stops feeding them, I suspect you will still have a problem. The little buggers are all over my neighborhood and that's without anyone feeding them and a nice big hawk that lives in my yard and snatches one up from time to time.

I think akay has the right advice, talk directly to the woman, without blaming her for ruining your garden. Also, you can't blame her directly for the squirrels digging up your garden, they might have done it anyway.

I know people who do the cayenne pepper thing, but have never tried it myself.

One year rabbits are all my lilies. I couldn't hardly complain though, they were so cute.

michellectrent - call animal control on your crazy cat lady. I am a crazy cat lady in training, and am all for caring for cats, but it is totally irresponsible to feed a stray cat population and not get them spayed or neutered. There are catch and release programs for spaying/neutering feral cats, so maybe your area has them.

I am going to share a similar but different personal story.
My neighbor had a dog suddenly one day. After a couple days of incessant dog crying and whining, my husband and I peeked over the fence to see it tied up in the backyard. We realized it was being left outside for a couple hours at time. It had adequate shade and water, but it kept crying. We though, "What's going on? That's not right!"

A friend who works for Animal Services suggested instead of calling in a complaint that I talk to the neighbor first to see what was going on. It turned out the neighbor's friends were the dog's owners. Both of them were recently in a car accident making them unable to care for the dog. It was a temporary situation. The dog, who was normally showered with love, could not be kept inside the neighbor's house all the time since he owns cats. Once I found out what was really going on directly from the neighbor it was a relief.

My first instinct was to call Animal Services for them to deal with it, but the lesson I learned was not to be passive aggressive. Maybe your squirrel obsessed neighbor doesn't realize the impact being created? If it bothers you enough to make signs then maybe a quick call to Animal Services to inquire about any regulations and a chat with your neighbor isn't that much more of a stretch?

After losing a dozen tulip bulbs to squirrels, I covered the bed with burlap and covered that with a half inch of soil.

The squirrels stopped digging, and I feel better about that than using pepper, which has the intent of burning their eyes and other sensitive tissues.

Was this a squirreless community until this woman moved in? I doubt it. I don't understand how her feeding them creates a problem for you.

I have a balcony with plants undisturbed the the many gray squirrels that stroll through.

Are these red squirrels by any chance, they can be destructive.

Posting a note is a big no no, unless you want to end up on passiveaggressivenotes.com

I say heed the advice of others to deter the buggers from your gardens: red pepper flakes, dog or cat fur, planting your flowers closer together. Calling animal services seems like a reasonable thing to do too - she may be breaking some law both of you don't even know about.

Amen craftypants. I take care of any cat I can, and that includes taking them to no kill shelters and rescue organizations. I feed them only to catch them and rescue them. We recently adopted one of the ones in our neighborhood and had her spayed.

With stray domestic animals, trap and rescue. With wild animals, leave em be. People who feed them don't understand that they are harming the ecological balance. We have squirrels but our cats do a good job of keeping them away. If you have a screen porch or any other enclosed gardening area that is great. I guess I'm lucky, the squirrels leave my garden alone. Maybe its the mulch?

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. I'm going to try the pin wheels, and maybe the screen idea first. The woman that feeds them lives in the only apartment building on our block. She feeds them off her balcony, and has no plants or garden. While I do think she is lonely (and yes, I do have compassion for her), I wonder how people would feel if she was feeding the rats instead of cute little squirrels? Because I see no difference. I know there is no way this can't be contributing to the rat infestation. The peanuts are all over our neighborhood now, which I know because when walking my dogs, they'll sniff one out and drag me over to eat it! I like akay's advice, but since she has no plants, I'm not sure how effective talking with her will be. And I've also learned that more and more neighbors are also having issues with this.

I've had good luck with a motion activitated water sprinkler. You can buy them (amazon, gardners.com) or make your own if you are handy - it's just a sprinkler with a motion detector mounted to it. Hide it (or several) in your pots. It's the surprise effect that deters them.

http://www.amazon.com/Contech-Electronics-CRO101-Scarecrow-Motion-Activated/dp/B000071NUS

You could also try getting a plastic owl or some other such deterrent. My neighbors setup a vegetable garden in the front yard and put up an owl to scare away the birds and squirrels.

We have a huge squirrel population who like to chew on our house. Apparently they are sharpening their teeth!

The local gardening center recommended that I use "Deer Off", by Havahart. It comes in a spray bottle and claims to deter by taste and smell. My bottle says they have a website for those who may not be able to find it locally.

It does appear to work and since all you do is spray it on, is easy to use. It's also weather resistant.

When I used it on the place they were chewing, they moved to another spot, so apparently I need to spray my whole house!

squirrels are rats with fuzzy tails.

To be honest, polite signs or mailings aren't polite. If I was that neighbour, I'd take offense and feel alienated from the neighbourhood.

I'd go over to your neighbour yourself and say "The squirrels are so cute. But they're ripping apart my peonies. I've tried everything to get them away. What would you suggest?" That'd probably give them a cue not to feed them.

Good luck!

Dog hair spread around the garden worked for me as a squirrel and rabbit deterrent. Most of the time. Squirrels are bold and crafty little buggers. I now live in a second floor apartment and the grey squirrels climb up the brick to sit in the window boxes. I gave up trying to dissuade them and now simply enjoy the company at breakfast. At least it's not raccoons.

Deer Off. Thanks, couture007. I think I might try to find that first. I'm guessing it's safe for plants? I do have a cat, but she's a tiny thing, and I only let her out when she can be supervised. I doubt she'd deter our determined squirrels :)

this week a squirrel attacked my toy poodle. We were outside eating lunch on our back patio and the dog was in the yard. A squirrel went after her and bit her, went up a tree and came down again and bit her again. She wears dresses so the bite did not go through to her skin. I went to scare him off and he just sat there 2 feet away and stared at me! I was afraid of getting bit so I went inside. He is back every day for 3 days now. He comes around when we are out eating lunch every day. Today he brought a friend.

Yes the "Deer Off" is safe for plants. Label says it's okay for edible crops and will deter deer, rabbits, tree squirrels and " other animals."

I have the bottle sitting beside the computer so that I can read the label and my dog is fascinated with smelling it... obviously did not deterred her at all. As I mentioned earlier, I use it on the house, (appox. 8-9 feet off the ground) so I have no idea what the dog would do if I sprayed it on the bushes!

Last summer in our neighborhood park, a squirrel "attacked" a two-year-old who was holding an ice cream cone. Of course the squirrel wanted the cone, not the child, but it bit the child in the process. Fortunately the squirrel did not have rabies.

I have lived in two homes now where squirrels got into the walls and ate the electrical wires, causing a lot of damage. Moreover, they do nothing but destroy our garden, chew holes through window screens and dig up our lawn. Please, please do not feed them. They'll survive on their own.

"She wears dresses so the bite did not go through to her skin."

Your dog wears dresses???

If I was a squirrel, I'd stand there and stare at the two of you too - and bring all my squirrel friends to come have a look at the crazy dress-wearing dog.

We have the same problem in our neighborhood in the Lower East Side, but it's rats he's feeding and not squirrels. Every morning, the "Rat Guy" spreads rotting food on the sidewalks. We've tried talking to him to no avail. Another neighbor even resorted to paying him a weekly fee to not feed the rats, but in the end the "Rat Guy" put his (skewed) principals before his greed and decided he had a duty to his friends. Unfortunately, you'll probably have the same result with the "Squirrel Lady". Focus instead on setting up rodent-proof fences around your plants. Good luck!

Predator's pee works for my grandmother's back yard pests. Maybe that can help your situation.

Throw a bucket of water on the squirrel-loving neighbor.

It is *extraordinarily* rare for squirrels to contract rabies (only one or two documented cases exist). At the large wildlife rehabilitation center where I volunteer, the rabies vaccine is mandatory for those working with any mammal EXCEPT squirrels and rabbits. Are we really so disconnected from nature that we're freaking out about the very slim possiblity of being bitten by a squirrel?

The only way to get rid of the squirrel problem is to get rid of the squirrels. Tender hearted people please do not read the following: You need to get a trap, such as a Havaheart live trap. Use peaches as bait. When you have captured a squirrel, submerge the trap in water quickly. Do not try to relocate the squirrel. This is actually more cruel than drowning, as the squirrel will be in a new territory and will slowly starve.
Do not tell your squirrel feeding neighbor. She will hate you.

I live in Chicago and have a gangsta-squirrel neighborhood. If it were not for Jesus in my life, I would commit a squirrel masacre.

I've used live traps to catch the squirrels and then released them far away. You bait them with peanuts or marshmallows and the weight of the squirrel in the trap triggers the door to close. You can probably buy the traps online, or build your own.

You're not going to trap urban squirrels and release them far away every freaking day, are you?

I'd just live with it. Cayenne pepper works as do plastic plants. Or screen over your balcony. Or forget the whole thing. It's not like you're growing crops for food.

At my current apartment I had a lot of trouble with squirrels digging up all of my plant containers. I have had very good luck with Critter Ridder by HaveAHart. It is a concentrated version of spicy pepper ingredients. Sprinkling it on the soil keeps them right out and it does have to be reapplied but only after a heavy rain.

bepsf, thanks for the laugh!!! I'm still smiling!!!

I agree - enormous container of cayenne pepper is the way to go.

Squirrels are just rats with good PR. I would have no compunction about getting rid of them as long as it was a clean death.

Peppers hurt their eyes and noses.

The burlap under a few centimetres of soil works well for the digging, as does the wire mesh over the tops of containers.

I would never want to hurt a squirrel. Lord knows they have enough untimely deaths from run-ins with cars. I have one in my yard that knows how to get food out of a squirrel-proof bird feeder. And another blonde one I call the Golden Squirrel. Whenever I see him I think it's a lucky sign.

What's becoming more of a problem where I live is coyotes. They have had so much of their habitat destroyed and have so few predators that they are brazenly coming into residential neighborhoods, sometimes going after small dogs left outside. People are freaking out.

What about a layer of a nice-looking gravel as mulch on top of the dirt? Might make the dirt less appealing to squirrels.

squirrels=tree rats
(I love them tho)

I went to scare him off and he just sat there 2 feet away and stared at me!

I'd throw something very large and very heavy at that squirrel. If it survived, it would learn not to **** with the giant monkeys and their pets anymore.

(Or, I would introduce that squirrel to the vicious cat who lived in my last apartment complex. It wouldn't be biting or staring at anything after that.)

where do you live? I just recently saw a sign posted in a co-op garden that indicated that feeding squirrels is 'against NYC law' and I was curious to know more about that, as there seems to be one crazy senior per block that loves to feed these vermon and keep them fat!

Otherwise - we did note that the mint plants were the only ones that squirrels wouldn't eat. I later heard (on Car Talk Radio of all places) that mixing peppermint oil in water and spraying it on plants will keep squirrels away. Give it a try!

I saw a woman in my condo complex feeding a squirrel. It came right up and ate from her hand. I didn't even know they would do that.

I, however, shoo them away when I go to our garbage area.

And why is it so hard to put the garbage IN the dumpster?! People actually leave food out near the dumpster for the squirrels!!!

Clearly I could go on and on about this...

I HATE squirrels. I had a beautiful vegetable container garden on my fire escape a few years ago that was destroyed by the crazy squirrels that gather around my crazy-squirrel-feeding-next-door-neighbor's patio. They are awful. Then, she had the ridiculousness to complain to my landlord about "dirt falling on her patio" from my garden. Hello...?! Maybe if you didn't feed the squirrels, they wouldn't come around her and throw dirt on you?!

Ugh.

This is what I want to know: How has our society accepted squirrels as "OK" rodents?? Everytime I see them, I see a rat. In fact, the other day I saw a squirrel who had lost the hair on its tail and it looked exactly that...a rat.

Gross. Nothing helps...move the container or put some cut-up screen under the dirt. That's the only thing, and even that doesn't work. There are also some squirrel-proof plants, I believe alliums...things in the onion family.

Yeah, post the sign on the neighbor's door but if she's anything like my crazy neighbor, it won't work.

This is a big DC problem that definitely deserves more big-media attention...

Palmetto - Plastic plants!? Seriously! I think there is enough plastic in the world without people "growing" plastic plants. And actually, I do grow plants for food! It's been much fun reading these comments - mostly helpful and some of you guys are hilarious (gangsta-squirrel neighborhood... too funny). Thanks for the laughter. Wouldn't it be great if we could all just get along? Neighbors, squirrel-lady, cats, rats, squirrels, crazy-complaining me! I am going to check into our city laws and now I'm very curious if a peppermint oil spray will work. Thanks, pdesign! (I'm not a car person, but I love those car talk guys on NPR... they always crack me up).

This is sad, my hubby and I are the peanut feeding neighbor but ours is not hurting anyone nor their plants or we would stop.

We do love squirrel, we can't help it, it's in our DNA.

@bepsf Too funny. Very few things make me literally LOL and I did just that when I read your comment.

I love seeing the squirrels. We had one when I was growing up that frequented our backyard. We even named him (although can't remember his name), because we could tell him apart from all the other squirrels. He had a big bushy tail. :)

My parents and other family members have bird feeders that the squirrels like to get into. My uncle made a semi squirrel proof bird feeder that kept the squirrels away for about a year until those smart buggers figured it out. My Dad just throws out bird seed and deer corn on the ground detering them from getting into the bird feeder since there is readily accessable food on the deck in back. The doves and squirrels really like the deer corn.

Killing or relocating squirrels is useless. More just move into the area. You will not win. They breed like rabbits. I had lots of squirrels and chipmunks at my forest edge condo until a new neighbor moved in. She brought 2 outside cats. They were little killing machines, and I will say that the squirrel and chipmunk population dropped drastically- which I really hated, but the cats were just doing their thing. She has since moved, and the squirrels and chipmunks are back. The cats were very effective, if your goal is decreasing the population. I've never seen anything else work.

And yes, those cats always ate their kill. They were responsible sportsmen.

We just need to release a larger and more ferociously territorial squirrel. I cannot foresee any problems with that.

Alright, I got halfway though this lonnng list of comments and am starting to feel sick to my stomach by the outpouring of support for the squirrel lady. I live around the corner from Kimber (author of this post) and have to deal with the peanut-stashing squirrels daily. Let me preface this by saying I'm an animal lover and know that Kimber is too, but these squirrels are, pardon the pun, completely nuts!

Rick Roberts, how are the squirrels "more important that her stupid plants"?!?! Is there an overabundance of peanuts in the world and our only hope to dispose of them is by having rodents bury them in my potted plants?

Seriously, sometimes the things don't even bother burying them - we've found peanuts laying on our window sills on multiple occassions. One day my wife was reading inside next to an open window when a squirrel started clawing it's way up the screen complete with peanut in it's mouth!

The situation is out of control. One thing that Kimber didn't mention in the post is that the lady also feeds the squirrels/birds Fruit Loops! Even if rats don't eat peanuts, I guarantee they love sugary cereal.

As I said, I'm an animal lover, but this lady has me wanting to dust-off my childhood bb gun!! Ok, I'm kidding about that, but this isn't a situation that we'll be able to just learn to deal with as several of you have suggested.

"...starting to feel sick to my stomach by the outpouring of support for the squirrel lady."

Gregorio--

Perhaps I didn't explain myself very well, but the situation isn't the fault of the squirrels and it's not really the fault of the squirrel lady. People who have active social lives don't spend excessive time and energy feeding and naming squirrels to multiply and dig up their neighbors gardens, they do it because they're lonely and are fulfilling a need. In her mind, people don't need her but the squirrels do.

If you and Kimber and the other neighbors took some time to befriend Crazy Squirrel Lady and invited her over for tea or dessert rather than treating her and her furry friends like unwanted outcasts, she would not only be grateful for the friendship but might also have less need for making the squirrels her social outlet.

Pepper works. You can buy a canister of a certain kind made just to repel squirrels and other critters at the hardware store.

I'm cool with squirrels, I just don't like them in my bird feeders, scaring away the song birds.

I've been told that if you use cayenne pepper, a squirrel can get easily get it in his eyes, and then scratch his eyes out from the burning. I have no way to verify that, but just the image was enough to stop me from using it.

I battle the squirrels every spring. Just keep repotting your flowers as the squirrels did them up. Eventually as the flowers really take root, the squirrels leave them alone.

Posting signs will make her feel alienated... but I think calling Animal control or the health department would make her feel even worse. Chances are there were already a ton of squirrels in the neighborhood before she started feeding them (that's probably why she started!) So you're just going to have to deal with it. Getting a cat is a great idea, they love to chase squirrels (but be careful they might bring you a dead one as a present... my cat used to do that, like he thought we would be excited or something, GROSS!) But I'm sure it would help keep them out of your yard.

I am a huge animal lover and honestly I would probably do the same thing if I saw a bunch of squirrels climbing on my balcony... she probably has no idea that it's causing such a problem since she doesn't have a garden herself. Maybe you can suggest feeding them bird seed instead of peanuts... They will eat that too, and I doubt they would bury that since it's so small. She could still enjoy the company of her little friends, since I'm sure she is just lonely.

catching and drowning the squirrels? are you kidding? i hope that was a joke... i have plenty of squirrels, and learned my first year in my tiny house when i planted a few hundred bulbs that there was little hope with the squirrels. only the big deeply planted ones (iris, giant tulips) were safe. i learned to cover the beds with leaves and mulch and sticks in the winter, which seems to at least curb their quest for the bulbs... from my experience, even an abundance of cats and cat pee is no help... (lots of cats in my neighborhood, including my own who is large can intimidate, but would never bother to chase one down and catch it)... i've heard the same nastiness about pepper. maybe the spray deter works, but i'd suggest some innovations in planting. they do seem to not go after the plants are established...or the bulbs in the ground after the first year...

We have three giant ancient oak trees in our yard which of course means Squirrel Heaven. Our neighbor just told us that our yard used to be overrun with squirrels but since we moved in and fenced the yard and let our two dogs run around whenever they want, the squirrel population has mostly moved on. Maybe try letting your dogs out more.
And, bring your dogs over to visit the squirrel lady to alleviate some of her loneliness?
Katy
http://fengshuibyfishgirl.com

Over the years, just when we think there couldn't possibly be more squirrels and chipmunks...I've seen nature take amazing care of this problem in the form of hawks moving into the neighborhood - suddenly the squirrel/chipmunk populations diminish. Also, some years, the acorn production is very low ... due to what I do not know. This spring, I notice they are back...and I plan to try covering the soil in my plants with screening, then rocks. The worst is when they decide that the trees are not good enough and they bore holes into your house. Did I mention I love animals?

Wonder whether it would help to plant prickly but lovely plants around your other plants? Roses come to mind. Carpet (aka Pavement) roses are really low maintenance and hug the ground, so would frame your other plants beautifully.
For my Dutch husband's sake, I had to learn how to keep squirrels away from my tulips, and bloodmeal is a great option (you just don't want to inhale it yourself.)

Don't use moth balls. They don't work and they are toxic to many living things including children and pets, and they can get away from the place you put them to cause harm.

Personally, I would call animal control and ASK they how to protect your plants without filing a complaint. If there is a law about feeding squirrels, they will probably tell you, and you can go to the squirrel lady and give her a "heads up" (NOT a threat) that what she is doing is illegal. If she already knows, you are probably out of luck unless you do file a complaint. But even if she stops, (or IS STOPPED) it's gonna take a long time for the problem to go away, so you are probably better off just protecting what you can and trying to mitigate the damage.

bepsf - Thank you so much for the detailed psychoanalysis of "Crazy Squirrel Lady"...And by the way, neither Kimber or myself ever called her "crazy". If you happen to work in the mental health field, I'd advise against throwing that adjective around.

Down with squirrel haters! Long live squirrels!

Put an artificial snake on your balcony, one that looks fairly realistic and hopefully it will scare the squirrels away.

The problem isn't with the squirrels, and I don't believe is a squirrel hating issue. The problem is with the peanuts the squirrels are burying in the plants. My aunt used to feed the squirrels peanuts in the shell, until a neighbour asked her to buy the peanuts that are already shelled.
I also now have a neighbour who insists on feeding the squirrels who already know how to fend for themselves. They have never dug up my plants, until they were being fed the peanuts. I have tried the cayenne, but with all the rain we have had this year, it is costing me a fortune, and so is replacing plants.
We are allowed to beautify our homes, and should not have our properties destroyed, and have it keep costing us to solve these problems.
I totally understand your problem, Kimber! I think I am going to see if I can find the DeerOff. I looked it up on the internet, and it says it is weather resistant and lasts up to 90 days, so hopefully will be a more economical solution.

I love squirrels and used to feed them in the winter. I'd stop feeding them in the summer, because they had plenty of food. I also wanted to keep them away from my garden.

I found a terrific way to stop them from digging in the garden, and especially in the planters. You spread a bit of bonemeal around the plants, at the edge of the garden, or in the planter. It stopped them cold. Apparently they don't like. The bonus is that bonemeal is also good for the plants. When it sorta disappears in the soil, you can reapply more bonemeal. Just a little dusting around does the trick.

all rodents are alergec to PURE (not imitation) peperment oil. make shure to get the stuff with out alcohol in it, which will only make the squerls drunk. I used it on our bird feeders and so far no more squirls (as long as u reaply every so often and after each rain)