Cats
October 28, 2017
Do you have a recommendation for keeping cats out of my outside planting area? They are using it as a scratch box. GROSS.
Mulch with sweetgum balls and they will stay away. They typically scratch as they do their business and they don’t like the sharp spiny sensation.
June 2006
We moved from Chicago (with its wonderful black topsoil) about a year and a half ago.
Now that we are into my second Arkansas gardening season, we have a perplexing problem
with which we hope you can provide some guidance. When we bought a home in Diamondhead,
outside of Hot Springs, we acquired a raised garden plot of some 180 sq ft. We have
tried to plant shrubs and perennials that are deer resistant, and have been mostly
successful in that regard. Our problem is that some of our plants (especially two
gardenias and a caryopteris) over time have been slowly losing their leaves - they
turn brown or yellow and then fall off. (Last summer, we thought, the problem was
related to extreme summer heat, but it is already occurring again this year.) Other
plants don't seem to be affected. Our neighbors have a cat that runs free, and who
we are quite sure had frequently been using the garden plot as a convenient litter
box. (We have taken steps to keep the cat out of the garden.) Could he be the cause
of the problem with our plants? If so, what can we do to fix the soil to be more tolerant
of our plants?
It is possible that the cat is causing problems. Have your soil tested to see what
the pH is and the salt levels. Gardenias like an acidic soil and can have yellow leaves
with green veins if the pH is too high. If you are worried about the cat using the
flower beds as a litter box, mulch the garden with sweetgum balls. The sharp spines
usually keep them away because they like to scratch the soil when they go to the bathroom.
Aerate the soil under the plants and water well after taking a soil sample to try
to leach out any ammonia problems and let’s see what the soil sample says.
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