How to keep rats out of gardens naturally: Grow 5 plants that rodents naturally hate

Seeing a rat around your garden is never pleasant. Not only do these pesky rodents chew on plants, they are known to carry diseases in their droppings that can contaminate the soil.

Many people reach for poison or chemical baits as soon as they spot a rat, but these methods are not only cruel, but more likely to harm foxes, neighborhood cats, and other local animals.

Hammer Technologies pest control specialist Toby Bateson has shared that getting rid of rat infestations in gardens can be tricky, but it’s best done with natural and safe methods.

He said: “If you have a problem with rats and rodents it can be a nightmare trying to get rid of them. They are hardy and resilient and are determined to find food or shelter in your garage or garden.”

According to Toby, one of the most effective ways to keep rats away is to grow “rat repellent plants”, which are known to greatly irritate these pests as they make the garden much less attractive to them.

What plants to grow in your garden to keep rats away

Herbs

Many herbs are easy to grow in containers and have strong pungent scents that humans love but are overpowering to rats.

Toby said: “Sage, pepper, oregano and cayenne will help keep them away. Herbs can be sprinkled on the soil or around entry points. The strong smell may help keep them away.”

Herbs interfere with the familiar scents of rats in the garden, making it difficult to find food and making the area less hospitable for digging.

One of the best herbs to grow in the garden is mint, because in addition to its fragrance, it also contains menthol, which is very irritating to rodents, so they tend to avoid it.

Toby said: “Mint is often cited as a rat repellent. Many internet sites describe it being used in various ways to repel rodents, especially from houses.”

Flowers

If you want to keep your garden looking beautiful, it is best to plant either marigolds or lavender, as these beautiful flowers contain extracts that act as natural repellants.

Lavender contains essential oils that rats can’t tolerate, but they also have a strong scent that masks the scents that are attractive to rats in the garden and makes the area less attractive for them to dig in.

Calendula contains pyrethrins, which are known to repel and kill insect pests such as aphids and flies, but are also unattractive to rats. Rats are automatically fed up with eating anything in the garden because they assume that other plants may be poisonous due to the bitter taste of marigolds.

Toby said: “Daffodils keep rats away in the spring and they don’t like marigolds or lavender either.”

Daffolfils also contain compounds that are toxic to rats, but these beautiful yellow flowers only bloom in the spring, so you can’t plant them at this time of year in the summer.

Other flowers that rats hate are chrysanthemums and nasturtiums, both of which also have a terrible taste that can deter rats from eating anything else in the garden.

Vegetables

Late summer is often when rats are most active as they are likely looking for food, but having either garlic or tomatoes in your garden can make your garden less attractive to them.

Toby said: “Garlic has a strong sulphurous smell which rodents and many other pests dislike. Garlic cloves can be mixed with boiling water and then put in a spray bottle to spray around the house. They also dislike tomato plants.”

Garlic has a naturally strong odor that rats hate because it can affect their ability to navigate the area, while ripening tomatoes have a strong sour smell that rats find uncomfortable.

Tomatoes also contain tomatine, a compound that can be toxic to rats if they eat large amounts of it. Tomatoes don’t repel rats on their own, but they make the garden unpleasant because rats assume that all food in the area is unpleasant or potentially poisonous.