Rabbit Run

As Easter looms, we're inundated with rabbits, aren't we?  A stroll through any retail establishment--from the big box stores to the local pharmacies--will garner a bevy of bunnies: stuffed, candied, confectioned and cartooned.  I admit to being a big fan of these fluffy critters.  Not only am I reading the classic Watership Down right now, but I've even got a flop-eared fur ball of my very own named Jiggy (who, in fact, has a starring role in my New Adult novel, Flawless).   In fact, a person would be hard-pressed to find a more ardent fan than I--except when these creatures are in my garden!

Unlike my interaction with my domestic bunny buddy, I admire the antics of the wild rabbits in my yard with a mixture of amusement and annoyance.  I suspect a warren in my neighbor's side yard because that's where I watch the rabbits congregate each day, chasing each other around and hopping in comical, vertical jumps that look like some sort of mating ritual, which never fails to make me laugh.

But the bunnies' destructive habits are never funny.  A peek at the vegetation around my pond supports my suspicions that the rabbits are having what my kids would call "a real banga" around the old water hole.  And while I don't begrudge the critters a refreshing drink, I frown upon the wanton destruction of the nearby plants.  In fact, my frown lines deepened considerably when I spotted a clipped carex.  This plant, a 20-inch, green-and-white striped plant, commonly called a sedge, looked as though someone passed through with a pair of scissors.  To add insult to injury, the sliced slivers weren't even gobbled up!  They just lay there, like discarded newspaper clippings, scattering in the wind.

Time to take action.  First of all, I notice that the rabbits steer clear of any area where I have an abundance of alliums and marigolds planted.  Like most critters, they don't dig the smell of these plants, and won't dig into those areas.  Next, I took the advice of a gardening guru in my neighborhood and sprinkled crushed eggshells along the fence bordering my neighbor's property.  This produced immediate results.  I actually watched the rabbits scamper around the "shelled" area on their way to the pond.

For the plants peppered around the pond, I "peppered" a homemade mixture of hot pepper sauce and water (one-third sauce to two-thirds cool water in a spray bottle) around the area, leaving only the rocky section near the waterfall free and clear.  I don't want to discourage rabbits from partaking of the pond, just the plants around it.  Rabbits are foragers by nature, and very curious.  They don't fancy the taste of sedge in general, but will cut through whole plants while they make up their minds.  The pepper mixture seems to have deterred them.

And for anyone who is lucky enough to share indoor spaces with a special little furry friend like my Jiggy, a word of advice: keep the toilet seat down.  When one of my kids neglected to heed my (daily) nagging command to do just that, my curious Jiggy found a new water source--and had to wait patiently for me to discover her

pull her out!