Grow Your Own Magazine

They are using my beautifuuly raked, lovngly sown raised seed bed as a litter tray!

I'm thinking of putting sticks as a support with some fine netting over and pinning this to the ground around the bed.

Do you reckon this will stop them? I thought with netting it would let rain and sun through too.

In Spring it was foxes burying stuff and just when you think it is clear you are in the s*** Literally

Netting should do it. I have bird netting all round my salad beds (more to keep the bantams out than anything else!) - it's about two feet high, supported on canes, and the cats don't bother to try and get in.

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Blinking cats Actually I love cats, but have a similar problem, as the neighbours cat loves the raised beds. Ours are now enclosed in netting and on one we have built a chicken wire frame. It does the job nicely, although they do walk around them looking for a way in . So far without without success.....hope I haven't spoken too soon

You can also buy a thing that plugs in and emits a sound that cats hate, but can't be heard by humans....it's meant to put them off

My cats hate those CD's - we have them everywhere on the veggie plot. Its niot true what they say about cats not doing it at home so to speak!

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God made rainy days so gardeners could get the housework done

You can bury a lot of troubles digging in the dirt

When my kids become wild and unruly, I use a nice, safe playpen. When they're finished, I climb out

You will always be your child's favorite toy

I have heard that lion poo puts them off, but I'll try the netting first!

I had the the same problem here. What's worse is my own cat does it. Grrr. Going to net everything next year.

Steven

Since i started gardening this year my cat thinks its heaven. All those big cat toilets put in place just for her!

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Taking it one day at a time and still smiling...

Air rifle

Do a search and you'll fine some really good heated debates from the past!

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Matt - taking your life into your hands there ... lots of cat lovers lurking on this site, even if we're not so fond of their scratching habits!

I have to make sure that I never top dress beds with compost because they both love that - it's apparently THE ultimate kitty litter!

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Cheers

T-lady

I cover mine with nets HamsterQueen.
They keep out the cats and the pigeons.

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From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.

Oooh gorgeous beds Alice! Very neat paths too!

Our beds are constantly under cat attack unless I net them. Even then I have to make sure they are well pegged around the edges or they crawl under them. I put bamboo canes on the ground around the edge of the raised beds (on top of the edge of the netting - does that make sense?) and then a few pegs to hold the canes down. Without the canes I was using far too many pegs or they were still getting in!

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My garden blog
http://michelles-garden.blogspot.com/
Updated 20th August 2008

Yep, when I had a kitty that needed litter training, I used compost as 'bait'. She loved it!

I use a small 'sacrificial' area as Rosco's kitty litter. The parsnips have been sprayed with soil when he gets over-eager with the digging, but otherwise it's worked very well. Every so often I aerate it, like a normal bed. Keeps me AND the neighbours happy! I couldn't shoot his little fluffy bum. He's far too cute!

I have a cat, not sure where he 'goes' but I do know that my neighbours 4 (eek) love my raised beds, pumpkins, squash, beans, mange tout, cabbages, leeks....................

Alice, I love your net set-up. What do you use to make the 'frames'?

i''ve got 3 x cats - as mentioned on previous thread, they are a nuisance in my garden as well as anyone elses! I use the netting method, it seems to work for me.

d

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"A cat sees no good reason why it should obey another animal, even if it does stand on two legs."

Detering cats hasn't been too much of a problem i just blocked off all entrances to my garden, it's cut down on the neighbourhood cats visits and keeps my cat near where i can see her. (she has no sense of direction and normally gets lost if a leave her out - keeps getting found and returned to via the vets)

As for keeping cats off the beds cd's seem to work, as do kebab sticks, i'm going to play with a polly tunnel over the raised bed and we'll see how it goes.

D

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My cat loves the "new litter trays" that I've dug, except that I call them raised beds!! One thing she can't stand though is chilli powder or curry powder sprinkled liberally over the surface I used that 'cos I'd run out of pepper. Once sticks are in though, she leaves them alone. Will try the cd's as well I think

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Always look on the bright side of life
View my blog - http://chooksandveggies.blogspot.com/ updated November 1st 2008

I though I was being smart and put nets over all my raised beds, initially didn't drape them high enough over the earth and they just pooped on the nets, ick!

Amanda, I made the net supports with small size drain pipes. Very, very cheap from B & Q. I used the little angle joints - very cheap - to join them together. All very lightwieght and easy to assemble and can be moved about easily.
I'm going to puts some fleece or polythene over them to get an early start next year.

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From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.

May need to take that idea too!Our nets all look so untidy over the brassicas~yours look really neat.Also look a lot easier to move the net for weeding~ours is held down by random sized canes etc~total nightmare for weeding purposes!

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Andi&Di, I hold the nets down with pegs made from a little roll of fence wire from B&Q. Cut into lengths and bent into a C shape at one end. I just push the spikes into the ground and catch the bottom of the net in the C. They're very easy to put in and out to get into the beds.
But wouldn't it be great if we didn't have to bother with anything .

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From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.

Despite having a garden - and 3 cats - I have always maintained a litter tray - even when the house I had had an even smaller garden.

Its not nice digging about and finding your hands covered with cat - or any other critter's poo - so I at least minimise this for my neighbours.

I've even seen them making a dash for the litter tray in the sun lounge before now. I'm not stupid enough to think they NEVER poo/spray elsewhere - but at least I've minimise that possibility.

What realy riles me is that outside my house right now - not 2 yards from an official penalty sign - is a quantity of dog's doings -I think I know the source - an uncontrolled pooch who cannot be blamed for the inconsiderate behaviours of its owners - who think to let the dog do its 'essentials' is to let it into the garden where side-exit is available to foul wherever and whenever it choses.

Alice - how do you secure the drainpipe "goalposts" (that's what they look like to me!!) to stop them blowing away - that would be my concern with them being so light. Do you just shove them way way into the ground?

(Can you tell whose idea I'm going to be copying next year?!)

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Warning: I have a dangerous tendency to act like I know what I'm talking about.

Never tried it, but orange or lemon peel is supposed to deter cats. I think it is the citric acid/smell which they don't like and stay well clear.

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BW
James

I like to try, might not get far, but I like to try.

Demeter, they are just pushed into the ground. Have not had a problem with anything blowing over. There is nothing to catch the wind.

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From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.