Imagine you’ve just spent two hours toiling away in your flower garden.
Then, finally, you conclude that your flower garden is beautiful.
You’re even hoping for some positive messages from your friends.
But, unfortunately, you realize your canine friend had other plans.
He tromps, digs, and creates a relaxing pit bed for himself using the soil and remains of your destroyed flowers.
It can be very disappointing, and at that point, there is nothing you can do but redo your garden.
But how about if you can prevent such an unfortunate event from happening in your garden?
Let’s find out how.
In a nutshell, you can use a scarecrow motion-activated sprinkler that will sense your dog’s body heat and sprinkle water to scare it off.
Another option is building a tall, sturdy fence with no gaps around your garden.
Also, make raised beds or spread spicy and bitter stuff on the flower beds to discourage entry.
Finally, you can create a doggie playground and teach them where to play.
Read on for more easy tips to keep your canine friend off your garden and keep your plants flourishing.
11 Tips To Keep Your Dog Off Your Flower Garden
Dogs are man’s best friend, yet they can be a nightmare when it comes to playing in your garden.
Whether it’s to relieve stress or it’s just for curiosity, your garden should be off limit.
Here are some successful ways of keeping dogs out of the flower beds.
1. Build a Tall and Sturdy Fence Around Your Garden
Consider constructing a beautiful fence if you have an open garden.
An open garden can draw a dog’s attention.
In addition, they may take the absence of a barrier as an invitation to play with the flowers.
Dogs can be clever and come up with crafty tricks to outsmart us.
As a result, make your fence tall and robust.
The dog cannot jump over the fence into the garden if it’s high enough.
A dog will find a way to push your fence over till it falls.
It’s not strong enough.
Also, keep the garden gate closed at all times.
2. Use Scarecrow Motion Activated Sprinkler
The motion sensors in this sprinkler detect animals or big birds.
When it senses movement, it sprays water while making a noise that scares dogs or other animals.
Because of the chilly water, this is a great strategy to keep dogs away from your plants.
3. Plant Barrier Plants
Tall and thorny or pungent herbs can help keep dogs away from your flower beds.
Dogs detest aromatic smells and will keep away from them.
Plant thorny or prickly plants around your garden or on the flower beds your dogs like to play in.
Barberry, Roses, chili pepper, citrus fruits, lavender, oregano, and rosemary are among the thorny and pungent plants you can plant.
4. Create a Lovely Playground for Your Dog
Just like humans, dogs also feel lonely or bored.
So if they don’t have a nice place to play, your flower bed will be their first stop.
Create a lovely place for your dog to play in.
Make it look as attractive as your flower bed.
Having a place to play in will help distract your dog’s attention from the plants.
Dogs love playing with exposed soil and dirt.
So you can dig some holes in the dog’s playground, add some sand and some dog’s favorite toys.
5. Train Your Dog
With a playground in place, it’s easier to teach your dog where to dig.
Then, encourage the dog to play with the toys and explore the holes you’ve dug.
You can also play on the playground with him with a ball or any other item he enjoys.
Also, allow him to play alone for a while.
If you do this consistently, your dog will learn the routine and will always head to the playground.
6. Build Raised Beds
Bricks and breeze blocks are the best materials to create raised beds.
Choose bricks that will survive long wet conditions.
Wood is also a good choice for raised beds.
Commonly used wood types are untreated cedar, pine, or fir.
Make sure your raised flower garden gets plenty of sunlight.
Also, check that your flower bed is high enough that even if your dog jumps, it won’t be able to reach it.
7. Use Home-Made Repellents
Bitter, intense, and spicy aromas irritate dogs.
You can use pepper, vinegar, rosemary, and other herbs to make a natural repellant.
Mix the items or use them separately to sprinkle over your flowers.
The dogs will be less likely to visit your flowerbed after doing this.
Vinegar will kill your plants if sprayed directly.
So, sprinkle around the flowerbed but not inside.
8. Use Commercial Repellents
Commercial repellents contain ingredients that dogs hate.
They won’t come near your flower garden once they smell the liquid.
Repellents such as horticulture vinegar can be used, but before spraying the solution on your flowerbed, make sure to cover your flowers.
You can use horticultural vinegar to eradicate weeds, but it can also damage your plants.
9. Switch to Container Gardening
Switch to container gardening if your dog still finds its way to your flower bed after trying the above tricks.
Because of the small area, dogs will have less access to the soil in the pot if you use pots to cultivate flowers.
If your dog digs your flowers in the pot, put some pepper or place a rosemary plant in the pot.
10. Do Not Scold Your Dog
If you scold or beat your dog, he will always find a way to repeat the behavior, much like children.
He can decide to irritate you for the sake of amusement.
If your dog is playing in the garden, you can discipline him in other ways.
You may also notice that if you scold a dog, it will cease playing with your flowers while you are around.
However, if you leave them alone in the compound, they will play and eat your flowers.
11. Bury Balloons
People use balloons to keep dogs out of their flower beds, which may sound odd—this is quite an interesting technique, but it works if you can manage to do it.
Fill balloons with air and bury them in and around your flower garden.
When a dog digs and finds the balloon, the colors will first distract him.
Then, if he continues to explore, the balloon will burst, scaring the dog away.
Following the burst of several balloons, the dog will be afraid to play in the flower bed for fear of locating another balloon that will burst on their pretty face.
Take Away
With these few suggestions, you can keep dogs away from your flowerbed.
Experiment with each until you find the one that best suits your needs.
Make sure you’re using dog-friendly items that aren’t dangerous or toxic to your canine friend.
Also be sure to check if your dog is eating dirt while in the garden.
This could be a sign of malnutrition that you may need to address to keep them off the garden.