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Do Marigolds Keep Rabbits Away? (All You Need to Know)

Marigolds have been known to enhance the beauty of a garden for a long time. But they have other useful features as well. These plants can deter unwanted animals, including rabbits and deers from your property.

In this article, we will discuss whether marigolds keep rabbits away and the reason behind it.

We will further discuss the different types of marigolds that will help you keep rabbits away from your grounds. So without further ado, let’s read ahead to learn more about it.

Do marigolds keep rabbits away?

Marigolds do keep rabbits away. Rabbits are usually repelled by edging marigolds. You can keep rabbits out of your vegetable garden and flower garden by planting some marigold plants around the edges. They dislike the smell and texture of these flowers and their leaves.

Rabbits do not like marigold plants. These plants are too strong in flavor and texture for rabbits. They are usually deterred by marigold plants.

Marigolds, even when they do not have any flowers on them, seem to annoy rabbits. They do not like the smell that comes out of the plant itself. So they usually stay away from these plants.

You can plant some marigolds around your vegetable garden and flower garden if you want to keep it safe from rabbits. They will not enter your property if they can smell marigolds. 

From plants:

Marigolds will keep rabbits away from your plants. The edging marigolds are mostly used for this purpose.

You can keep your plants safe from the paws of rabbits if you can plant some marigold plants around your flower and vegetable garden.

If the rabbits can smell marigolds in your garden, they will not enter the garden. Its smell will deter them from the property.

Out of garden:

marigolds will even drive the rabbits out of your garden. If you can plant some marigolds and take good care of them, they will grow in no time. If the plant blooms with flowers, then the results will be even more effective.

But even without the flowers, the plant itself can repel rabbits to a good extent. Rabbits dislike the smell that is produced by the plant itself, so they will stay away from your garden if you can plant some marigolds there.

Do rabbits dislike the smell of marigolds? Do wild bunnies eat marigolds?

Rabbits dislike the smell of marigolds. Rabbits do not like to browse around a property that has marigolds planted in it. So you will be able to deter them out of your property simply by planting and taking care of marigold plants.

Many commercial rabbit repellents are infused with the smell of marigolds. This is because rabbits do not like the smell and are heavily repelled by it. So you can plant some marigolds in your property and rest assured that it will keep the rabbits away.

However, this trick does not work as well with wild bunnies. They are not always repelled by the smell of marigolds. In fact, wild bunnies are sometimes found to browse around marigold plants and eat them.

So while marigolds will keep the rabbits away from your garden, you should not expect to repel wild bunnies completely with the help of marigolds. You will need to take some more stick actions to keep them away.

Is there any marigold that deters rabbits? What type of marigolds keeps rabbits away?

There are a few marigolds that will deter rabbits. Rabbits generally do not like the smell of marigolds. But they are particularly not fond of pot marigolds.

Pot marigolds are particularly effective in keeping rabbits away. Rabbits dislike the smell of these marigolds and are repelled by it.

You will find many commercial rabbit repellents that are made by infusing the smell of pot marigolds in them. This is because rabbits are typically annoyed by this smell and it drives them away.

So you are likely to notice significant results if you can plant some pot marigolds around your property. These marigolds will not only keep them from browsing around your garden, but they will keep the rabbits from entering your grounds in the first place.

In addition to that, rabbits also dislike the smell of English marigolds. These plants have a very bold smell which deters rabbits from the grounds.

2 reasons why marigolds can keep rabbits away

Rabbits particularly dislike pot marigold and it will deter them from your home and property.

Smell:

Rabbits dislike the smell of marigolds. These plants are brightly colored and bold in their smell. It is commonly believed that rabbits find the smell of these plants to be somewhat offensive.

So they avoid these plants altogether. And rabbits have been seen to leave the grounds if they notice marigold plants in it. The smell of marigolds, especially pot marigolds and English marigolds, annoys rabbits.

In addition, the smell of marigolds is overpowering. Its smell will mask the smell of other plants in the garden.

So the rabbits fail to understand what other plant they will find in the garden. In failing to acquire target plants, they often leave the garden altogether.

They are not fond of these plants and do not enjoy browsing a garden if they find marigolds in it.

Color:

The flowers of marigolds have a very bold color. They are bright orange in color, which the rabbits find quite offensive. Rabbits are not fond of the color of marigolds as well.

How do I stop rabbits from eating my marigolds? How to plant marigolds to keep rabbits away?

Here are a few steps that will help you figure out how to stop rabbits from eating your marigolds and how you can plant these flowering plants to keep rabbits away.

Identify the entrance that the rabbits are taking:

The first step would involve you to analyze the movement of the rabbits and identify which route they are taking to enter your garden.

Plant the marigold:

Once you have figured out which gardens the rabbits are targeting and feeding off of, you can now plant marigolds around those gardens.

You will need to plant marigolds around the edges of the garden because this will prevent the rabbits from entering the garden at all.

Plant multiple marigold plants around the edges of the garden. This will show you the best results.

Protect the marigolds:

If you are still concerned about the wellbeing of your garden, you can build a fence around the garden.

Rabbits sometimes end up eating the marigolds as well. You should build fences around the marigold plants in order to protect them from rabbits and wild bunnies.

This is how you should plant marigold in order to keep the rabbits away from your garden and properties.

What kind of flowers keep rabbits away?

While rabbits primarily indulge in flowers and plants, there are still many flowers that they dislike or even avoid. Let’s take a look at some of the flowers that keep rabbits away:

Geraniums:

Rabbits do not like geraniums. They are repelled by the smell and color of these flowers and it offends them when you plant these flowers in your garden. Rabbits, therefore, will not browse around your garden if you plant some geraniums there.

Lantana:

Rabbits do not like lantana flowers as well. These plants produce clusters of flowers that have a strong smell and bright colors. You can even overwinter these flowers, which will allow you to have a lasting effect.

Cleome:

Cleome is another flowering plant that rabbits dislike. These flowers have a mint-like smell which deters rabbits.

Strawflower:

Rabbits do not like strawflowers as well. These flowers have a stiff set of petals that the rabbits are not fond of. They are grown in sandy and rocky soil.

Snapdragons:

This is another prominent flowering plant that deters rabbits. Rabbits do not like snapdragons because these plants are slightly toxic to rabbits.

Rabbits will give them a broad berth. You can plant them around your garden to deter wild bunnies and rabbits as it is very effective in keeping them away.

Vinca:

This is another easily grown flowering plant that has been known to repel rabbits. This plant produces beautiful blue and white flowers that are entertained during early spring through summer.

So you can use this plant during this time to deter rabbits from your property.

Final Thoughts

Marigolds will keep rabbits away. Rabbits do not like the smell and color of marigold plants. The smell of marigold is overpowering and masks the smell of other plants in the garden. This ends up confusing the rabbits. So marigolds are great for keeping rabbits and bunnies out of your property.