As skunks are omnivores, they can eat both green plants and animal material like insects, small rodents, grasshoppers, mice, beetles, crickets etc. They feel welcoming to any vibrant color flowers, smooth, sweet kind of smell and sweet berries like strawberry, peaches etc.
They are slow moving animals that calmly can make a great mess throughout the garden if they find the way to the garden once.
Peppermint oil to repel skunks
The harmful creature skunks are sensitive to strong scent and so, by any strong scent, they are easily repelled. Because of the overpowering minty, camphoraceous smell, presence of toxic chemicals and its bitter, mouth burning taste peppermint oil serves as a great skunk-repellent.
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Skunks are normally attracted to sweet berries or fruits of the garden. But are harmful creatures that can bite and scratch as their defense system and also can cause various hazardous diseases like rabies.
If they once could get in the way of your attractive garden, you can hardly get rid of them. Therefore, precautionary measures should be taken to repel skunks as soon as you find them near your garden.
Among the natural repellents, peppermint oil has the most effectiveness against mosquitoes, insects and even rodents or skunks.
The peppermint oil is enriched with various chemical compounds that produce an incentive, skunks-repulsive fragrance. The chemicals are harmful to their body and skin which makes it a great repellent.
Additionally, it tastes bitter which sends a danger signal to their nerves and they leave. By spraying it in the leaves, you can temporarily get rid of them. Actually, peppermint oil repels skunks by their unique characteristics. Some of them are given below:
Toxic chemical elements:
Peppermint oil has a complex mixture of various chemical materials. The prime element of peppermint oil is menthol (40.7%) and menthone (23.4%) which has biocidal properties.
In fact, there are some chemicals like menthofuran, beta-pinene, beta-caryophyllene, and limonene that are toxic and harmful to skunks which makes it an effective natural skunk repellent.
These chemicals of peppermint oil can cause rashes and allergies if it gets in contact with their skin. In fact, they feel a burning sensation in their skin and so, peppermint oil works as a red flag for skunks.
Overpowering scent of peppermint oil:
Peppermint oil contains a minty, spicy, cooling, camphoraceous kind of smell that is way too irritating to skunks. By this acute smell they feel suffocation and have breathing issues.
They can’t hold any acute smell for a long time so, whenever they get the scent from a distance, they tend to run away. Skunks will flee from anywhere they get this acute minty kind of smell.
Bad taste of peppermint oil:
The taste of peppermint oil is also kind of minty and spicy together which is highly disliked by the skunks.
Skunks are normally repelled by the strong scent of peppermint oil but they can also be repelled by the bad taste of peppermint oil if it is sprayed in the grass or leaves of the trees.
The element ‘menthol’ causes a burning sensation and bitter taste in their mouth which works as a danger signal to them and they go away.
How effective is peppermint oil in repelling skunks?
Peppermint oil is widely used as a natural repellent for repelling insects, gnats, squirrels, rodents, skunks, mosquitoes from ancient times. Its acute fragrance is repulsive power which creates a barrier between the garden area and skunks.
Skunks feel great afraid of its minty kind of fragrant that can cause breathing or respiratory issues to them. They are distracted by the scent and can feel annoyed.
Even they dislike the bitter taste of its essential oil that causes burns in their throat. If they consume it anyhow they can fall sick, vomit and have dehydration. That’s why peppermint oil serves as an effective repellent for skunks.
Peppermint oil can be used particularly keeping at the corners of the garden area or making as spray, spraying to plants and leaves. It’s not harmful for humans but it works as a great skunk-repellent.
How to use peppermint oil to repel skunks?
To keep hazardous skunks away from your home and yard, peppermint can be utilized in a number of different ways.
When peppermint oil is sprayed around the exterior of homes, crushed peppermint leaves or other essential oils, such citronella oil, can be used to boost its effectiveness as an insect repellent.
Additionally, it can be utilized with other potent odors like minced garlic, whole eggs, or other potent odors.
Additionally, it must be applied multiple times in areas where the bothersome skunks frequently visit in order to be used correctly.
In addition, peppermint oil can be placed in a spray bottle with water and applied to the interior surfaces of the home to effectively ward off skunks.
Other methods include putting concentrated peppermint oil in a pot and using a clean cotton or cloth material to rub the mixture on frequently visited areas by skunks. This method is also effective.
Putting the garlic pieces:
Garlic is known to emit a strong, pungent smell that lingers for several hours.
By combining it with peppermint oil in a spray bottle and adding the necessary amount of water, a powerful solution can be made that can be sprayed in the air or at the edges of houses.
By adding garlic, we can create a powerful repellent solution that works quickly to release the strong smell and deter skunks.
It can also be strengthened by adding additional ingredients, such as clove pieces or eggs and dishwashing solutions, to repel skunks more effectively.
Using more essential oils:
Other essential oils that have the same ability to repel skunks, such as citronella, cinnamon, or clove oil, can be combined with peppermint oil in the same amount, either with water or without.
To create a potently scented solution that can be sprayed in several locations or left out in specific locations to effectively repel skunks.
How do you make homemade skunk repellent?
Natural household items can be used to create an efficient skunk repellent. This method calls for an onion, jalapeños, cayenne peppers, and water. With the help of this organic deterrent, the skunks will stay away.
Additionally, peppermint oil and water can be combined to create a homemade skunk repellent that can be sprayed on specified areas. As a repellent, the home-made chemical can be applied in a variety of ways to ward off skunks.
Follow the measurements for all the homemade ingredients:
Start by chopping a medium-sized onion into small pieces. Put the chopped onion pieces in a sturdy spray bottle.
The spray bottle should contain the chopped onion along with two or three jalapeño slices. Adding two tablespoons of cayenne pepper is the next step. Make sure all the ingredients are measured carefully.
Before waiting for the water to fully infuse the chemicals, all the additional ingredients must be thoroughly mixed with the water that makes up one-third of the spray bottle.
Fill a pot or spray bottle with the solution:
Put the combined solution in a handy container or bottle, and then spray it where skunks are most likely to appear. Specially spray sweet smelling flowers and fruit trees.
Use remedy a few times to effectively repel the skunks.
What other essential oil repels skunks?
In addition to peppermint oil, other oils such as thick castor oil, spearmint oil, or vegetable oils can also be used to repel skunks. Some oils with a strong scent repel skunks. Some oils have a thick oil viscosity that adheres to skunks’ fur and repels them in some way.
Because skunks are excessively sensitive creatures, strong fragrances such as spearmint oil work well. For a certain period of time, frequent use of these oils will keep skunks away.
Spearmint oil:
Skunks do not enjoy the fragrance of spearmint because it has a minty aroma. When spearmint is present, they stay away. In order to keep skunks away, spearmint oil is utilized as a natural repellent.
Eucalyptus oil:
Eucalyptus oil has a citrusy scent that skunks find repulsive, thus it is also quite efficient in keeping them away. Eucalyptus oil works to deter skunks by releasing compounds into the air that interact with their noses.
Soybean oil:
Vegetable oils are used to deter skunks because of their thick viscosity and consistency. When vegetable oil is sprayed over the areas where skunks congregate, the skunks’ smooth fur becomes trapped by the oil’s thick nature, keeping them away.
This aids in skunk repulsion.
Final thought
As a temporary solution, peppermint oil will work great to repel skunks as they highly dislike the powerful minty fragrant. Additionally, they are attracted to sweets but peppermint oil tastes bitter. They feel a burning sensation if they get in contact with it which makes it a skunk repellent.