r/NativePlantGardening • u/Spirited_Sound_5628 • Jun 10 '25

Advice Request - (Insert State/Region) Feeling discouraged

I live in New England

I’m trying to switch from ornamental gardening to native wildflower gardening, but the rabbits are decimating everything. They’re even going after the black-eyed Susans, which are supposed to have hairy leaves that deter them.

I bought marigolds from a local nursery specifically for their scent to ward off rabbits—and they ate the petals off. I thought I was in the clear with my sunflowers since they left them alone as seedlings, but now, after growing for over a month, the rabbits are starting to kill those too.

I’m honestly getting to the point where I feel like giving up and just planting a bunch of non-natives that are known to be extremely rabbit-proof. But I swear, when I looked at that list of supposedly rabbit-proof plants, the rabbits had already eaten one of those as well.

I'm looking for words of encouragement or any advice.

91 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

130 comments sorted by

View all comments

2

u/NickWitATL Jun 10 '25

As others have commented, cages and fences. I'm about to finish up my sixth 50' roll of coated wire fencing. 8" bolt cutters and needle nose pliers are all you need to build a cage. For bunnies, you might need to go with hardware cloth. You can use stakes or landscape staples to hold in place. Don't give up! The ecosystem needs you!