How to Keep Rabbits Out of Garden

Why rabbits target gardens

Eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) cause more residential garden damage than any other mammal pest in the US. They target tender new growth — seedlings, young lettuces, bean shoots, and flower stems — precisely when those plants are at their most vulnerable stage.

The USDA Wildlife Services estimates rabbits cause over $300 million in annual agricultural and residential crop losses across the US. In suburban and exurban gardens, cottontails are largely unchecked by natural predators, which keeps populations high.

Cottontails breed from March through September, producing 3–4 litters of 4–5 kits per year. A single rabbit pair can generate 15–20 offspring per season. This population pressure, combined with suburban habitat that provides food, water, and shelter close together, explains why rabbit pressure in residential gardens often increases year after year.

Identifying your rabbit species

The management approach differs based on which rabbit species affects your garden.

This guide focuses primarily on eastern and desert cottontails, which affect most US gardeners. Jackrabbits require taller fencing (at least 36 inches) due to their jumping ability.

Fencing: the most reliable solution

Hardware cloth fencing with 1-inch or smaller mesh, 24 inches tall, with the bottom 6 inches buried in an outward L-shape, is the only method that reliably excludes cottontails from a garden bed. All other methods offer partial protection with varying degrees of maintenance.

Hardware cloth fence specifications

• Height: 24 inches above ground for cottontails; 36 inches for jackrabbits
• Mesh size: 1-inch maximum; ½-inch preferred for smaller rabbits
• Material: Galvanized hardware cloth (not chicken wire — rabbits can squeeze through chicken wire gaps and chew through lighter gauge wire)
• Underground portion: Bury 6 inches, bent outward at 90 degrees (L-shape, not straight down). This prevents burrowing under the fence.

Installation

1. Mark the fence line with stakes at 4–6 foot intervals
2. Dig a trench 6 inches deep around the perimeter
3. Unroll hardware cloth, bending the bottom 6 inches outward before installation
4. Secure the underground portion in the trench and bury it
5. Attach the above-ground portion to stakes or posts
6. Ensure the fence is taut — rabbits probe for loose spots

The cost for a 10x20-foot garden bed: approximately $40–60 in hardware cloth plus posts. This is a permanent solution that pays for itself in the first season.

For gardens with deer pressure in addition to rabbits, our how to keep deer out of garden guide covers fencing that addresses both species, since deer fencing needs to be at least 8 feet tall.

Row cover for individual plants

For smaller plantings or seedling beds, lightweight floating row cover fabric (like Agribon AG-19) placed directly over transplants excludes rabbits during the vulnerable establishment period. Use wire hoops to keep the cover off the foliage. Remove for pollination once plants are established enough to withstand some nibbling.

Row cover works best as a bridge solution — protecting seedlings until they’re past the most vulnerable stage, at which point they’re less likely to be eaten to the ground by a single rabbit visit.

Repellents: what works and what doesn’t

Repellents can reduce rabbit pressure but are not reliable as a sole defense. They work best as a supplement to other measures.

Predator urine repellents

Products containing fox urine, coyote urine, or similar predator scent markers create an olfactory deterrent that triggers rabbits’ avoidance instinct. They work initially, but rabbits habituate — if they never see an actual predator, they learn to ignore the scent within 2–4 weeks.

Application: Spray around the garden perimeter and on the soil between plants. Reapply every 7–10 days and immediately after rainfall. Do not apply directly on edible plant parts.

Brands to look for: Shake-Away, Liquid Fence, Nature’s MACE. Most are available at hardware stores and garden centers across the US.

Capsaicin-based repellents

Hot pepper sprays applied to plant foliage make plants unpalatable to rabbits. They work on contact — the rabbit bites the plant, encounters the capsaicin, and retreats.

Limitations: Rain washes off capsaicin spray, requiring frequent reapplication. New growth not yet sprayed is unprotected. Do not use on plants close to harvest — capsaicin on edible parts transfers to food.

Recipe for homemade hot pepper spray: 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper, 1 tablespoon dish soap, 1 quart water. Mix, strain, spray on foliage. Reapply every 5–7 days and after rain.

Blood meal

Granular blood meal scattered around garden beds deters rabbits with the smell of predation. It also adds nitrogen to the soil as it breaks down.

Application: Scatter granules around the perimeter of beds every 10–14 days. Blood meal loses effectiveness quickly in wet weather.

Combined use: Rotating between predator urine, capsaicin spray, and blood meal prevents habituation better than using a single repellent repeatedly.

Habitat modification

Reducing rabbit shelter near your garden is as important as protecting individual beds. Cottontails rarely forage more than 100 yards from reliable shelter.

What to remove or modify:

• Brush piles within 20 feet of the garden (prime nesting sites)
• Dense ornamental plantings at ground level near vegetable beds
• Wood piles and debris piles against fences
• Tall grass and weedy patches adjacent to beds

What to add:

• Gravel pathways and open space between plantings (rabbits prefer cover while foraging)
• Motion-activated sprinklers (startle and deter rabbits without chemicals)
• Physical barriers under decks and porches where rabbits nest

One study from the University of Nebraska Extension found that removing a single large brush pile adjacent to a garden reduced rabbit incursion by 60% compared to leaving the pile in place.

Plant selection to reduce damage

While no plant is truly “rabbit-proof,” rabbits consistently avoid plants with strong scents, fuzzy or spiny textures, and woody stems.

Plants rabbits rarely eat:

Most targeted plants:

• Lettuce, spinach, arugula, and all leafy greens
• Bean sprouts and young bean seedlings
• Pea seedlings
• New tulip and crocus growth in early spring
• Impatiens and pansy flowers
• Young carrot tops

For gardens with heavy deer and rabbit pressure, see our deer resistant perennials guide — many deer-resistant plants are also rabbit-resistant due to shared deterrent properties.

Physical deterrents beyond fencing

Motion-activated sprinklers

Motion-activated sprinklers like the Orbit Yard Enforcer or Contech Scarecrow detect movement and spray a burst of water. They are effective at startling rabbits and conditioning avoidance behavior over time.

Best placement: Position to cover garden entry points and known rabbit trails. Rabbits in US suburban gardens often follow consistent routes along fence lines and through gaps in plantings.

Limitation: They require a garden hose connection and occasional battery replacement. They may also trigger on other wildlife and household pets.

Plastic mesh cylinders for individual plants

For high-value individual plants (newly planted perennials, young fruit trees), a cylinder of 1-inch plastic mesh or hardware cloth 18–24 inches tall and 12–18 inches in diameter provides individual protection. Stake the cylinder to prevent tipping.

This approach is practical for protecting 5–20 individual plants, not an entire garden bed.

Rabbits vs. deer damage: telling them apart

Damage from rabbits and deer looks different up close. Identifying the pest correctly guides the management approach.

Rabbit damage characteristics:

• Clean, 45-degree angled cuts on stems (like scissors)
• Damage low to the ground (under 18 inches in cottontails)
• Small pea-sized dark droppings nearby
• Damage to herbaceous plants more than woody shrubs

Deer damage characteristics:

• Ragged, torn cuts on stems (deer lack upper incisors, so they tear rather than cut)
• Damage at mid-height and above (18 inches to 6 feet)
• Larger droppings
• Damage to woody plants including shrubs and tree bark

If you’re seeing damage both low and high with ragged tears, you likely have both rabbits and deer — a situation requiring taller deer fencing combined with buried rabbit-proof hardware cloth. For deer specifically, see our how to keep deer out of garden guide and deer resistant flowers guide.

Getting rabbits out of an existing garden

If rabbits have moved into or nested in your garden area, wait until young kits are 3–4 weeks old and the nest is abandoned before sealing entry points. Disturbing an active nest may cause the doe to abandon the kits. The nesting period is typically 3–4 weeks from birth to independence.

To discourage nesting in garden beds: use wire cloches or floating row covers to cover bare soil near plantings, since cottontails prefer nesting under dense ground-level cover. Remove nesting material (dry grass, leaves) from sheltered spots within the garden.

For pest control questions beyond rabbits, including other common garden pests, see our borax for ants guide and clover mites guide for related pest management information.