Mindy has some beautiful flower boxes on her front porch that the kitties keep digging in and pottying in, and wants to know what to do to protect her flowers and not hurt the cats. 
Well, first thing is don’t use mothballs, coffee grounds, or fabric softener sheets! They are very toxic to cats and highly discouraged (even though they do work). Hot pepper powder works, but is very cruel do to the fact that cats lick and clean themselves all the time. Pepper in the mouth and eyes is no fun, usually.
My In-Laws have had this problem for years and have used chicken wire on the planters after they plant the plants. Once the plants grow through you cannot see the wire, but it keeps the cat off long enough to get the plant established. Some other ideas that I have heard are as follows…(some are really good ideas)
- Use Jacks. You know, that game we all used to play as a kid. Cats don’t like pokie things on their feet.
- Use plastic forks. It will cost you about $1 for a big bag. Fork your own flower bed!! Bamboo skewers look a little cleaner if you want to go that route. Once the flowers grow, they disappear anyway.
- Nylon netting. Same concept as the chicken wire. Put it on top of the soil around the plants.
- Mulch with stones. They can’t dig very well and don’t want to ‘go’ on stones.
- Anything Citrus. Orange peelings, air freshener spray can be used.
- Peat Moss. Supposedly cats don’t like it and it is good for your soil!
- Pine Cones. Spread them around to make the cat work for his spot
- Thorny rose cuttings. Stuck straight up in the ground works like the forks.
- Make them an outdoor litter box. Get a bag of sand and place it somewhere out of the way, but close to your problem area and let them go to town in it. There always needs to be an alternative plan!!
Happy Cat Detering