The hottest tip to keep squirrels away from the garden bird table, chilli powder (2024)

FAQs

The hottest tip to keep squirrels away from the garden bird table, chilli powder? ›

The RSPB is recommending that seed mixes be thoroughly coated, but not hidden, in the chilli powder. They say the best way to do this is to throw the lot in a bag and shake it up. And if there isn't any chilli powder to hand, curry powder, Tabasco, peri-peri sauce, red pepper and cayenne pepper will all do the trick.

Most online recipes for pepper in bird seed suggest about 3 tablespoons of cayenne pepper per pound of seed. You can use more, if you like. I grow tenpins and other tiny hot peppers. If you grow your own peppers, this won't cost you much.

Here are a few recipes you can try: Hot Pepper Spray: Create a homemade squirrel repellent by mixing water with cayenne pepper and a few drops of dish soap. Transfer the mixture into a spray bottle and apply it to areas where squirrels are active.

Kenn and Kimberly: The taste of chili powder won't deter the birds, and they can eat it without harm since they have tough digestive systems. In fact, some wild bird stores sell birdseed treated with chili extract to keep squirrels away.

Any repellent (granular or liquid) that contains cayenne or capsaicin is very effective against squirrels. You can actually mix crushed red pepper flakes in your birdseed to repel them from bird feeders (birds can't taste the heat).

Cayenne Pepper and Cinnamon sprinkled in the feeder. The pepper made sense but what is it about the cinnamon? A little more research found that squirrels, raccoons, opossum and deer do not like the smell of cinnamon and avoid it. Viola!

And if householders don't have any chilli powder to hand, curry powder, Tabasco, peri-peri sauce, red pepper and cayenne pepper will all do the trick. Lloyd Scott, RSPB wildlife adviser, said: "Using chilli powder to deter squirrels is a cheap, easy and effective solution.

White vinegar has a strong smell and is a powerful squirrel deterrent. The easiest way to treat a squirrel-infested area is to simply pour it on active squirrel hang-outs or spray it around your property with a mix of water.

Spice it up: Pepper is a natural squirrel deterrent. Apply a pepper-based repellent product, such as Critter Ridder® spray, directly to your feeders to keep them away from your offerings. Squirrels hate the taste and smell, but birds don't notice it.

Guess what can? Sprinkle some cayenne pepper or a similar spice onto your birdseed before you put it out.

What does chili powder repel? ›

An Effective, Natural Ant Repellent: Chili Powder

The potent spices in chili powder — cayenne, capsaicin, and others — are irritating to ants. Sprinkling a line of chili powder across ant trails or around potential entry points discourages ants from crossing.

Capsaicin is most concentrated in the tissues surrounding the seeds (on the inside of each pepper). It triggers taste receptors found in birds and mammals. But it also stimulates a certain kind of pain receptor found in mammals but not in birds, and that's why birds have no adverse reaction to eating peppers.

Squirrels are primarily scared of predators such as hawks, foxes, and snakes. They also have a natural fear of loud noises, sudden movements, and unfamiliar objects. Understanding what scares squirrels can help prevent them from becoming distressed and ensure their safety in their environment.

Try sprinkling cayenne pepper, ground chili peppers, or pepper flakes around your plants when they are ready to bloom. Peppers have “capsaicin” which squirrels hate, so it's a natural squirrel deterrent. Or, make a pepper spray; you can mix dried pepper with apple cider vinegar.

Squirrels have a strong sense of smell, which they use to find food sources and shelter. You can repel squirrels using scents they hate such as, capsaicin, white vinegar, peppermint oil, coffee grounds, cinnamon, predator urine, garlic, dryer sheets, Irish Spring bar soap, and rosemary.

No, it won't. Birds don't have the same taste receptors in their mouths that mammals have and thus can't detect the heat. Birds can eat all the hot peppers they want and never feel a thing.

How is Cayenne Pepper Added to Bird Seed? Ground cayenne or dried red pepper flakes can be sprinkled on the bird seeds, and then you can mix them together to make the mixture uniform.

How Should I Apply Cayenne Pepper To Deter Birds? To deter birds, mix cayenne pepper with water or oil and spray it onto the areas you want to protect. Reapply the solution regularly, especially after rainfall, to maintain its effectiveness.