Rabbits a tough problem to jump on

When Barbara Jenkins first moved to her home in New York's Hudson Valley, she fell in love with the wildlife, including the "cute little bunnies" who romped so close.

Several years and many nibbled gardens later, the fluffy-tailed hoppers were not quite so cute anymore.

After watching the rabbits help themselves to her tomatoes and squash blossoms, Jenkins, a New City resident, erected a garden-protecting fence, which they adeptly found their way around. She sprinkled pepper flakes on the plants, which lasted only as long as the plants stayed dry. Planting marigolds - which Jenkins had heard repelled rabbits - didn't work either.

"They just bypassed them and went right on in," she said.

Now that spring has officially sprung, home gardeners across the country are starting to lovingly prep, plant, and - they hope - protect their gardens. That often means facing off against rabbits.

"It's usually when you first start putting in the little plants, the seedlings, that the damage is really done," said John Hadidian, director of the Humane Society of the United States' urban wildlife program, adding that gardeners in no part of the country are spared.

"Rabbits are everywhere," he said.

There are no magic tricks for keeping bunnies at bay, experts say. There are some simple ways to try to protect plants - such as installing fencing or shade cloths to make them less attractive - but gardeners are unlikely ever to emerge the victors in this age-old battle, Hadidian said.

First, he said, rabbits are timid and largely transient - meaning that even though you've seen and identified your invaders, they could be long gone by the time you figure out how to keep them out.

Those that do stick around tend to multiply - fast. Known for being prolific, rabbits have babies quickly, something Hadidian said developed as "their strategy to cope with the fact that everyone wants to hunt and eat them."

Unfortunately for gardeners, the species that like to eat rabbits - hawks, foxes, and owls, to name a few - are not always present in suburban or edge neighborhoods. And then there's the problem that rabbits are attracted to homegrown gardens for much the same reason we are: They taste good.

"Like any herbivore, there are preferred foods and less preferred foods," Hadidian said. Garden-eating rabbits are only doing what nature programmed them to do, he said, so go easy on them.

"You can solve a conflict without harming them," he said.

Susan Littlefield, the National Gardening Association's horticulture editor, said the best way to rabbit-proof a garden is to install a fence two feet high - three feet if you're plagued by larger hares - made of 3/4-inch wire mesh and extending about a foot into the ground. The underground wire barrier should also include an extra foot that is placed at a right angle away from the garden, creating an underground L-shape, she said.

Young plants also should be protected with shade covers. Individual trees or plants can be protected with cylindrical wire guards.

Having a dog around doesn't hurt either, she said.

And look on the bright side: Healthy rabbits actively chomping away is a sign that things are working right in the ecosystem, Hadidian said. "It's when you don't see them out there that we begin to worry about what's going on."

That's a mantra Jenkins has reluctantly adopted. With her garden-protecting fence gone, she said she prefers the open look much more, though rabbits still stop by.

And while she is continually on the lookout for plants that don't appeal to rabbits, she is philosophical.

"Basically, we've just come to the conclusion that we're all in this together," she said. "Maybe we can share a little bit better."