Let’s face it. If there are trees, it’s likely there will be squirrels. And while trees seem like the perfect hangout place for squirrels, it may be in your best interest to keep them as far away as possible.
Healthy trees are prime targets for squirrels, especially if there are apple or peach trees like many households do in Ontario, Canada. Protecting your fruit trees is important because squirrels can cause a lot more damage than you may think. Call our squirrel removal services in Toronto for help with squirrel removal and control.
How Can Squirrels Damage My Trees?
Fruit, sycamore, hornbeam, beech, lark, and pine trees are the trees most at risk of being damaged by squirrels. However, all trees can be damaged by being in contact with squirrels.
Damage from squirrels is very common to Canadian trees. While a lot of damage is superficial, over time squirrels can cause massive harm to trees.
Stripping Trees of Their Bark
To squirrels, bark on a tree is like a ribeye steak. Many of the markings and chipped-away bark seen on Canadian trees comes from squirrels such as the common Eastern Gray Squirrel and Fox Squirrel.
Squirrels strip bark for a variety of reasons. They may be hungry, trying to find water, or simply just enjoy stripping bark for its own sake. Either way, debarking can cause rotting, deformation, and even tree death if squirrels are left to their own devices.
Deforming Limbs
Squirrels can also gnaw around the base of tree limbs. This can pose a hazard due to the potential of branches falling. If growing branches are gnawed on, this can also prevent them from growing, thus deforming the tree.
The Best Ways To Prevent Squirrels From Climbing Your Trees
The Tin Foil Method
This method involves wrapping a strong sheet of tin or aluminum around the tree. When tin foil is wrapped around the tree, squirrels will be unable to climb it.
This method should be used with care because keeping the tin foil on can cause the tree to be deformed. Also, squirrels will still be able to climb the tree if they have access to it through the roof or branches of the tree.
The Dog Method
That’s right, you can use your dogs. If the tree is in a fenced-in backyard area, you can let your dogs loose and the squirrels will likely disperse or find elsewhere to invade.
Note that this method can cause squirrels to climb to higher parts of the tree, possibly breaking more branches and causing tree damage to the top areas of the tree. Also, this method obviously only works as long as there are dogs around the squirrels.
The Hot Pepper Method
You can make your own homemade deterrent using hot pepper. Spreading the powder around the tree is simple. Alternatively, mix one tablespoon of powder to 2 cups water to make your own spray.
While the ingredient to make this deterrent is simple, it can be quite tough to put into action. This fix may be more temporary because the red pepper will be washed away with rainwater. Furthermore, in order to make sure your entire tree is protected, the spray needs to be applied to most areas of the tree.
The Foolproof Method
Trying to remove squirrels from trees is like fighting an uphill battle. Squirrels in Canada are everywhere, so removing just a single squirrel or two may not prove too useful.
Instead of worrying about keeping your trees safe from squirrels, consider hiring a professional wildlife removal company. Professionals will be able to safely and humanely protect your trees after a thorough assessment of tree damage and squirrels in your area.
When all else fails, hiring a professional is undoubtedly the fastest and safest way to prevent squirrels from climbing your trees.