Gardeners are being urged to sprinkle cayenne pepper around gardens in May

Spring is a beautiful time when gardens come back to life, and birds can be seen pecking at the grass or visiting feeders, but it also means that squirrels and rats may start to appear. A lot of gardeners enjoy feeding birds, but rodents have highly sensitive noses, which means they can detect food from a distance, which will often attract them to your garden.

Most people do not realise that a big mistake is filling feeders with cheap supermarket bird food, as it usually contains fillers like wheat and loose grains that rodents love. Birds prefer seeds and find grains hard to handle, so they are more likely to drop them on the ground, where they become easier for rodents to find, which keeps them coming back. However, Annie Krug from Chirp Nature Center, has shared that there is a simple way to stop rodents from eating bird food and make them wary of coming back into a garden, as all you need is cayenne pepper.

Annie said: “Squirrels, rats, and other rodents typically don’t like the smell of the hot pepper and will steer clear—and even if they do eat it, it won’t harm them, but the taste will repel them. You can also sprinkle some cayenne pepper in your bird seed for the same effect."

Cayenne seasoning and hot peppers contain a compound called capsaicin, which makes them incredibly spicy and flavourful.

Birds cannot detect spice the same way mammals do, so they will eat bird food that has been coated in hot spices without any issue at all.

However, rats and squirrels have highly sensitive noses, and even the smell of spicy food can irritate or overwhelm them.

Any unusual smells or sensations can make rodents believe an area is dangerous so they are more likely to avoid a garden if you add cayenne pepper to a birdfeeder.

Rodents are often attracted to easy food sources, so using cayenne pepper around bird feeders can help discourage them, especially at this time of year in May when food is more available.

It is important to remember that cayenne pepper does have limits, as rain can wash it off the bird food, meaning it needs to be reapplied regularly.

Some hungry rodents may still attempt to eat spicy bird food, but this method usually works better in spring and summer when there are more natural alternatives for them.

The most effective way to reduce rats and squirrels in your garden is to combine cayenne pepper with bird food that is less appealing to rodents.

Choosing foods such as nyjer seeds, sunflower hearts, broken peanut pieces, and high quality mixes without much wheat can help encourage birds while discouraging unwanted visitors