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Question by redrobot: How can I start a garden on my balcony without my cats eating the plants?
I live in a condo, so the only way to make my own garden is using my balcony, however, i have 2 little rascal cats that i let out there when the weather is nice. Is there a way to avoid them eating the plants? (they really like to do that) I am going to be growing tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers.
Yes, but how to protect the plants? I am new at this stuff! 
Best answer:
Answer by I heart beets
yea, just protect the plants and you’ll be ok. try growing some catnip just for them. maybe they won’t bother the good stuff.
Give your answer to this question below!
Good day eh! Your garden is doing well. I am a long way off before I see my
first harvest.
I know nothing about gardening, but a quick search indicates Blossom End
Rot is from calcium deficiency. The deficiency can be caused by root
damage, highly acidic soil or too much water from either heavy rain,
over-irrigation or high relative humidity. Spraying two or three times per
week with calcium nitrate (4 pounds per 100 gallons) is the recommendation.
(I’m not sure what they mean by “spray”. …the entire plant or as
irrigation?). Things looking good, otherwise!
Just learned about Epsom Salts this year. Wasn’t sure how to apply either.
When I transplanted the seedlings I grabbed a handful, maybe 1/8 to 1/4
cup, and spread it around each. I also dusted the ground with rock dust.
then watered it in. Someone else advised me that they mixed 2 tablespoons
to half gallon of water periodically. We’ve had lots of rain also. The
tomatoes which got the epsoms salt still have their blossoms. The peppers
that didn’t lost the blossoms.
Thanks for the help!
Good job
Thanks, it has rained almost non-stop since I put the video up, just
waiting for it to stop so I can try the epsom salts.
Did it seem to make a difference? I have seen a lot on the internet about a
1/2 cup in a gallon of water. I am just waiting for the rain to stop so I
can give it a try!
Thanks, it may be a ways off yet but I am sure it will be worth the wait!!
I was impressed with the almost instant change in the colour of the tomato
, pepper and cucumber plants. They were looking kind of yellow and almost
overnight they turned a very healthy green.
The instructions that I found from the Epson Salts people was a tablespoon
per foot of plant every couple of weeks. Sounded like a lot to me so I
didn’t use that much.
We have had 10 inches in last 72 hours. 7 in the first 24 actually made
about half of my tomatoes that were a day or two from being picked pop wide
open on the plant. Cherry type were particularly hard hit.
Thanks!
Put a german shepard on the balcony with plants.
well, i put used coffee grounds in the soil of my plants.
It’s supposed to help keep the cats, snails, and birds away. Although i’m not quite sure how.
But the coffee grounds have to be used, and already drained with the water by the coffee maker.
hope that helps!
good luck!
Black pepper is great to make the cats stay away from your plants. Just shake some on the top soil every couple of days. They will soon get the message when they start sneezing.
I’ve been gardening on a balcony with my own two rascals for about five years now and the best way to keep them from chewing everything to bits is to plant them their own pot of nibbles.
I like a combination of kitty grass and catnip. Make it a fairly large pot that they can climb up on without it tipping over. I use a 12″ square plastic pot myself. The plants will need to be a decent size before they can comfortably survive feline predation. If you can start the catnip from seed now, you can transplant it when it’s a good size (8 weeks or so) and have time to throw some kitty grass seed around it. You can also buy a seedling and transplant it if that’s easier for you. You can’t transplant the grass, unfortunately.
Then you just wait until you’ve got some good growth going, particularly among grass, and point them to the pot. If they’re hesitant about the ‘nip, break a piece off a leaf and wave it in front of their noses–they’ll figure it out pretty quickly.
With this method, when I let them out they normally make a beeline for the pot. One of them will still sample a few other plants and I’ll find a few holes chewed here and there, but they mostly leave the other plants alone. If they’re stubborn about attacking a certain plant, you can make a tea out of some hot water off the boil (1 cup) and some hot chiles (any kind, 2-3). Let it steep for 5 minutes, strain it, then put it in a spray bottle. Spritz a little on the leaves of the problem plant just before you let them out and after they try it a few times, they’ll learn to leave it alone. Re-spray every time you let them out for best effect (until they get the hint). It won’t hurt the plants.
Good luck!
You might want to try Liquid Fence Dog & Cat Repellent. You can get it from Spray-N-Grow. It is completely safe and natural, it creates a barrier with citronella, garlic & cinnamon oils. You’ll only notice the odor just after spraying it but to your cats the odor will linger on and on. I’ve never used it on a balcony garden but I’ve used it in our backyard to keep our cat and neighborhood cats out of certain areas.