Unwanted Visitor in My Flower Pot - Ask Extension
Last Friday, to my shock I discovered a two foot black striped garter snake curled up in my pot of geraniums on my front porch. I have discovered snak...
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Unwanted Visitor in My Flower Pot #653371
Asked June 19, 2020, 4:39 PM EDT
Last Friday, to my shock I discovered a two foot black striped garter snake curled up in my pot of geraniums on my front porch. I have discovered snakes in my flower bed in the back yard which is about 20 feet from a swale and the woods. However, on the front porch nestled cozily in my flower pot is a little too close for comfort. On the advice of several people, I put mothballs in two containers and situated them on the porch between my plants. In addition, I heavily sprinkled even more snake repellant on the ground in front of the porch. Someone advised me to actually sprinkle moth flakes in my flower pots on the porch which is allegedly more effective. Questions: Is this remedy safe for my plants? Will adding a layer of mulch bark chips to the flower pots deter snakes from getting in my flower pots? I really don't want to encounter this visitor or any of its kin again!!!!!
Prince George's County Maryland
Expert Response
We do not recommend moth flakes or balls to deter snakes. This can leach into the soil. We cannot say if the mulch bark chips will deter them in the flower pots.
Several types of snake repellents have been used in the past, but none has been consistently effective. The active ingredients in these products are sulfur and naphthalene. They are applied in a band around the area to be protected. Repellents should be applied according to label directions.
This sounds like the snake has found good habitat near your house. Snakes are beneficial (garter snake harmless and not poisonous) in that they help keep the rodent population down. They are a part of nature and should not be harmed. We understand you do not want them on your porch.
To discourage snakes from living close to your house, remove stacks of firewood, leaves or other debris from near the home. Snakes like to hide in dense vegetation and debris. Also, caulk all openings around the house, especially windows and doors.
See our web page and our publication for more information on managing snakes https://extension.umd.edu/hgic/topics/snakes
https://extension.umd.edu/sites/extension.umd.edu/files/_docs/programs/hgic/HGIC_Pubs/wildlife/HG64_Snakes_2018.pdf
Marian
Several types of snake repellents have been used in the past, but none has been consistently effective. The active ingredients in these products are sulfur and naphthalene. They are applied in a band around the area to be protected. Repellents should be applied according to label directions.
This sounds like the snake has found good habitat near your house. Snakes are beneficial (garter snake harmless and not poisonous) in that they help keep the rodent population down. They are a part of nature and should not be harmed. We understand you do not want them on your porch.
To discourage snakes from living close to your house, remove stacks of firewood, leaves or other debris from near the home. Snakes like to hide in dense vegetation and debris. Also, caulk all openings around the house, especially windows and doors.
See our web page and our publication for more information on managing snakes https://extension.umd.edu/hgic/topics/snakes
https://extension.umd.edu/sites/extension.umd.edu/files/_docs/programs/hgic/HGIC_Pubs/wildlife/HG64_Snakes_2018.pdf
Marian
