What Smells Do Groundhogs Hate and Keep them Away?

Well, woodchucks are sweet-toothed. They love anything sweet. On the other hand, anything spicy scares them.

But not only spicy products, but they also hate a lot of other odors or fragrances too! Here, we will discuss what smells keep woodchuck away from your favorite yard! There you go!

What Smells Keep Woodchucks Away – 9 Natural Ways

So, let’s read it out what woodchucks hate to smell, and then we can fix your woodchuck issue without any glitch!

1. Garlic and Pepper

If your question is what smells keep woodchucks away, the first answer with be garlic pepper. If you use this method, you will not see any woodchucks near anymore! This is one of the proven methods of keeping away woodchucks.

For this process, you have to get your hands on some garlic and pepper and then crush it. Once you are done, go to the garden, and throw it into their burrows or near their burrows. Well, if you think that it will work within a day then it won’t.

The process requires a bit of time. But it surely works! Also, if you think that woodchucks are ruining your plants or veggies, you can use garlic and pepper.

Get a spray bottle and make a mixture of garlic and pepper. You need to spray it on the veggies or plants. They can easily smell what’s spicy. And they immediately leave the place if there is anything spicy around. You have to do it frequently to keep them away.

2. Talcum Powder

You might love talcum powder but the woodchucks on the yard don’t! And this is why they cannot stand the smell of this product and leave their homes. If you are tired of them eating the whole garden, this is one of the best methods you can settle for.

However, this will only move them a little back but it won’t completely remove them. But yes, they don’t like the smell of talcum powder. Spread it all-around along with their burrow entrance to certify that the sooner they leave the better!

3. Vinegar

Vinegar is the solution to many other troubles and this is no different! Will vinegar keep woodchucks away from the lawn? Yes, yes, they hate the smell of vinegar too. However, we recommend you add some other objects to the vinegar.

Take a bowl; add some vinegar along with ammonia. Also, don’t forget to add washing detergent, hot pepper, and soap. Mix all of these and pour them inside a sprayer. You can also use it directly without the spray method too.

Use this on the holes or burrows and repeat it after a few days. Don’t wash it off and enjoy having a woodchuck-less yard once again! 

4. Dog or Cat

Well, let’s put it the way that woodchucks hate the smell of dog or cat fur. You can simply take your dog or cat to the yard to frighten them frequently. However, another easy way is to collect dog or cat fur if you do not have such a pet in your house.

Get your hands on the fur and spread it all around the burrow of the woodchucks. In either case, you can rely on your pet’s urine too.

Woodchucks don’t like the smell of dog or cat urine. When you add it to their burrow, they smell it, and most probably, they think it’s a dog or a cat. So, they decide to leave the place. According to the users, if you use dog or cat litter, you will get a better experience for sure!

5. Herbs

Woodchucks don’t like the smell of lavender too. If you have lavender plants in your garden, check it. You won’t see any woodchucks near! Along with this basil and lemon are some smells that frighten them.

They look a bit dumb but they learn about smells and remember them. If you want to learn more, check out- are groundhogs smart? Or are they the dumb creature that they look like? 

6. Human Hair

Another thing that the woodchucks on your lawn will hate is human hair. Collect your hair when you brush them. Get a mesh bag and stake the mesh bag into the ground. Blocking their entrance is the best idea you can go for.

When they smell human hair, they usually think that the human is around. As a result, they try to move to a safer place than your lawn! Throwing some hair strands on their burrow can be more helpful. It causes them paranoia and eventually they leave!

7. Mint and Oregano

Groundhogs dislike mint and oregano’s smell too. In some cases, mint-flavored products will keep them away too! Along with mint, the woodchucks hate the fragrance of sage, rosemary, and chives too. If you are not yet ready to remove woodchucks, they will eventually remove your plants!

You cannot take a wood chucker’s wood chucking capability lightly. Go for how much wood could a woodchuck chuck to understand why you need to kill them before they hurt your plants and wood!

8. Castor Oil

A very common way to keep away groundhogs away from your plants and lawn is to use castor oil. You need to add some castor oil around their burrow and you are done!

Castor oil will start doing its job. Make sure you are adding the castor oil when they are inside the holes. The smell of castor oil frightens them and so, they get out of the holes and go away.

9. Smoke

And last but definitely not least; the smoke can be very useful. When there is any smoke, the woodchucks are not capable of surviving the fumigation. If you want to make the process easy, get your hands on the gas cartridges which are available in the market.

Use smoke and make them frightened. These are only a few ways to keep the woodchucks away. You will find some other ways that can work too. However, our researches will help you know what the woodchucks hate to smell and how can you stop them!

Also Read: Will chewing gum kill a groundhog?

Wrap Up

Well, woodchucks are not as friendly as they look. Well, even if you find it friendly, your plants on the lawn will not! They can easily damage the yard no matter how careful you are. So, we recommend you settle for the way that fits you.

All of the above-mentioned fragrance or odor is hated by woodchucks. The best way to get rid of them is to get them to make them smell what they don’t want to!