Gardens can be great for enticing fun wildlife visitors, but they can also attract unwanted guests. One gardener had rats eating their tomatoes, and when their parents tried to eliminate the rodents, it caused even more problems.
This started a Reddit debate about whether using poison was the best way to get rid of rats.
The gardener shared in the r/gardening subreddit that they had created a tomato patch in their parent's backyard.
The OP said, "Rats decided to get into my tomatoes (and honestly I don't even care; there's plenty to go around lol). The thing is, my parents decided to carelessly put out rat poison for said rats who have been eating my tomatoes."
The Redditor asked the community if it would be safe to eat the tomatoes since they could tell the rats had been defecating on them.
One Redditor warned them not to eat the tomatoes regardless of the rat poison if the rats have defecated on them.
The OP said, "Might have to toss the whole batch."
The Redditor has been trying to get their parents to stop using poison, but their folks still believe this is the best way to fix the problem.
According to the Center for Biological Diversity, over 10,000 young children accidentally ingest rat poison every year in the U.S. Other animals ingest it, too, including pets. More than 100 furry friends, such as cats and dogs, are killed annually by doing so. Poison is also cruel for the rats because it causes them a slow death.
There are better ways to deter pests that are safer for children and pets. Plants that will repel rodents from your garden include herbs, like lavender, peppermint, rosemary, sage, oregano, and basil, per David's Garden Seeds. The rodents don't like these herbs because they have a strong smell. They also don't like the smell of garlic.
Additionally, you can plant flowers to deter them, like marigolds and painted daisies. Luckily, some of these plants might be native to your area.
Native plants attract much nicer visitors, including pollinators like bees and birds, and have adapted to their environment to withstand extreme weather and deter local pests. Rewilding your garden with native plants can also save you money and time, as they need less water, fertilizers, and pesticides compared to traditional monoculture lawns.
The Reddit community had a lot to say about how bad rats and poisons are.
One user said, "Rats are invasive and deeply damaging to wildlife as well as people."
Another noted, "Rat poison kills other animals — cats, owls, etc that eat the rats."
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