Cat Repellents for Indoor Plants - First Attempts

Victims of the latest rampage:

1) Schefflera Umbrella Tree

2) Ficus Benjamina

3) Spathiphyllum (Peace Lily)

4) and "Oops! There Goes Another Rubber Tree Plant" (a.k.a. Ficus Elastica).


While I've never tempted fate once by keeping ferns (or any other plants considered a cat delicacy), I've kept cats and houseplants for YEARS without incident, until now. I guess it's inevitable that when you have both, there's gonna be some issues. No doubt the best answer would be to get rid of the offending cat, but seriously, he's a member of the family (albeit an aggravating one).

So, what to do about a cat that laughs in the face of homemade cat repellents and still does his ritual dance in the dirt with sprays that include the likes of Cayenne Pepper and citrus? By the way, these sprays are apparently intended to keep your cat from eating the plants, not from using them as a litter box. Although if you have a cat doing taste tests, I can see where a good homemade cat repellent recipe would help so I've included a good one that does not include cayenne or capsicum (which I later found out can be harmful to children and pets).

Homemade Cat Repellent:
10 Drops Lemon Oil
1 Quart Water
20 Drops Rosemary Essential Oil

(Directions: Spray on foliage, dirt and surrounding areas. Reapply as evidence suggests the need.)

So this doesn't stop the digging, what now? One suggestion given to me by a family member was to try mothballs. At first I said, "Are you kidding me?!" I thought surely this is best for outdoor pests like chipmunks, moles and squirrels. Well, it is. But needing a natural alternative to prevent my cat from going in them outweighed any reservations. So I did. And the smell nearly drove us all out of the house.

After three days I had to take 'em out. By that point I really didn't care if they worked or not. And it took WEEKS for the house to be reek-free because I stupidly watered over them and got the stench in the soil.

So what next?! Well, as unsightly as it is I've covered the top of the soil with some lovely silver Reynolds Wrap. I hate it, but hopefully so will he. It's quite crazy-looking and definitely temporary as I don't want anyone thinking I've started going the deep end by covering everything with tin foil. I can already hear the whispers...