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Do Rabbits Eat Geraniums Flowers & Leaves? (Answered)

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Geraniums are an excellent health beneficial plant that people want to grow in their gardens. You can use the flower and leaves for healing your cuts, eczema, nail fungus, and sunburn. Besides, this plant looks cool and enhances the garden with its flowers.

Also, the geraniums have fragrant and thick leaves, which deter most insects in your garden. It can also prevent deer. The main reason is the thick leaves and fragrance. Most of the animals and insects don’t like fragrant plants.

Do rabbits eat geraniums flowers & leaves?

Rabbits typically don’t eat geraniums’ flowers & leaves. If they are hungry and can’t find any good food source, they will eat pretty much any plants, leaves, and flowers. When you plant geraniums in your garden, you should deter the hungry rabbits from the surrounding area.

Then comes the question: do the rabbits eat different types of geraniums? Let’s get to know about them in detail.

Geranium Rozanne:

Rabbits cannot eat the geranium Rozanne due to its strong smells and flowers. It is considered the best deer and rabbit repellent. This plant has the longest perennial flowering ability you will ever find in the market.

The rabbits cannot even eat the Rozanne leaves. They are also thick and deter rabbits eventually. When rabbits feel hungry, they can devour the Rozanne plants along with their leaves. So, it would be better to use other methods to repel the rabbit indeed.

Perennial geraniums:

Rabbits cannot eat the leaves and flowers of the perennial geraniums. It is also a fragrant plant that has thick leaves. You know mammals don’t like these two things in particular.

But the rabbit can still eat the perennial geranium leaves if they are hungry and cannot find suitable foods to meet their needs. You should plant the geranium out of reach of the rabbits.

Annual geraniums:

Rabbits don’t eat annual geraniums if you plant them in a basket and use them to enhance the garden’s beauty. That’s how the plant goes out of the reach of the rabbits.

So, if you plan to grow annual geraniums in your garden, you should plant them in a basket and hang them with the wall or other trees. It will remain safe from the rabbits.

Zonal geraniums:

The Zonal Geraniums have a pungent smell from the leaves and flowers. Therefore, the rabbits and deer cannot come near the zonal and leave the place.

Therefore, rabbits cannot eat Zonal geraniums, leaves and flowers in any way around. If they are starving, they will not eat the zonal geranium leaves.

Hardy geraniums:

Hardy geraniums are also a part of the perennial geraniums. They are easy to plant and grow. When you search for the best and easiest plant to grow in your garden, you should consider planting some Hardy geraniums.

Since this plant also has pungent smells and thick leaves, the rabbits will not eat the leaves and flowers of the hardy geranium. They repel the rabbit.

Can rabbits eat geranium petals? Can pet rabbits eat geraniums?

Rabbits cannot eat the geranium petals. The leaves contain some toxins and will create stomach issues if your rabbit accidentally eats the petals. Besides, the petals are thick, and rabbits cannot digest the thick leaves.

The same goes for the pet rabbits. Pet rabbits are used to eating healthy pet foods and fresh vegetables. They will usually refrain from eating from unknown leaves and smelly petals. That’s why pet rabbits cannot eat geraniums.

Sometimes, the rabbit cannot find anything to eat. Then they search for any leaves, grass, or flowers. And, they eat if they find any of those food sources. At that moment, if the rabbits find any geraniums, they will eat those plants for sure.

Do rabbits like geraniums? Are geraniums safe for rabbits to eat?

Rabbits don’t like geraniums; they even keep away from this plant due to its pungent smells and thick leaves. Rabbits love to eat grass, soft leaves, and flowers. They constantly search for the best food source to meet their stomach needs.

On the other hand, geraniums are not safe for rabbits to eat. This plant contains toxic chemicals and ingredients. When the rabbit mistakenly eats the geraniums, they get sick and face different health issues.

To avoid such an incident and make your rabbit healthy, you should avoid feeding your pet rabbits with geranium leaves and flowers. You should offer fresh nuts and vegetables to your rabbits.

“3” reason why rabbits eat geraniums

Rabbits are not fond of geraniums. But there are some factors behind it. Lets get to know them.

Hungry:

The main reason why rabbits eat geraniums is their hungriness. When they are hungry, they go crazy and eat whatever they find available. If they find geraniums at that time, they will eat this plant.

They will even eat the leaves and flowers of the geraniums. But usually, rabbits avoid eating genius when they find something else to eat because they don’t like the pungent smells of the geraniums. Therefore, they avoid this plant entirely.

Scarce of Food:

If rabbits cannot find anything to eat, especially if rabbit food is short, the rabbits will eat the geraniums. Although it’s a rare case, it happens to wild rabbits. They often fail to get enough vegetables or fruits to eat.

They will go for it if they find any geranium plant nearby despite the pungent smell and thick leaves. They struggle to survive without food for a long time.

So, when you plan to have a pet rabbit, you should ensure enough food for it. Otherwise, it will also eat the geraniums.

Unavailable leaves and grass:

Rabbit mostly lives on grass and soft leaves. They love to eat different nuts and seeds as well. If they fail to get any food source around them or cannot find any leaves or grass, they tend to eat any leaves in front of them.

Let’s say you have a small garden, but it doesn’t have any grass, and most of the plants are too big for the rabbits to eat leaves. In that case, they will find the geraniums easy to access. Thus, the rabbits will eat geraniums.

These are the top three reasons why rabbits eat geraniums. Typically, they don’t eat that poisonous tree. If they eat the geranium tree or leaves, they will face many health issues regarding their stomach. It’s better not to allow the rabbits to eat the geraniums.

Do geraniums keep rabbits away?

Geraniums keep rabbits away from nearby areas. It has a strong, pungent smell which plays a vital role in keeping rabbits away. Rabbits and other mammals like deer don’t like fragrance plants. They keep themselves away from it.

Another reason is the thick leaves. Geraniums have thick leaves, and pets like rabbits and other rodents don’t like to eat the thick leaves at all. They search for the grass type leaves to digest quickly. Their immune and digestive systems don’t allow them to eat geranium leaves.

As a result, the geraniums can easily keep rabbits from their surroundings through their smells and inedible leaves.

How do I keep rabbits from eating my geraniums?

You can keep rabbits away from eating your geraniums by anti-rodent’s spray or making natural remedies at home. We found the four best ways to keep away rabbits from eating their geraniums.

Anti-Rodent Spray:

The best and easiest way to keep rabbits away from eating your geraniums is to use the anti-rodent spray.

You can buy the spray from the local shop or order from Amazon online. Then, you need to spray it on your geraniums and nearby areas.

The smell and chemical of the spray will keep the rabbits away from the geraniums. The spray will completely repel the rabbit and other rodents as well.

Harris Peppermint Oil Mice & Rodent Repellent Spray for House and Car Engines, Humane Mouse Trap Substitute, 20oz

Home Remedy:

You can make a home remedy and use it to keep rabbits away from eating your geraniums. You will require one liter of water, three cloves of garlic, and one spoon of red pepper.

You need to mix them and boil them together. Once the mixture is ready, you need to pour it into a bottle. Then spray it around the geraniums. The rabbit will not come near it.

Plant in the basket:

If you don’t want to hurt the rabbit and have your pet rabbit, you should not spray on the plants and garden. You can follow the best way to stop rabbits from eating the plants.

You can plant the geraniums in a basket and hang them on the walls or other plants. It will be an excellent idea to keep rabbits away from plants and flowers. Thus, your rabbits will not jump to get to the geraniums plant and eat the flowers.

Final Thoughts

Geraniums have strong and pungent smells, and their leaves are thick. These are the two most important reasons the rabbit keeps away from the geraniums. In a nutshell, rabbits don’t eat geranium leaves and flowers unless they become hungry and don’t find anything else to eat.

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