Pansies are a type of flower that consists of five petals. It is hybridized from different types of species. It is also known as viola. The leaves of these flowers are almost similar to lettuce, which is rich in various nutrients.
Do rabbits eat pansies flowers & leaves?
Rabbits can eat pansies. They prefer plants that have lettuce-like leaves. Rabbits usually prefer the filled, horned, and mountain pansies along with the other type as their food. Besides, the leaves of the pansies are so thick during fall that rabbits love to eat them in that time.
Pansies are usually purchased as flats of young or small plants from garden centers and can be easily planted in the garden without any soil preparation. They grow up to 9-10 inches in height and flowers are measured 6-9 cm when bloomed.
Pansies are safe for rabbits. They love to eat these flowers along with the other ones they eat such as marigold, coneflower, nasturtiums, etc. The plants of pansies consist of thick, grassy green leaves that rabbits love to eat.
Being very short in height, pansies are easily reachable and preferred by rabbits. Besides, they are easily found in gardens as these flowers require not much effort to maintain and are planted mostly as decorative flowers in the garden.
Some of the parts of pansies based on the preferability by rabbits are explained below:
Flowers/Blooms:
Pansies are a decorative type ornamental flower planted in a garden to make it look attractive. But it also attracts rabbits. These flowers grow up to 6-9 cm when bloomed
It comes in different colors such as, blue, orange, red, white, pink, purple, and sometimes they even bloom in bi-color, two colors in a single flower in darkening and lighter shade.
The scents and the colors of pansies attract rabbits, so they become fond of these flowers.
Leaves:
The leaves of the pansies are thick and similar to lettuce, the perfect texture preferred by rabbits. The greenish barbarously notched leaves add extra attraction to the rabbits.
Rabbits eat small, young leaves as they are full of juicy ingredients.
The leaves are rich in mucilage, which helps prevent cold in the rabbits during fall. The presence of many leaves in a stalk plays a vital role in meeting the food needs of rabbits
Plants:
The plants are compact, grow up to 9 inches in height. Easy to get in a rabbit’s reach. The rabbits prefer plants freshly grown in the garden. This is why they prefer it a lot.
Also, plants that are pesticide-free are completely safe for rabbits. The plant is able to meet the daily nutritional needs of rabbits with its flowers, leaves, and young stalks.
For its close-packed height and characteristics, the plant is full of leaves and filled with different types of nutrients.
Do rabbits like pansies?
Rabbits do like pansies. In fact, pansies become their favorite food during fall because that is when the pansies bloom at their fullest. They mostly prefer small plants that can easily be at their reach that is why they love leaves and flowers of pansies.
They prefer young leaves of pansies that are juicy, have a lettuce-like texture and greenish color. It is safe for rabbits to eat the flowers, leaves as well as the entire plant if it’s completely grown in natural habitat and pesticide-free.
The flowers have an excellent scent that is extracted from the plants and attracts the rabbits to eat them. As they are garden-based ornamental plants, they become a vital source of food for the rabbits.
Rabbits keep a clean cut on the plants when they eat flowers or leaves from them and are unnoticeable with bare eyes most of the time. That sums up their love for the pansies.
Is it safe for rabbits to eat pansies?
It’s completely okay to eat pansies for rabbits until it has no pesticides applied or sprayed on them. Usually, pansies can grow within a natural habitat that makes it completely safe to eat for rabbits.
But still, it is important to make sure it is completely free from fertilizer or any type of chemical element that is required to use on the plants in order to grow them or let the flowers bloom.
The stems are even tastier for the rabbits that helping them gain extra nutrition. The pansies spread a beautiful smell around the area they are born that especially attracts the rabbits to eat them.
The plant also is very compact. It grows up to 9 inches in length and spreads its leaves all around its body so rabbits find it very easy and simple food to eat when they are hungry.
What will deter rabbits from eating pansies?
Since rabbits have a strong sense of smell, the scent of certain chemical elements will help them to stay away from your favorite plant and eat its leaves, flowers, and even stems.
You can example elements that generate bad smells that let the rabbits stay away from your garden such as, you can spray or sprinkling ammonia on the plants that are generally used as fertilizer.
This will keep them away from your garden. Some more ideas are mentioned below:
Visual deterrence:
You can try creating visual deterrence that will prevent rabbits enter your garden. For example, use some artificial snakes, use owls or fake cats that will immediately scare them off.
You can also add mirrors as it is said that rabbits are scared of their reflection.
Rabbit repellents:
Having rabbits trespassing into your garden and eating your plants can be a common scenario.
So, the solution is to buy different types of rabbit repellents such as dried feces, sulfur, fox urine, ammonia, and even vinegar or garlic can deter rabbits from eating pansies.
Spray or rinse some ammonia that will produce more nitrogen in the soil causing a bad smell to rabbits and will keep them away from your garden.
Wired Fences:
Fencing your garden and your pansies are the best options to deter rabbits from eating your pansies. Buy a fence roll and cover your plants with 48” to 60” height in order to keep rabbits enter into your garden.
Using a fence will not only help rabbits keep away from the plants but also will let the plants grow accordingly.
How to keep rabbits from eating pansies?
There are plenty of ways to keep rabbits away from eating pansies. You can either use rabbit repellents which are mostly odor-producing materials. It helps rabbits keep away from you as rabbits can’t stand the stench. Some more ideas are discussed below:
Spray-dried sulfur:
Dried sulfur can be easily found in any gardening store around you. Spray or sprinkle them in your pansies, plants, and soil. You can also add vinegar, onions, or garlic. They produce bad smells and keep rabbits away from plants.
Place the plants that rabbits don’t like:
Generally, rabbits don’t like all types of smells. There are a few flower plants that can deter rabbits from keeping away from your garden.
Flowers such as sunflower, aquilegia, astilbe, foxglove are some of them that release different types of smell that lets the rabbits keep away from your pansies.
Apply natural rabbit repellent:
You can try making a natural rabbit repellent at your home and spray some of it on the garden to avoid rabbits entering your garden and eating the pansies.
Every few days, spray some ¼ cup of cayenne pepper throughout your garden. Make sure not to spray over the plants because that might make them wilt.
You can also use egg whites, mix them with the water and apply them to the pansies to avoid rabbits from eating them.
There are more homemade natural remedies that can help you keep rabbits away from pansies.
What plants or flowers keep the rabbits away?
There are different types of plants you can plant in your garden that will help rabbits keep away from your garden. For example, you can plant herbs, flowers, woody plants, or even vegetable plants.
Plating different types of trees will reduce your anti-rabbit repellent applying effort and cost and will provide you with more products for your garden. You can plant sunflowers, marigolds, zinnias, daffodils, or lavenders to avoid rabbits entering your garden.
In addition to that, you can plant onions, potatoes, garlic, mint, oregano, parsley, basil, and many more types of plants to avoid rabbits entering your garden.
Final thoughts
Rabbits usually tend to eat plants that are very fresh and usually found in gardens. Pansies are very small plants in size that rabbit loves to eat. They love to eat the flowers as they generate a soothing smell that attracts them. They eat leaves from the younger plants for the thick texture.