Attract squirrels🐿️ & settle them in the garden

Squirrels are one of the most popular guests in our gardens. Here you will find everything you need to know about the small rodents and how to attract them.

Squirrels actually live in coniferous and mixed forests and spend a large part of their time there. From time to time you can watch the cute animals in your own garden. In search of food, the busy animals jump from tree to tree and are exciting to watch. Also their sweet shape with the long, bushy tail and the red ears make the squirrels popular guests in the garden who are happy to be welcomed. We'll tell you what you should know about squirrels and how you can attract even more squirrels into your garden with clever garden design.

Features of squirrels

As skillful as artists, squirrels climb over twigs and branches and jump deadly up to five meters from tree to tree - the small animals keep the garden lively and are therefore extremely popular with children in particular Observation objects. Their bushy tail and their red-brown color are particularly recognizable. The former serves them like a balancing stick during their daring climbing activities, but also provides cozy warmth in winter and is suitable as a source of shade in summer. The red-brown coat, on the other hand, is not a clear sign of a squirrel: brown-black and gray squirrels are just as common as the well-known fuchsia. Even pure white variants occur sporadically and are not, as is often assumed, albinos.

From her relative, the North American gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) you cannot distinguish the squirrels by their color alone. In fact, the gray squirrels are much larger and stockier, and - unlike the European squirrels - they have no brush ears. To this day, Germany is only home to squirrels - other European countries, however, already have the to fight invasive gray squirrels, because they are often more assertive than squirrels and thus threaten theirs Population.

What do squirrels eat?

Squirrels eat nuts, every child knows that. Unfortunately, this statement is not entirely true - in fact, squirrels are omnivores and eat all kinds of other things in addition to nuts and seeds. Especially fruits and fruits like Apples (Malus)and grapes (Vitis vinifera) are also high on the food list of small rodents. But even bird eggs, insects and snails are eaten by squirrels when the opportunity arises. Unfortunately, however, food shortages are one of the main problems squirrels face in their lives. Especially for the winter rest, the animals have to hoard large amounts of food, which they can only rarely find. Fortunately, as a gardener, one can counteract this problem.

Plants for a squirrel-friendly garden

The simplest and at the same time most natural way to ensure optimal food supply for squirrels is to provide suitable forage plants in your own garden. Classics for squirrel-friendly plants are of course nut trees, above all the Walnut tree (Juglans regia) as well as the Hazelnut bush (Corylus avellana). The energy-rich nuts of both trees are the perfect food supply for hibernation and are cracked by the squirrels with incredible skill. In fact, such nut trees often turn out to be a real squirrel magnet in the garden, because they are often used by different squirrels at the same time.

But not only whale and hazelnut ensure a richly laid table in autumn, numerous other plant species are just as well accepted by the squirrels. Especially fruit trees like apple and pear (Pyrus) are popular with the little rodents, because they love the delicious windfalls. Book (Fagus) and sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) are not only beautiful deciduous trees in the garden, but also provide thanks Beechnuts and chestnuts for plenty of nutrition too. Even conifers are very popular with the squirrels because the seeds in the cones are a good source of food.

to feed squirrels

If you don't have a large garden to plant trees for the squirrels, you don't have to go without feeding. In fact, squirrels are just curious and not shy, so they accept human feeding very well. This phenomenon can mainly be observed by people who are already feeding birds in their garden. Whether sunflower seeds or tit dumplings - no feeding point is safe from the nimble squirrels. However, you can care for the small rodents better and more specifically if you have a home-made one Squirrel bird feeder hangs up - this not only ensures that only squirrels get the food, but also the birds can devote themselves to their meal again in peace.

When hanging a squirrel bird feeder, be sure to position it as high up in the tree as possible and out of the reach of predators such as cats. The automatic feeder can be filled with nuts and sunflower seeds, but also with corn kernels, pine nuts or raisins. The small rodents gladly accept fresh fruit, but it has no place in the feeder - the risk of rot or mold forming is too great. If you attract several squirrels with your feeding box, it can be worthwhile to set up another feeding station at a sufficient distance to avoid arguments.

Create water holes for squirrels

Not only food is essential for the squirrels - their water needs must also be met. However, suitable water points are few and far between, especially in cities or housing estates, which poses a major problem for the nimble animals. A bird bath can help here. In fact, squirrels like to use these to quench their thirst when they can. Drinking troughs that have a wide, non-slip rim on which the animals can sit comfortably are ideal. In addition, the bird bath should be slightly raised, as this increases the protection of visitors from dangerous predators.

Squirrels: creating a habitat in the garden

Squirrels naturally live in forests, where they claim up to several hectares as a habitat. At night they retreat to their nest - the so-called Kobel - which sits high up near the trunk of old trees. The cute animals are not limited to just one home: up to eight kobels can be in the The squirrels' habitat are spread out and are used differently for sleeping and living will. A special feature of these Kobel is the fact that each one basically has two exits - so the squirrels always have an opportunity to escape.

If you also want to offer a squirrel a home in the garden, you should first make the garden as attractive as possible for squirrels. Of course, a suitable number of trees is particularly important for this. Since the small rodents spend a large part of their lives in the treetops, they prefer gardens with as many climbing opportunities as possible. In addition, a sufficient supply of food attracts the Eichkater and promotes the attractiveness of their new home.

If the squirrels do not create a goblet in your garden despite a suitable location, you can with one simple trick: many specialist dealers offer artificial pegs that you can attach in your own garden can. When attaching it, make sure that the goblin is attached high enough on the trunk and cannot be reached by predators (especially cats). The artificial quarters are often well received by the squirrels and soon turn into a popular shelter. But also squirrel houses or even nesting boxes are gladly occupied by some squirrels and offer them warm quarters that protect them from the weather and enemies.

Eliminate sources of danger for squirrels in the garden

In nature, squirrels are afraid of carnivores such as birds of prey, madas or domestic cats. In the garden, however, there are other sources of danger that can cause animals to die prematurely. Rain barrels in particular represent an often underestimated risk: the small rodents fall too far when they are looking for water quickly into the half-filled rain barrel and cannot climb back up on the smooth walls, which is why they are in it drown. You can avoid this by covering the rain barrel with a lid or a close-meshed net as a precaution. If you prefer to have your rain barrel open, you can also put a branch or board in it at an angle - if the worst comes to the worst, the rodents can climb over it.

In addition to the rain barrel, poisoning is a common cause of death for squirrels in the garden: Blue grain or rat poison is extremely dangerous for the animals because they ingest the substances with their food and die a short time later. Especially granular poisons and garden fertilizers are often mistaken for seeds by the Eichkatern and eaten. In the best case, you should therefore rely entirely on pesticides and mineral fertilizers do without and instead resort to biological alternatives - these are not only much more environmentally friendly, but also harmless to the lively squirrels.

First aid for squirrels

Every now and then it happens that an injured or helpless squirrel is found in the garden. Young animals that have fallen out of the Kobel in wind and storm and cannot make it back in on their own are particularly often affected. The young animals show a unique peculiarity: They actively seek help from humans by approaching them and even clinging to their trouser legs. Contrary to popular belief, this behavior is not an indicator of rabies, but an innate instinct.

If a goblin is nearby and the young animal is unharmed, you should first leave the young animal at the place where it was found and observe from a suitable distance whether it is being fetched back by the mother animal. In the meantime, it makes sense to consult with Wildlife Aid and discuss any follow-up steps. Injured animals, on the other hand, should be caught and nursed up after consultation with the Wildlife Aid. Always use sturdy gloves and a towel when trapping, as squirrels can bite hard and transmit diseases. Until animal help arrives, you should keep the squirrel in a lukewarm hot water bottle or a heating pad, because young animals or sick squirrels are particularly fast hypothermic. On the other hand, you should not feed milk under any circumstances - it is better to offer the little patients some water.

Garden animals often depend on our support, especially in the cold season. Here's how you can Help garden animals in winter can.

You can find more exciting tips about garden animals on our Instagram page. There we also share our best tips and tricks about sustainable gardening every day and take you with us when it comes to developing new products.