Some people do not consider it a big deal to have lizards in their garden. After all, lizards are natural pest control. However, when the number of lizards in your garden gets out of control, it may be better to have outdoor plants that repel lizards.
The Seven outdoor Plants that Repel Lizards from a Garden are: Eucalyptus, Camphor and Pencil Trees, Foul Helleborus, Japanese Mint, Lavender, and Chrysanthemums.
Lizards play a significant role in the ecosystem. They eat an incredible number of horrible spiders and insects. The disgust and horror of having these creatures in your garden far outweigh the benefits of having these creatures in your garden.
About Lizards
A lizard, in laymen’s terms refers to a reptile with four legs, a long body, and scaly skin. Lizards are attracted to gardens with tall grasses, flat open spaces where they can lay, and dense plants where they can seek shelter.
Water is also essential to lizards for hydration and as a place where they can settle down and reproduce.
Most lizards feed on bugs, ants, beetles, aphids, wasps, spiders, and grasshoppers in your garden.
However, they can also nibble on the leaves of some plants. Lizards commonly thrive in warm areas with abundant cover and food.
Despite being beneficial many gardeners do not like to have lizards in their gardens. The sight of these lizards crawling, scurrying, and running around can be spooky.
There are some plants that can repel lizards from your garden.
Outdoor Plants that Repel Lizards
Lizards feed on any insects and plants available and your garden is their best source of food. Lizards target insects first, and when they cannot find them, they will feed on your plants. These can cause serious damage to your garden.
You do not like to lose your plants to lizards. Here are some outdoor plants that repel lizards.
1. Eucalyptus Trees
Eucalyptus trees are multi-stemmed plants that can grow to be above 60 feet when planted outdoors. They have slightly fibrous branches.
Their leaves contain have oil glands with a strong scent.
The scent of the eucalyptus trees may be soothing to humans, but they keep lizards at bay. The scent of these trees is too powerful for the lizards’ sensitive noses.
2. Camphor Trees
A Camphor tree comes with an umbrella shape and can grow to be about 60-feet tall. The oil extract of this ornamental tree has been used in soaps, fragrances, and paint.
The Camphor tree gives off a strong scent loved by humans but hated by insects and lizards.
3. Pencil Trees
The Pencil tree is a small tree with thick, green, pencil-like branches that can grow up to 20 feet tall. This tree does not have thorns in its bodies are harmful to humans and lizards.
The sap of the Pencil tree contains toxins that can severely irritate and cause burning sensations to human skin in contact. Lizards die when exposed to the toxins in Pencil trees.
4. Foul Helleborus
Foul Helleborus comes with thick, straight, and green-yellow stems. It has large leaves. The lanceolate leaflets appear in a fan-like pattern with a rounded top. This plant can grow to be up to 20 inches.
It has evergreen foliage that looks beautiful throughout the year making it typically used in flower arrangements.
However, this plant is toxic to most animals including lizards. The sweet to skunky fragrances of the Foul Helleborus keep lizards well away.
5. Japanese Mint
The Japanese Mint is a straight-standing perennial that comes with oval-shaped leaves. The essential oils found in its leaves have mild minty and sweet aroma. This plant thrives in wet and damp conditions.
While oil removed from the part of the plant that grows above the ground can be used to make medicine, like most mints, it can become invasive.
It is typically planted in a pot or in an area where you can keep the plant under control.
The strong aroma coming from the Japanese mint can repel lizards.
6. Lavender
Lavender is a flowering plant. It belongs to the mint family. This plant is characterized by its sweet floral scent. It also brings beauty and color. The scent of Lavender relaxes and soothes humans.
Lizards have sensitive noses, and the Lavender plant can confuse and keep them out of your garden.
7. Chrysanthemums
Chrysanthemum is one of the most beautiful and popular ornamental plants. Its flowers bloom in yellow, white, lavender, orange, red, or purple. It also can come in bicolor flowers.
Chrysanthemums have compounds that are deadly to bugs and insects. They stay away from gardens with chrysanthemums.
If insects stay away from chrysanthemums, lizards, who feed on insects, will also stay away from your garden.
Besides, chrysanthemums have an overpowering smell despised by lizards.
Final Thoughts
Lizards may be vital to the ecosystem, but these creatures can become a menace in your garden. Spraying chemicals around your garden to repel lizards is not the safest of all methods.
Growing outdoor plants that repel lizards is the most eco-friendly solution to keep your garden serene. Besides, any of these plants can make a good addition to your garden.
Jenny Marie
Tribal Writer
Edited By
Patricia Godwin