This Is Why Squirrels Are Hanging Around Your Yard

Have you got more squirrels in your yard than you would like? Are they causing damage to your plants and possessions? It's time to find out what is attracting them to your home. Then, by removing those things, you may deter the squirrels! Click through our slideshow to find out what they are.

Anyone who has ever lived in a home with a walnut or pecan tree in the backyard knows how eagerly squirrels gather nuts. They also very quickly find and procure any nuts offered up by humans. Squirrels can hardly resist the smell of nuts.

Many squirrels even bury nuts underground or cache them in trees and use their keen senses to come back and retrieve them later. You probably should not plant a nut tree in your yard if you hate having squirrels around.

Other smells that strongly attract squirrels are the scents of dried seeds. Frustrated bird lovers often fill their feeders with fresh seeds only to find squirrels attacking with gusto. Hungry squirrels engage in acrobatic maneuvers that seemingly defy gravity to get at those delicious seeds.

You can try to dissuade them with supposedly squirrel-proof feeders, or you can toss them some seeds of their own, depending on whether you want to keep them coming back or chase them away.

Suet combines seeds with different types of protein and fats. People usually put suet out for birds during the winter, when they need extra protein and fat. Squirrels need these resources, too, and the smells associated with suet will certainly attract them to your feeder.

Even blindfolded, you could most likely recognize the delightful scent of fresh apples. Squirrels have a much more developed sense of smell than humans, and apples provide an almost irresistible scent. Whether the apples have fallen from a tree or been tossed out as scraps, squirrels may happily follow that smell.

As the weather gets cooler many trees and bushes put on berries. The smells of these berries attract squirrels, along with birds and other animals. Berries provide an important source of nutrition, especially as squirrels work to fatten up before winter.

You may be surprised to learn that the smells of various conifers can attract squirrels. Not only do different types of squirrels eat the seeds found in the female cones, they also munch on buds.

Unfortunately, to get to the tasty buds, they tend to strip young branches from the trees and can cause extensive damage. Offering squirrels alternate food sources in the winter may help deter them from stripping conifers.

Squirrels may be attracted to the scent of mushrooms growing in your yard. They may eat the mushrooms they find immediately or dry them in the trees and cache them for later, when the winter makes food sources scarce. Some types of squirrels can even eat toxic mushrooms without apparent harm.

Squirrels love to eat some varieties of flowers. These include daisies, pansies, petunias, and more. The smells of other types of flowers, including geraniums, marigolds, daffodils, and hyacinth, reportedly deter squirrels rather than attract them.

Squirrels can barely resist the smell of warm, salty popcorn. If you want to attract squirrels, this is one sure treat to try. Don't butter the popcorn, though. That can be hard for a squirrel to digest. Just lightly salt it and toss it out for the squirrels to find. That is, if you want to lure them closer.

Anyone who has tried feeding Baltimore Orioles probably knows that the smell of fresh oranges can attract squirrels, too. These fragrant fruits have a strong aroma that squirrels may detect from a distance.

Humans bring pumpkins into urban and suburban areas in massive quantities in the fall. Whether for cooking or decorating, pumpkins abound.

The smells associated with pumpkins, whether whole or just the discarded seeds, may attract squirrels to the jack-o-lantern on your front porch or the bags at your curb.

Any of the smells above, alone or in combination, can attract squirrels to your garbage like a magnet. An old peanut butter and jelly sandwich, for instance, has the irresistible aromas of roasted peanuts and fruit.

You probably don't want squirrels in your garbage, though. They can make a terrible mess, and the other things in your trash could be hazardous to their health.

Whether you want to attract or repel squirrels, make sure you contain all garbage in secure cans or other receptacles that keep out squirrels and other animals.