Harmless Methods on How to Keep Raccoons Out of Corn

Knowing how to keep raccoons out of corn can be handy if you plant it at home and you just want the pesky animal to go. 

Corn is sweet and tasty. Not only it is a great option for summer time, but you can basically make it into almost everything!

You can toss it in your salad or make a tortilla out of it. You can make a healthy option for the snack and so much more.

It’s nice to have it around because it adds versatility to your home-cooked meal. 

However, things may not be pleasant anymore if you have to share a living space with the annoying neighbor: the raccoons or squirrels.

The biggest issue with the raccoons is that they tend to eat anything.

They aren’t the picky eater like the squirrels, which makes things even harder because you have bigger issues. But let’s not be worried.

Once you understand the nature of the raccoons, you should be able to get into their heads and out-win them.

Not to mention that there are several effective methods that may work well for your conditions. 

Do Raccoons Eat Field Corn?

Raccoons are nocturnal creatures that are notorious for their imagination and persistence.

No other animals would have such persistency, except for squirrels for bird feeder. Raccoons are resourceful and they are great at almost everything.

They are known as great runners, jumpers, climbers, and even swimmers.

With five-toed paws and impressive agility, it’s difficult to deal with the raccoons.

That’s why knowing how to keep raccoons out of corn can be a handy knowledge. 

Raccoons are basically omnivorous animals, which mean that they would eat anything, as long as it is provided for them.

They may eat veggies and plants, crayfish and grubs, and fruits and don’t mind eating pears, peaches, and apples.

They don’t mind eating peas, potatoes, or sweet corn either. In general, wild raccoons like it better areas with water source and trees, because it makes their job easy in finding food.

However, they don’t mind raiding the gardens too because it’s even an easier food source for them!

If your garden is located close to some kind of a forest and you have your own water source (like a pond or pool), they will like it even more.

They may turn to your garden as their food source.

Raccoon Damage to Corn

Another reason why you should know about how to keep raccoons out of corn is because of the damage they make not only to your corn, but also to your garden.

Spotting whether a raccoon has infested your garden is relatively easy. Check for holes. If you find tons of holes on your mulch pile or you find many, many holes on your garden, it’s most likely that you have a regular (nightly) visitor.

Raccoons love to dig up mulch piles and lawns for food, especially for insects.

They are also notorious for raiding the chicken coops. They may steal the eggs and even kill the chickens. 

And if you have corn, you may find the stalks toppled. The ears may have been ripped open and most of them have been eaten half.

This is annoying and infuriating because many animal researchers state that raccoons are wasteful.

They don’t actually like the sweet corn much. They prefer dog food, sunflower seeds, and even sardines.

So, basically, they eat the corn just for food. What an annoying creature, huh?

How to Protect Corn from Raccoon

The knowledge of how to keep raccoons out of corn is handy to keep them at bay while making sure that your corns keep sweet for long term.

There are actually several methods to try although it may take some extra efforts and energies. 

• Grow the Tall Corn

You may not know this, but different corn varieties will result in different stalks height.

There are short, medium, and also tall corn varieties.

If you want to deter the raccoons away, make sure to choose the tall ones.

Planning the height is crucial if you want to prevent them from coming into your garden.

It’s best for you to know when to harvest your corn so that you can save it first from the raccoons.

Raccoons will find it hard to climb with taller stalks. And they don’t really like it when they have to spend extra efforts to climb the corn.

They like it easy and effortlessly when getting the food they like.

Moreover, be sure to choose the right variants of the corn, such as Platinum Lady, Kandy Korn, and Silver Queen types that are coming with 8-foot of height.

• Interplant with Other Plants

One method among how to keep raccoons out of corn is to interplant your corn with other plants.

It will certainly make it less appealing for the raccoons; especially if you choose the variants they really despise.

Raccoons hate plants like pole beans, pumpkins, and also varieties of squash plants.

They hate the smell of squash plants. But they mostly can’t tolerate is the itchy and tiny spikes on the fruit and leaves. 

You can choose winter squash, summer squash, or cucumber as the fence. Grow them deep, if you want to play it safe.

But if you have limited space in the garden, you can grow the squash plants (in row) between your sweet corn rows.

Observe the effect of the squash plant to the corn. Does it work like a charm?

Pumpkins and pole beans would grow vines and foliage that raccoons really dislike.

Pumpkin vines are difficult and also uncomfortable for walking on, while bean foliage would block the animal’s sight.

If you can grow them around the corn (making them the natural fence to your corn), then you should be able to ward off the pesky animals away. 

• Install Fence

Although fences are great to ward off raccoons, there are different types of fence that you can install around the garden.

Not only it will ward off the raccoons, but it will also get rid of other pesky critters.

Some people may consider using electric fence. It’s great because the electric current will deter the raccoons from climbing over it.

And it is advisable to install several different electrified wires within different heights. 

Another option is to use a floppy fence. This one is typically attached to the top area of a more solid and sturdier fence.

When the raccoon is climbing on the fence, the weight will cause this particular fence structure to flop over to the outside part of the garden in parallel-to-the-ground manner.

The raccoon only has one option: It must release the grip (on the fence) and land on the below ground. 

• Wrap the Ears

You may also consider wrapping up the ears, but this usually depends on the size of the crop.

Many seasoned gardeners use duct tape to wrap the corn’s ears.

The duct tape is considered the best option although feel free to do experiments with different types of materials.

Go with the ones that raccoons can’t claw through. 

How to Keep Raccoons out of Corn Pile

It’s crucial to understand how to keep raccoons out of corn especially if you have corns.

Don’t you hate it when they create mess on the well-arranged pile and leave you with the unwanted debris and crumbs?

It’s a good thing that there are some home remedies solutions that you can apply to the corn pile.

Some of them can be even applied around the house (and garden) perimeter so you can expand your protection line. 

• Use spray or scatter pepper. You can use ingredients like cayenne pepper, black pepper, or cinnamon. Mix one of those things with onion within boiling water. You have your own raccoon repellant. If you want to, add hot sauce into it. Not only you can spray it on your corn pile, but you can also spray it around the house baseline and yard. Do it twice a week (minimum) and when it rains. 
• Soak rags with ammonia. Raccoons just hate the smell of ammonia. Soak several rags in it and scatter them around the property. Put them under the trees, under the garbage cans, and places that you figure out has become their entry point. You can also fill bowls with the substance and scatter them around. If you want to do this method on how to keep raccoons out of corn, make sure you have plenty of ammonia supplies. 
• Use mothballs. If you believe that raccoons have made a shelter in your house (under the house or in the attic), you can scatter the mothballs around the house. The smell would deter the rodents. However, you should know that mothballs can soak into the wall or surface, so really consider carefully if you want to choose this method. Only do this method if you are willing to deal with constant (and regular) replaced.

How to Keep Raccoons from Digging up Plants

As it was mentioned before, raccoons love digging plants. It’s a fun thing for them because they can do the things they love, and they can get food along the way.

But your garden has been a messy state because of the pesky rodents, knowing some effective ways on how to keep raccoons out of corn can help you deal with them. 

Effective Method

One of the most effective methods is to kill the grub. After all, raccoons love grubs so much; they may return to your garden because you have plenty of them.

There are some products that can kill grubs quite effectively. With those products, you can nail several works together.

You kill the grub, prevent the raccoons from coming, and make your lawn healthy. Not a bad result for a multifunctional product, is it?

Consider having beneficial nematodes in the lawn too. They can kill beetles, weevils, ants, flies, moths, fleas, and other pests that have become the food source for the raccoons.

Raccoons Habit

When the raccoons find out that your garden is no longer an ideal place for their food source, they will stop coming.

They will leave and never come back. 

Another method is to use an ultrasonic animal repeller. There are so many different types of them out there.

Make sure you have done your research carefully so you know which one would be ideal for your needs. There are some repellers with solar-powered mechanism.

Basically, this type of repeller doesn’t use any chemical and they are humane. Some are even waterproof and can reach up quite a wide distance (like, covering 20 feet or areas or more). 

Automatic sprinkler is another option that most owners would use. Some people use the automatic and motion-activated sprinkler to scare the raccoons away.

Most animals (including raccoons) would be afraid of the sudden movement of the sprinkler. Not to mention that they are being sprayed by the water too.

This motion-activated sprinkler can be super handy to deal with the annoying rodents and other animals, especially those night crawlers that will come at the most unexpected times.

But don’t forget to turn off the sprinkler during the day, or you will be sprayed when going to your lawn. 

Pet Management

One way on how to keep raccoons out of corn is to use the pets. If you have pets, you can make use of them to deter away the raccoons.

If you especially have dog pets, letting them sleep outside (in their own house, naturally) will be helpful. Your dogs will always be alert and they may have fun chasing those pesky creatures away.

For the raccoons, it will give them a good warning sign. Being a smart creature on their own, they know that the dog is a part of your house and it stays for good.

They know that they should find food elsewhere. Otherwise; they would be a fun target for the dog (fun for the dog, that is!).

So, encourage your dogs to be a part of the security watch. They would love the idea!

Final Words

Raccoons are annoying and having them consuming your corn isn’t fun. But as you can see, you have plenty options and most of them are harmless.

You won’t hurt the raccoons, so it won’t bother your consciousness.

With all of these methods on how to keep raccoons out of corn, you won’t have to worry about a thing.