How to Keep Racoons From Climbing Trees

Keep raccoons from climbing your trees with exclusionary tactics.

Raccoons, like all urban wildlife, have the ability to coexist within close proximity to people, and quickly learn that those people can provide abundant food sources. If you happen to grow delectable fruits or keep bird feeders or a birdhouse in your trees, raccoons may soon be attracted to the readily available foods. These dexterous mammals are excellent climbers with the unusual ability to manipulate their feet to enable them to climb down from objects head-first. The only way to keep a determined raccoon from climbing your trees is with effective exclusionary tactics.

Things You'll Need

• Rose bush or raspberry cane trimmings
• Aluminum flashing, sheet metal or galvanized stove pipe
• Electric fencing

Instructions

1. Spread rose bush or raspberry cane trimmings thickly around the base of your tree. Extend the barrier 2 to 3 feet out from the tree trunk and pile the prickly trimmings an inch or so deep. Raccoons don’t like getting their paws pricked, and this may be the only action you need to take.

2. Wrap the tree trunk loosely with aluminum flashing, sheet metal or galvanized stove pipe. Leave the barrier loose around the trunk to allow the tree plenty of room for growth. The metal sheet should be at least 24 inches tall to keep raccoons from reaching the bark to climb up the tree.

3. Trim drooping overhead branches that can provide access to the raccoons from the ground. Cut back nearby shrub or tree limbs that raccoons could use to climb into your tree.

4. Check the metal tree guard if you have snowfall. If you’ve had several inches or more of snow, clear the snow away from the barrier down to ground level and about 2 feet away from it.

5. Install an electric barrier around your tree. You’ll need at least 2 wires about 6 to 10 inches apart, with the lowest at about 5 inches above the ground.

Tips & Warnings

• For best results, perform exclusionary tactics around fruit trees at least two weeks before your crop ripens to an appealing stage.

References

• Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife; Living With Wildlife -- Raccoons; Russell Link
• New York State Department of Wildlife; Best Practices for Nuisance Wildlife Control Operators in New York State -- Raccoons (Procyon lotor)
• Golden Harvest Organics: Critter Troubles -- Raccoons and Skunks

Resources

• University of California; Pests in Gardens and Landscapes -- Raccoons; T. P. Salmon, et al