- 1). Place a repellent around or on the shrubs to deter rabbits from eating the leaves. Examples: baby powder; a fungicide with foul-tasting and smelling Thiram as an active ingredient; dried blood meal - a powdered blood used in organic fertilizer, produced from meat-processing; or lavender, catnip and garlic. All these repellents, sprinkled around the shrubs, thwart a rabbit's eating habits.
- 2). Grow other species of plants that deter or repel rabbits around the shrubs. These can be both ornamental and edible to humans but create a deterrent and barrier for the rabbits. Examples include: catmint, bee balm, daffodils, irises, lamb's ears, coneflower, lavender, clematis, tomatoes, black-eyed Susans, foxglove, rosemary, yarrow, rhubarb, parsley, juniper, currants, sumac shrubs, sage, monkshood, marigold, oregano, and clematis.
- 3). Erect a fence around the shrubs to keep the rabbits away. It should start 3 to 6 inches below the surface of the ground to prohibit burrowing. If using chicken wire, a 2- to 3-foot-height should be sufficient. Bending the bottom of the wire outward keeps rabbits from sneaking under it, if it is not a buried fence.
- 4). Use live traps to catch the rabbits and remove them from your yard to another location, such as a park, woods or wildlife preserve. Verify that it is legal in your state to do this; rabbits can carry disease, and trapping is prohibited in some states for this reason. Check the traps on a daily basis to make sure you can immediately transport any animals you catch before they become ill or die from starvation, dehydration or injury.
- 5). Modify the landscaping in your yard to reduce rabbit habitats, making the yard - and your shrubs - less appealing. Rabbits require protective cover, so remove excess vegetation or thick brush around fences, in ditches or around woodpiles. Cut off lower branches of shrubs where rabbits can easily hide. Seal holes and entryways under decks, steps, barns or storage sheds.
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