Wire Mesh Fence
Ordinary chicken wire can rabbit-proof the flower or vegetable garden. Make sure the mesh size is no larger than 1½ inches. Place posts about every 3 feet. It is best if the wire is at least 3 feet above the ground. Obtain a 4-foot-wide roll of fencing so that you can bury the first foot of wire underground to prevent tunneling. Dig a trench and bend the first 6 inches of wire into an L-shape turned away from the garden, then bury it. Alternatively, buy ready-made rabbit netting which has 1-inch mesh at the bottom and 2-inch mesh towards the top.
Electric Fence
An electric fence is very effective in repelling rabbits and is cheaper and less trouble to erect than a wire mesh fence. A power unit, sometimes just flashlight batteries, sends timed pulses of low-voltage electricity through the wires strung on insulated posts. The mild repelling buzz does not harm people, pets, birds, other wildlife or the rabbit.
To erect a standard electric fence that will bar rabbits from most planted beds, use only two strands of wire, one set at 6 inches above soil level and the other at 12 inches. Electrify an existing chicken wire fence by insulating the fence posts and then by stringing a single strand of wire around the top of the mesh fence.
750RP - Electric Fence Kit For Pets
Complete kit contains one UL Listed electric fence energizer with fused panel offers protection against power surges, ten 23" PVC fence poles, one 22" ground rod, 100 feet of aluminum wire, 50 cotter pins for fastening wire, two extra fuses and complete easy-to-follow instructions. Input Voltage: 110-120 VAC, 60 Hz, .035 amp, 10 W. Up to 1 mile range under ideal conditions. Output Voltage 800 V
For more information see the file About Electric Fences
For all the components you need to build an electric fence go to our Yardener's Tool Shed;
Tree Guards
Tree guards are an essential piece of equipment in the war against rabbits and other critters. To protect orchard or ornamental trees for the winter, wrap the lower portion of small tree trunks with commercial tree wrap, burlap, aluminum foil, ready-made plastic cylinders, or ¼-inch hardware cloth. The wrapping or cylinder should be at least 18 inches above the height of the deepest expected snow cover (rabbits can walk on top of the snow).
After a snowfall, tramp down the snow around the trees so rabbits can't chew on low limbs. Make sure freestanding guards are supported away from the tree trunks, otherwise the rabbits will lean against the guard and nibble the bark through the mesh or openings.
Row Covers
To protect vegetable and fruit crops planted in rows or narrow beds, create removable row covers to obstruct rabbits. Set up a series of supporting hoops or flexible PVC pipes as ribs over the bed. When vulnerable seedlings sprout, lay white, polyspun floating row cover or plastic mesh netting over the ribs to enclose the bed in a sort of tunnel. Both covers allow air, light and rain onto the plants, but block rabbit access.
Maintain the protective cover until the young seedlings have passed their most tender and delicious stage and become less attractive to rabbits. When they flower, be sure to remove the fleece material so pollinating insects can reach them. In the case of berries, lettuce and other salad greens, remove the cover only when necessary for harvesting.
Boxed Raised Beds
Some gardeners have observed that boxed beds seem to protect vegetable crops in some cases. Rabbits were seen to feed on lawn clover and ignore lettuce growing nearby in a raised bed surrounded by a wooden box. Rabbits seem to sometimes be reluctant to climb over the box edges.
Feed The Rabbit
Another way to protect the bark of trees and shrubs in winter is to feed the rabbits. Prune trees in the late fall and leave all the pruned branches lying on the ground near the trees. Rabbits prefer tender branch bark to trunk bark, so they will eat the prunings before they will attack the tree. Honeylocust branches are a favorite food.
Spring Seedling Protection
In the spring, protect young seedlings in the food garden with plastic milk jugs. Remove the bottoms, set them around the plants, and anchor them with soil so the wind doesn't carry them away or a pushy rabbit can’t knock them over easily. Remove them when the air gets warm as spring progresses, so young plants do not overheat.