While I personally don’t have a major issue with snakes and actually find them to be shy, gentle creatures that tend to keep to themselves, I completely understand why many people prefer to keep them at a safe distance. It’s one thing to appreciate them in nature, but it’s another to come face-to-face with one while gardening or relaxing on your deck.
If you’re someone who isn’t too thrilled about unexpected reptilian visitors in your yard, the good news is there are plenty of effective and humane ways to discourage them without resorting to harsh chemicals or inhumane traps. One of the first and most important steps is cutting off their food supply. Snakes are naturally drawn to areas where food is abundant. While most people know that snakes eat rodents like mice and rats, many don’t realize that spilled birdseed, fallen fruit, and even compost can attract rodents, which in turn attracts snakes.
Make sure your compost bins are properly sealed, and if you feed birds, try keeping feeders toward the edge of your yard—far from your house—to reduce the chances of attracting snakes. Another surprisingly simple yet effective method is planting lemongrass. This plant has a strong citrus smell that snakes dislike, and as a bonus, it also helps repel mosquitoes.
If gardening is your thing, adding a few bunches of lemongrass is a low-maintenance and practical way to make your yard less welcoming to snakes. In the same citrusy vein, you can create a homemade repellent using lemon or orange peels. Just toss the rinds into a jar of water, let it sit for about 24 hours, then transfer the mixture to a spray bottle. Spraying this around outdoor furniture, porch steps, and other common areas can act as a natural deterrent.
Maintaining a clean and clutter-free yard is another crucial step in snake prevention. Snakes love to hide in piles of leaves, wood, tall grass, and debris. By regularly mowing your lawn, trimming back shrubs, and removing unnecessary yard waste, you eliminate the comfortable hiding spots that snakes seek out. Another important tip is to seal off your home. While the yard may be manageable, the last thing you want is a snake sneaking into your living room.
Inspect your home’s foundation, check around doors and windows, and repair any cracks or gaps. Don’t forget to inspect screens on windows and vents for tears or holes. Creating a DIY snake repellent can be another tool in your snake-prevention toolkit. A simple mixture of equal parts clove oil and cinnamon oil works wonders when sprayed around the perimeter of your home, deck, or shed. These essential oils have strong scents that are unpleasant to snakes, and since they’re natural, they’re safer for pets and kids than commercial chemical products. Mothballs are another option often used to repel snakes.
While they can be effective, they must be used with extreme caution. Mothballs contain toxic chemicals that can be harmful if ingested by pets or children. If you choose this method, place them in hard-to-reach areas and always supervise where they’re used. If you’ve tried everything and still see snakes slithering through your yard, you may want to consider setting humane traps. These traps can safely contain a snake without harming it. Once caught, you can release the snake into a wooded area far from your home. This method keeps the snake safe while giving you peace of mind.
Ultimately, keeping snakes away from your yard doesn’t have to involve drastic measures. By making your yard less attractive to snakes, keeping things clean, sealing up entry points, and using natural repellents, you can dramatically reduce the chances of encountering them around your home. These tips are easy to implement and require little effort while still respecting the natural balance between humans and wildlife.
