Squirrels and Mulberries: Making Peace With Your Furry Berry Competition

I want to tell you about the morning I crouched behind my own garden shed, wrapped in a bathrobe, holding a Super Soaker, waiting to ambush a squirrel. It was 6:47 a.m. My neighbors were leaving for work. We made eye contact. I waved. The squirrel, meanwhile, sat in my mulberry tree eating berries with the calm confidence of someone who owns the place — because, as far as he was concerned, he did. If you’ve ever lost your mind over squirrels eating mulberries straight off your tree before you could harvest a single handful, you are my people, and this post is for you.

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The Great Squirrel Standoff (And Why I Was Losing)

Here’s some context: I’d been growing my Illinois Everbearing mulberry for four years. Four years of watering, mulching, protecting it from late frosts, and talking to it (don’t judge me). That tree finally hit its stride last summer and promised me the kind of harvest that mulberry dreams are made of — deep, purple-black clusters so heavy the branches drooped. I was planning jam. I was planning cobbler. I had spreadsheets.

What I got instead was a front-row seat to what I can only describe as a squirrel buffet. They weren’t just eating the ripe berries. They were snipping off entire clusters, taking one bite, dropping the rest on my patio, and going back for more. The waste alone was enough to make a grown adult seriously reconsider their relationship with nature. Hence: the bathrobe, the Super Soaker, the neighbor incident.

The water gun strategy, for the record, did not work. The squirrel dodged my first shot, looked at me with what I’m fairly certain was contempt, and went back to eating. That was my rock bottom. That was when I decided to actually figure out what works.

Understanding the Squirrels Eating Mulberries Problem

Before we talk solutions, it helps to understand why mulberry trees are basically squirrel paradise. Mulberries ripen fast — sometimes the entire crop on a branch comes in over just a few weeks — and the berries are soft, sweet, and easy to eat. Squirrels are opportunistic foragers with excellent memory and zero shame. Once they find your tree, they’ll return daily and tell all their friends. It’s less of a raid and more of a reservation they made without asking you.

The good news is you don’t have to choose between having a mulberry tree and having a squirrel problem. With the right combination of deterrents, you can protect enough of your harvest to actually enjoy it — while accepting that some amount of wildlife sharing is simply part of growing fruit in a backyard setting. Spoiler: that acceptance was the part that took me the longest to reach.

Harvest Timing Is Your First Line of Defense

The single most effective thing I changed was how often I harvested. Mulberries don’t wait, and neither do squirrels. Instead of checking my tree every few days, I started picking every single morning during peak season. I’d lay a clean sheet or tarp beneath the canopy, give the branches a gentle shake, and collect whatever was ripe enough to fall. Squirrels tend to target the easiest, ripest fruit first — so if you get there before them, you win that round. It sounds simple because it is. It also means you have to actually show up, which is its own kind of gardening lesson.

Physical Deterrents Worth Trying

Netting is often recommended, but I’ll be honest — draping bird netting over a mature mulberry tree is a project that requires either a very tall ladder, a very patient friend, or both. It’s more practical on younger, smaller trees. If your tree is manageable in size, netting during the final ripening weeks can make a genuine difference. Just make sure to use netting with small enough holes that birds and squirrels can’t get tangled.

Motion-activated sprinklers turned out to be a far more satisfying solution for me personally — and yes, I’ll admit that satisfaction was partly petty. The Orbit 62100 Yard Enforcer Motion-Activated Sprinkler is a classic for good reason. It detects movement and hits the area with a short burst of water — startling animals without harming them. If you prefer a solar-powered option, the G-Jyuncyou Motion-Activated Sprinkler adds flashing lights to the mix, which gives squirrels a genuinely alarming multi-sensory experience. Both are infinitely more effective than one person in a bathrobe with a toy water gun.

Tools That Help: Products I Actually Recommend

After my Super Soaker era ended, I got serious about testing repellent sprays around the base of my tree and on nearby surfaces. These won’t stop a determined squirrel from climbing, but used consistently, they can reduce traffic and make your yard feel less welcoming overall. Here are the ones I’ve had good results with:

• I Must Garden Squirrel Repellent (32oz Ready to Use) — This one smells like a spa treatment to humans but is genuinely off-putting to squirrels and chipmunks. Spray it around the base of your tree and on any nearby surfaces they use as launching pads. Find it on Amazon here.
• Bonide Repels-All Animal Repellent (32oz Ready-to-Use Spray) — A broader-spectrum option that works on deer and rabbits too. If you’re dealing with multiple critters raiding your garden, this is efficient. It’s people and pet safe, which matters when you’re spraying near fruit you actually plan to eat. Check it out on Amazon.
• Squirrel Stopper Repellent Spray (32oz) — This one works on scent, taste, and touch — a triple-threat approach. It’s weather resistant, which matters because mulberry season often overlaps with summer rain. Grab it on Amazon here.
• Orbit 62100 Yard Enforcer Motion-Activated Sprinkler — My personal favorite for sheer satisfaction value. Set it near the tree, let it work, enjoy watching squirrels reconsider their life choices from a distance. Find it on Amazon.
• G-Jyuncyou Motion-Activated Sprinkler with Solar Power & Flashing Lights