← All pests
Raccoons

Raccoons

Procyon lotor

Mammalalso: Raccoon, Coon

Clever, dexterous, masked night raiders that are notorious for destroying sweet corn just before harvest, climbing and tearing down the stalks to reach the ears. Raccoons also raid melons, tree fruit, and trash, and their nimble paws and intelligence make them one of the harder garden animals to keep out without a fence.

🔎 How to spot it

Raccoons are stocky, gray-brown animals with a black mask across the eyes and a bushy ringed tail, active mostly at night. The damage is the clearest sign: in sweet corn, stalks pulled or knocked down with the ears stripped back and partly eaten, often the night before you planned to pick. Look also for five-fingered, hand-like tracks, scattered trash, and dug-up or sampled melons and fruit.

🥀 Damage it causes

Raccoons are most destructive in sweet corn, climbing or knocking down stalks and tearing open the ears right at peak ripeness, often hitting a whole patch in one night. They also damage melons by gouging holes, raid ripening tree fruit and grapes, dig in beds and lawns for grubs, and tip and scatter trash and compost.

🛡️ Prevent it

A fence is the dependable defense. A two-wire electric fence with wires about 6 and 12 inches off the ground, switched on as the corn nears ripeness, is very effective for sweet corn and melons. Remove easy attractions, secure trash and pet food and clean up fallen fruit. Harvest sweet corn promptly as it ripens rather than leaving it on the stalk.

🧯 If it is already here

Exclusion with electric or sturdy fencing is far more reliable than scare devices, which raccoons quickly learn to ignore. Live-trapping and removal can address a persistent individual, but check local wildlife regulations first, since relocating raccoons is restricted in many areas and they can carry disease. Timing the harvest to beat them and protecting the corn during its brief ripe window is the practical plan.

💡 Good to know

Raccoons have an uncanny sense for the day before sweet corn is ripe, which is why so many gardeners lose a whole patch overnight just before they meant to pick it. Their intelligence and dexterity defeat most simple deterrents, so an electric fence switched on for the brief ripening window is the surest protection.

🌱 Plants it attacks

167 plants in the library can be attacked by this pest

🍓Albion StrawberryAmbrosia CornAmerican Beauty Dragon FruitAmerican PersimmonAmish Paste TomatoAnjou PearArbequina OliveArkin CarambolaAroniaAsian PearAsian PersimmonAtemoyaAunt Molly's Ground CherryAvocadoBartlett PearBeach Plum🍅Beefmaster TomatoBetter Boy Tomato🍅Big Beef TomatoBig Boy TomatoBing CherryBitter MelonBlack Cherry TomatoBlack Currant🍉Black Diamond WatermelonBlack Krim TomatoBlack RaspberryBlack SapoteBlack Tartarian CherryBlood OrangeBluecrop BlueberryBosc Pear🍅Box Car Willie TomatoBoysenberryBraeburn AppleBrandywine TomatoBrewster LycheeBrown Turkey FigCalamondinCantaloupeCasaba MelonCatawba GrapeCelebrity TomatoChampagne LoquatCharleston Gray WatermelonCherokee Purple TomatoChicago Hardy FigConcord GrapeContender PeachCornelian CherryCortland AppleCosmic Crisp AppleCranberryCrenshaw MelonCrimson Sweet WatermelonDamson PlumDwarf Cavendish BananaEarly Girl TomatoElberta PeachElderberryEureka LemonEvergreen HuckleberryFantasia NectarineFinger LimeFino de Jete CherimoyaFuji AppleGala AppleGalia Melon🍅German Queen TomatoGoji BerryGolden Bantam CornGooseberryGranny Smith AppleGrapefruitGreen Zebra TomatoHardy KiwiHayward KiwiHeritage RaspberryHoneoye StrawberryHoneyberryHoneycrisp AppleHoneydew MelonIndigo Rose TomatoJackfruitJostaberry🍉Jubilee WatermelonJuliet Grape TomatoJune-Bearing StrawberryKellogg's Breakfast TomatoKey LimeKohala Longan🍍Kona Sugarloaf PineappleKumquat🍅La Roma IV TomatoLemon Boy TomatoLi JujubeLingonberryMalayan Dwarf CoconutMandarin OrangeMango

For educational and informational purposes only. Pest control advice is general guidance drawn from university cooperative extension sources; always identify a pest positively and read and follow the label on any product before use, especially around food crops, children, and pets.