Rabbits have taken over the backyard this year, and they aren’t the slightest bit afraid me. Some of the younger ones will stand 5 feet away as I water plants or pull weeds.
I keep all but one annual bed encased in a 3-foot-high chickenwire fence these days or I wouldn’t sleep at night. Last year the bunnies ate all the marigolds and zinnias in that unprotected bed and even started nibbling on my tomatoes.
Even though there are twice as many rabbits this summer, they’ve left that bed alone. I did spray Repels-All on the zinnias and marigolds in late May and again in early July, so that may be what’s saving those plants. My other theory is that in this hot, drought-y summer, the bunnies don’t want to shave down the plants too far or they’ll lose some good shade in a spot that’s regularly watered (so the soil is a bit cooler on their bellies).