Rabbits eat rose bushes and consider them a desirable food source, especially when other vegetation is scarce. The thorny nature of the rose offers little deterrence, as rabbits consume various parts of the plant depending on the season and their nutritional needs. This feeding behavior is a common frustration for gardeners, as rabbits can quickly damage young roses or destroy dormant canes during winter. Protecting rose bushes requires understanding the specific damage rabbits cause and implementing physical barriers to exclude them.
Identifying Rabbit Damage on Roses
Observing the type of damage confirms that rabbits are the culprits, allowing you to distinguish their feeding from other common garden pests. Rabbits possess sharp incisor teeth, which leaves a characteristic clean cut on the stems. This clean cut often appears at a neat 45-degree angle, making the damage look as if the stem was precisely clipped by pruning shears.
This clean, angled cut contrasts sharply with the ragged, torn, or splintered ends left by deer, who lack upper incisors and must chew and pull vegetation. Rabbit damage is typically found close to the ground, from ground level up to about two feet high. They target tender, new growth and buds during the active growing season, but also strip bark from woody canes in winter. If you find pea-sized droppings nearby, or notice plants neatly severed just above the soil line, a rabbit is likely responsible.
Seasonal Feeding Patterns and Preferences
A rabbit’s diet on a rose bush changes throughout the year, driven by the availability of other food sources and the animal’s survival instincts. In the spring and summer, when grasses and other plants are abundant, rabbits primarily seek out the soft, nitrogen-rich new shoots, tender leaves, and flower buds of the rose. This browsing is focused on the most palatable parts of the plant, often leading to the sudden disappearance of entire new canes or young seedlings overnight.
The preference shifts dramatically in the colder months when snow covers ground vegetation, making the rose bush a much more attractive food source. During the winter, rabbits turn to gnawing on the woody canes and bark, often stripping the bark entirely around the base of the plant. This bark contains the cambium layer, which is a source of energy and moisture for the rabbit when other forage is frozen or buried. When the bark is completely girdled (removed in a full circle around the cane), the vascular system is severed, and the portion of the rose above that point will die.
Protecting Rose Bushes from Rabbit Foraging
The most reliable method for protecting rose bushes from rabbits involves physical barriers, which prevent access entirely. A dedicated rabbit fence should be constructed using galvanized wire mesh or hardware cloth with openings of one inch or smaller. The barrier needs to be at least 24 to 36 inches high to prevent rabbits from jumping over it.
To stop rabbits from digging underneath the fence, the bottom edge must be buried a minimum of 6 to 12 inches deep. Alternatively, a 12-inch wide skirt of wire can be laid flat on the ground outside the fence line and secured. For individual rose bushes, a cylinder or cage made from this same hardware cloth can be placed around the plant, extending at least 2.5 feet above the ground. In winter, this barrier should extend higher than the expected snow line, as deep snow can act as a ramp for rabbits.
Using Repellents
Repellents offer a secondary line of defense and typically work by taste or smell, requiring direct application to the plant or surrounding soil. Products containing dried blood, such as Plantskydd, create a fear-based response and can provide protection for two to four weeks during the growing season and up to six months when the plants are dormant. Since repellents are often washed away by rain or irrigation, they must be reapplied regularly to protect new growth and maintain effectiveness.
Habitat Modification
Habitat modification can also help by removing nearby brush piles, long grasses, and debris where rabbits might shelter or nest. Removing these elements makes the immediate area less inviting.