Plants to help keep snakes away

Are there any plants that I can use in zone 7 that snakes do not like or tend to help keep snakes away ?

If the snakes are not poisonous ones and not overly large (some garter snakes can be a couple of feet long but completely harmless except for the normal reptile bacteria) I would keep them around.

They eat slugs, crickets, grasshoppers, voles, moles etc... We have copperheads in my neighborhood so we keep an eye out for them but there has never been a documented case of a death as a result of a bite from a copperhead (correct me if you can find documentation of a case). All the other kinds I see daily are ring-necked snakes (which are very fun for the kids to hold) and ones that look like earthworms called Eastern Wormsnakes (another favorite of my boys and I kind of like holding these ones)

Snakes are the good guys if you are a true blue gardener and squeemishness aside (my heart rattles my bones when I see one myself) they are great to have around. You will find that out of all the kinds of snakes in Maryland, only 2 of them are venomous since you also have copperheads and you have those timber rattlesnakes. The rest are not poisonous but they do carry bacteria (salmonella for one) that is not nice to us humans which is why it is a good idea to wash your hands after handling any reptile.

There are no plants that will keep them away, if you really want to get rid of them, having a lack of plants for them to hide in will do the trick. You could also use snake repellent like Snake Away or Serpentguard or any others they have out there, I don't know which one is better since I keep my snakes around. I would really research the kinds of snakes you are seeing and if they are garter snakes then do everything possible to make them feel at home...they could be your greatest ally especially if you have pests.

Hope this helps!

You could get a cat or dog. Sarah always lets me know when there is a snake around. She barks and jumps. It took 2 seasons to stop her from killing them. Now she still barks and watches, but will not harm them.
There is nothing like reaching down for a big ripe strawberry only to have something move near your hand, yeahoooo. Sure wakes me up.
Like Garity said, snakes are our friends. Well the legless ones anyhow.
Andy P

We have a big problem with black snakes here and they aren't small ones. Home is near a field so looking for other ways rather then lime and snake away. We use them all the time but have to reapply after rain.

Yes, we have a dog around but last summer had a scare with a black snake that the local vet believes was rabid based on what it was doing (basically coming after us). With a small child I don't want them anywhere near the house at this time so we keep the yard covered with lime and snake away. Just wanted to know if there was any other plant way to keep them in the field away from the house.

sraley- sorry to hear about the black snakes....I keep my snakes around as well, but I also have 4 dogs to let me know where they are....I almost picked up a black snake, I thought it was my hose, I left out.....my mistake! I didn't know about rabid base as far as black snakes go, thank you, I will pay a lot more attention when I am outside with my dogs, I also have a open field around me....Thank you for the information.....

sraley, I don't think I've seen a "small" black snake - LOL Sorry to hear you have a big problem with them - small or large! Myself, I'd prefer not to have them around, but have learned to tolerate them since moving to Virginia. They are referred to as "good snakes" for all the reasons garityann lists, but they're still creepy! I remember my first experience with one my first summer here. I freaked when I saw one sunning itself in the driveway - ran away and told a friend to "take care of him" - he walked up to him with a 2x4, ready to whack him and came back telling me it was only a black snake - they're friends!!! Although I have to admit to driving over a couple of them in the road, I now avoid them with the car and let them be, considering the problems we have with moles/voles, they're actually doing me a favor, however hard that might be to accept :)

sraley, I'm also sorry to hear about your "problem" with black snakes but I totally understand :) They're not my favorite either, however I have learned to tolerate them since moving to Virginia and I don't think I've ever seen a "small" one! I'd have to agree with garityann regarding what they're good for and although I had been guilty of killing a few who were "sunning" themselves in the road, I've since forced myself to avoid them with the car. We have a huge mole/vole problem and they're actually doing me a favor, even though their presence might be hard to accept.

FYI, I'm not sure who your vet is, but I don't believe your snake would be rabid since they are cold blooded and rabies can only be carried by warm blooded creatures :) Maybe "she" was just being protective of some babies nearby?

rcn, I was thinking the same thing about 'cold blooded' snakes. I'm not sure, but I have never heard of a snake with rabies.
Andy P

I have lived in my home for 36 years! I spend almost every day during spring and summer in my Garden and I have NEVER seen a snake...........until.............last June.

I came out and saw this black thing in my grass by my flower bed. I thought it may be a branch off my tree. Yhen, i realized it was a long, black snake. It freaked me out too, but i ran inside and got my camera and spent the next hour tracking it. It took it's sweet time crawling along the house-foundation in the back of my flower bed, disappeating now and then. I waited, and he/she started up again.

Eventually, it climbed into my old Juniper bush in front of my house. I was between the house and the bush trying to see it when, all of a sudden, i saw TWO heads!!! I stayed with them for a long time, but could not see them too well. I could see that they were coiled around each other (those hussies!) . Eventually, they both came down from the bush, still all entwined, and proceded towards the concrete base of my front steps.

Now I was really curious! Then, just like it was no big deal, they both slithered under my porch base into a hole where the concrete had cracked and the porch had settled. I took sequence pictures--yes I did! These guys were easily 5 feet long!

I have never seen them since, nor ever before June, but I know they come and go. The path is well worn.

I was all "rattled" for a while as to what to do, but I decided that I will let them be and thank them for lkeeping my premises free of mice, and chipmunks. They are a part of nature. I just don;t want to reach in somewherer to pull a weed and grab a snake! That will give me a heart attack! Gita

Here's a picture of it all streatched out.

Here it decided to stop and give me a look, as i was pretty close to it taking pictures--shaking in my boots.....

And here are the two lovers heading under my porch--still all intwined. I have NO idea if there have been or will be any progeny. If there are, what on Earth do they live on during the winter??? How do snake mamas and papas feed their young?

Non poisonous - keep them around benefical, poisonous - dogs and a good 410 or 20 guage works well.

Gitagal, snakes hibernate, so they don't eat at that time. So far as what they feed the young'uns, they don't. The little ones are on their own. They eat small bugs and anything else that can't outrun them.

Impossible to have rabid snakes, because the virus that causes rabies needs a warm body to live. Even somebody who dies of rabies no longer has a live virus load after just a few hours. Any vet who says that there is a rabid snake would not be my vet 5 minutes later. Would you take medical advice from a doctor who tells you that you dress in plain clothes and avoid rich food to insure a smooth labor after pregnancy? I have a book with such advice. Other ways to avoid pain? Stay home if your husband insists on visiting friends, avoid warm rooms, work long days on the approach of due-date, wear wool, avoid silks and linen. You should see what they recommend to prevent "self-abuse"!

Snakes are very sensitive to smell since many hunt by smell. You might try planting lots of fragrant plants - especially the aromatic herbs that would be close to the ground where the snakes are.

It sounds like an encounter with a blue or black racer.These snakes while nonpoisonous are very aggresive.They will chase animals and people alike.They also will attack doors screens exc.
where their former ,would be prey, have entered.While they are generally physically harmless they are quite unnerving.They at least in my area are rather elusive.Much more so than other snakes.

You can try planting wormwood.This deters animals in general.It will help to reduce their food source.Note this must be planted at least a foot from vegtable gardens plants/young fruit trees[especially dwarf varities].This prevents poisoning of these plants.
Are you seeing a higher number of snakes than usual for the time of year and location?

If you need help identifying snakes this link may help.
http://www.dnr.state.md.us/wildlife/snakeinfo.asp

Black snakes bluster here like crazy! The funny thing is that even the little ones do it! We have one that is at least 7' long and shows up about twice a year either in the grass or on the concrete in front of the garage doors. This one if you get near it rears up at you, it will shake its tail in the leaves and will come toward you rather than moving away. If all that doesn't work it will roll over on its back and play dead! I have a small plastic rubbermaid shed that I keep flower pots in and every once in a while a baby will find its way in there, they will raise up like a cobra and it is all I can do not to crack up laughing. The thing that is so funny is the leather gloves I am wearing are bigger than its little head. I never want them to bite into it as I figure it will hurt them! In addition to the black snakes we have ring necks and worm snakes which are so cool! Both of those allow you to pick them up and handle them, the black snakes NO WAY! If you want a good chuckle check out my post in the wildlife form: http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/593393/ about the issue I have with a particular black snake!

After reqding the nature of your plight,I think I might have an alternate solution.Try laying out an old kiddie pool.[Preferably a damaged one scavenged from friends family]near[a few foot] your hot tub.Lay it upside down propped up with a brick at the edges.Within a few days the snake hopefully will be drawn to the pool rather than your hottub.It sounds like the snake is using your hottub as a shelter.
If this doesnt work with in a reasonable lenght of time and youre a new occupant to the house,You may want to consider the possibility that the snake was a pet of the previous tenant.