Landscaping one's own garden is a great hobby, which many people find relaxing, and in addition, the final results of all the hard work are very rewarding. Unfortunately, though Mother Nature flourishes the earth all kinds of beautiful gardening options, she also allows rodents and other animals to run free, which can be detrimental if they get loose in your garden.

To combat this problem there are chemicals you can spray that will help deter animals from creeping through your flowerbeds and making a snack out of your azaleas, but part of the reward of creating a beautiful garden is to do it as naturally as possible. While these chemicals can be helpful, they can at the same time be harmful to certain plants.

Foregoing this option, the only other one you are left with is garden gnomes. Garden gnomes are cute and create a great ambiance of fun in any garden; however, most rodents and cats do not always fear the gnomes like they should. So what else is there to try if the gnomes were your last option?

Well, there is always a garden Buddha. Garden Buddhas are a growing trend amongst the green thumb fanatics of society. But don't go looking in your local nursery or any of the big chain stores for this item. They don't carry it. In fact, they probably won't have heard of it and may even look at you like you're crazy when you ask.

This is not an obstacle though. You can easily find the garden Buddha you want by shopping online, a faster and more convenient method than going to the store anyway, just point click, pay, and a week later your Buddha will be at your front door.

It should be mentioned though, that there is a catch to the garden Buddha. Yes, it will detract animals from snacking on your garden; however, it won't keep them away. I know, I know, you are asking yourself why you just spent the last 90 seconds reading this article if a garden Buddha is not going to keep animals away, but think about it. You don't want to use chemicals and garden gnomes don't work, which makes the Buddha your best option because it at least keeps the animals from eating the plant life.

So how is it that a Buddha manages to keep rodents from destroying your garden, yet does not deter them from walking in it? It's not really quite clear. Maybe it has to do with mystical, magical properties. Who knows? For some reason though, animals are drawn to the big round Buddha belly. You're apt to find the neighborhood cats sunning themselves curled up next to him occasionally, but at least they are not destroying your garden.

If the results a garden Buddha brings are not satisfactory enough for you, then you can always try spraying fox urine around the perimeter of your garden, but think about it, do you really want stinky animal urine surrounding your garden?