greene said:If it is happening during the day it may be squirrels; they are naturally curious and love to dig. If it's happening at night it could be skunks. Some of the fertilizer stakes have an ingredient including fish which could be very attractive to a critter. You could try hammering the stakes in farther into the ground and tacking a piece of hardware cloth over the area to prevent digging.
Shadegardener said:Critters do like to dig in freshly disturbed earth. I usually have that problem when planting in the spring. You can try sprinkling some cayenne pepper over the spot and replenish it if it rains or snows. That usually works for me.
dyzzypyxxy said:Moles eat bugs like lawn grubs and stuff. Wouldn't think they would have any interest in fert spikes.
wildflowers said:I know exactly what you are talking about, weed, we live out in the woods. It must be a guy thing.
I'm guessing it was most likely a wild dog or fox, something with a good sniffer looking for food. That's why whatever it was kept digging passed the fertilizer spike, they were searching for something more tasty, like a ground mole, vole, or other ground creature. And, that's why the urine worked to deter them.
wildflowers said:There is a chance it could have been a domestic animal, dog or cat running loose. All of my dogs like the smell of blood and bone meal fertilizer. One of them in particular has a very keen sense of smell and will dig up small ground animals, he finds everything! Sometimes they dig things up that I have no idea what it is they are smelling.