Gardening guru Monty Don warns that gardeners are unknowingly attracting rats to their gardens and homes during spring breeding season – and Alan Titchmarsh agrees.
Angela Patrone Senior Lifestyle Reporter
04:01, 13 Apr 2026
Gardens ‘will get rats’ if you fail to avoid Mony Don’s 1 simple warning(Image: Erwin Bosman via Getty Images)
Spring marks the beginning of breeding season for many rats, meaning you may unfortunately notice an increase in these unwanted visitors around your garden, and possibly even your home. The prospect of rats making their way indoors is enough to make anyone’s skin crawl, but in many cases, it can be prevented.
Gardening expert Monty Don has highlighted that the primary thing luring rats into your garden is compost.
Composting is a fantastic method for disposing of kitchen waste while nourishing your garden.
However, the seasoned horticulturalist cautioned that you need to be mindful of what you add to your compost heap.
The main thing attracting rats to your garden is compost(Image: Raphael Ruz via Getty Images)
Monty explained, “The real secret of compost is life to soil. Because compost is made by the material being digested by bacteria and fungi and nematodes and the worms and beetles and bugs, you make it work like a recipe that you know just works and works over time.
“So let’s look at it like a recipe. First thing is your ingredients. You can add almost anything that’s lived to a compost heap.”
However, his composting advice comes with one significant caveat. “Don’t add meat, fats or cooked material,” he said. “Particularly cooked starches like potato or rice or pasta.”
He warned: “The main reason for that is not that it won’t decompose, because it will in time, but it will do so more slowly. It will attract rodents. You will get rats.” These food items decompose extremely slowly, generate unpleasant smells, and can attract various rodents.
Television gardening expert Alan Titchmarsh also highlighted that rats are particularly attracted to compost heaps.
He said: “The place they love more than anywhere else in the garden is the compost heap. Mainly because of the heat generated by all this rotting vegetation.”
He also advised gardeners against adding fats, cooked items and meat to compost.
Alan instructed: “Don’t put processed food, anything you have cooked, any meat, or any potatoes. Don’t do that because it’s just an absolute open invitation for rats.”
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