Getting Rid of Deer in Your Yard
 (Read 100+ times)
By Glory Lennon
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I once was fascinating by the sight of a sweet deer slowly striding into my yard to nibble on this or that plant. Of course that was when they were eating plants at the house I was renting. Now I’m at my own house, in my own yard and they’re eating stuff I paid for and planted myself. They no longer seem very sweet.
Fences were put up but deer jump as much as twelve feet straight up and right over if they know there’s something tasty on the other side. They loved my apples. It was a good thing I had enough to share because my six-foot high fence didn’t stop them at all.
Since I couldn’t stop them from getting into the yard I searched for other means to protect my plants. Around young trees I placed cages of sturdy galvanized welded wire to protect the trunks. The deer like rubbing their antlers on tree trunks. They do this to remove the velvet and get them sharp and ready for rutting or mating season. The cages also helped keep rabbits from chewing on the bark.
I’ve read about ten different lists of plants deer won’t eat and I came to the conclusion that my particular herd of deer completely disregarded these lists. It seems when they get hungry enough they’ll eat anything. Nothing is safe. So, I threw out these useless lists and did some observing. The deer went for bright green leaves and avoided my herb garden. That meant they didn’t like smelly plants. That I could use. I planted chives amongst my Hosta, which they had devoured the year before. The chives saved my Hosta. I was on the right track. They hate mint, basil, oregano and garlic thus these were planted in the front of my flower beds. The deer turned their nose and moved on.
I heard somewhere that deer search for plants with high content of chlorophyll which is what makes the plants bright green. Now I knew why they never touched Silver Miller, Lamb’s ear and Artemisia, all silvery-leafed plants. Texture seems to be something else they have a problem with. They don’t like prickly plants such as shrub roses, Raspberries, Barberry, Juniper and Holly nor fuzzy ones like Borage and Hollyhock. They’re also smart enough to avoid poisonous plants. They may eat Tulips, which are not poisonous but the Daffodil they leave alone as well as Foxglove (Digitalis), Monk’s Hood and Lenten Roses.
There are plenty of products to buy that supposedly work to rid you of deer but they tend to be costly and don’t last for very long. If it rains in most cases you have to re-apply. What good is that? But if you want to try you could whip up your own concoction by blending together a large onion, a whole bulb of garlic, several jalapeno peppers with some water. Let this sit for a day then hold your nose and strain into a squirt bottle. Drop in a squirt of dish soap and fill the rest with water. You can spray this on plants you know the deer like. If you do it often enough they might remember not to come back because they know your plants stink and taste badly.
The one fool-proof way I learned to protect your garden from deer is a big, mean dog. Well, not necessarily mean but loud will do. If allowed to roam the yard your plants will be left alone for good. Lassie’s good for something, huh?
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Author Bio Box: Glory Lennon
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