The Deer Buffet

I’m often asked, “What can I do about keeping the deer away from my garden?” Nothing is more upsetting to the gardener or landscaper than to spend days designing and planting a beautiful garden or landscape, only to have it eaten by deer.

My short answer is: “Using plants that deer don’t like in the landscape may prove to be the most effective and economical way to deter deer. Good planning and a little patience will help deer-proof your landscape and garden. The most logical method of creating the deer-proof garden is to mimic nature.”

Gaillardia Mesa Yellow- many fuzzy leaf plants are unappetizing to deer.

Deer will avoid all of the varieties of Antirrhinum majus – shown Snapdragon ‘Twinny Peach’

Mixed flower bed can contain a few plants that deer may browse but they will avoid them when surrounded by untasty blooms.

The Deer Facts by Kathy Lillywhite

Gardening in deer country is not impossible but there are some things one should know. The mule deer (Odocoileus heinous) with their large fuzzy ears and bright dark eyes, need 5 to 10 pounds of food per day. One of the worst damaging thing they do to the garden is called browsing.

The next worst thing is rutting. This is when a buck uses his antlers to rub the bark off your favorite newly planted tree.

We will discuss deer browsing first.

Browsing is a pattern of feeding in which the deer, bucks, does and fawns (the little spotted cute ones) select tender shoots, blossoms, twigs, leaves off plants, trees and shrubs. Their taste can change and browsing your garden depends primarily on the season, the deer’s nutritional needs and abundance or lack of abundance of their favorite foods. When preferred foods are scarce, deer will eat just about anything.

There are various ways to protect a garden from deer browsing but most are temporary. 

This beautiful flower bed has an assortment of flowers that deer don’t like so Mariam can keep it beautiful and the deer just walk by.

1. Chemical and organic repellents, homemade or purchased that have varying degrees of effectiveness. Most are odorous with the use of rotten egg smell that deer don’t like but raccoons love. I’ve tried most of them and the stinkier (sic) the better. “Liquid Fence”, “Shake-Away”,(powdered coyote urine). I’ve even made the haul to Hogle zoo and lugged a gunny sack of stinky mountain lion dung back home. (I told you I’ve tried everything!) Some of these repellents claim you can go 3 or 4 weeks between applications.

Hide the tasty ones among the less savory. Pictured tall sweet Phlox

Other repellents are based on a very bad taste they call bitrex. “Repelex” comes in spray-on variety as well as tablets that can be planted with your shrubs or plants. The taste remains in the soil for years—you can taste “bitter” as you dig around. I have had the most success with using the pellets and spray-on combined. One year (‘m gloating now) I actually had tulips blooming, right out along the street. Repelex and other effective ones, such as “Deer Guard”, contain a latex-based spreader-sticker which stays on through many rain and irrigation dowses. All spray-on repellents must be re-applied to new growth. That means every few days or at least weekly. I have tried most of the spray-ons such as, ”Deer Out”, “Not Tonight Deer”, “Hinder” (This one is promoted to be ok for vegetables and fruit and inoffensive to humans! I don’t know about the taste of the fruit…you’ll have to ask the deer!),

There are various other remedies such as soap, human hair, loaded baby diapers, radios playing talk stations. Anything that suggests humans are present are not effective because the deer are not afraid of man, woman or child any more.

This garden has systemic repelex to keep deer off Blanche’s coleus.

2. There are various electronic sound devices and water-motion sensors, that may be costly (depends on how many plants they save and how many silk blouses they ruin) but can be effective. I have used the Scarecrow- battery powered, motion sensor, blasting the deer with water. The cost if you order on line has come down from $129 to $69.

I found that the Scarecrow repellent was good when all systems were in place. The unit has to be hooked up to a garden hose. Batteries must be fresh and the unit must be adjusted in the correct direction. If you forget that it’s on, you or your guests may get a good soaking. I got tired of getting “it” so I eventually just turned the water off and rolled up the garden hose.

There are other electronic devices that I have not tried. Some attract the deer with scents and then zaps them with electronic volts. (400v) which isn’t much but the manufacturers claim they work. “Herd” is one that runs on 2AA batteries that lasts 1 year. Sells for $69.95. There are others, “Scare Wars” and “Gardener Ultrasonic” that uses radio and computer technology and LP gas cannons. The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension issued a warning that ultrasonic sound waves that animals hear are the same as what humans hear…so beware that they may not be effective.

3. Physical barriers such as the seven foot high fence (along with a big dog!) provides the best means of protection. However, deer can squeeze through a small break and have been known to crawl under fences as well. Fences are not always the answer as they are highly visible and can detract from the aesthetic beauty of the property. They can also be the perfect solution.

I have also used fish line, bird netting, and various booby traps. Deer do not see well and things that get their feet tangled can frustrate them…somewhat. I had some rose bushes encircled with several metal edging pieces and one night I heard the worst commotion. A deer had gotten his hoof caught in the metal, fallen down and couldn’t get the metal piece off. After thrashing around, destroying my rose garden, I went to see if I could help. He leaped down the hill and the metal piece went flying.

I hate to admit but I’ve thrown knives, forks and serving pieces off the balcony trying to get them to go away, and once tried my son’s bow and arrow (couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn). And I’ve chased, yelled and screamed at them, they always return for Act II.

Also, feeding the deer, on the presumption that they’ll act mannerly and eat only what is put out for them does not work. They will browse all the way to the feed bin and back again! As well, deer can not read signs that say “for birds only”.

 

4. Plant plants that don’t attract the deer and they don’t particularly like. Again, if deer are hungry enough there isn’t much they won’t eat.

Using plants that deer don’t like in the landscape may prove to be the most effective and economical way to deter deer. Good planning and a little patience will help deer-proof your landscape and garden. The most logical method of creating the deer-proof garden is to mimic nature. Observe the native plants that deer leave alone and draw from that knowledge. Identify other members of that immune plant family and those plants will usually prove to be resistant as well. (Such as beard tongue growing in the wild belongs to the genus digitalis.) Toxicity is perhaps one of the most common reasons for deer to leave a particular plant alone. The Ranunculus is another good example of a plant that is poisonous to deer and other grazing animals.

Deer will avoid poisonous plants like foxglove and ranunculus

There are about 400 species of annuals and biennials that are listed as deer resistant. Some species that you’ll recognize are: buttercup, bachelor’s buttons, crowfoot and spearwort and the bulb spring flowering ranunculus. Daffodils and all of the narcissus family members are poisonous to deer as well. You will see many varieties of Black eyed Susans, growing in the wilds- untouched by deer. I’ve always enjoyed a stand or two of Rudbekia ‘Goldsturm’ in my garden, these are real work horses and are as cheerful as the sunflower.

Rudbekia ‘Golsturm’

The echinacea otherwise known as cone flower, has so many new varieties- they are fun and worry free. Try some of the new exotics. This beauty is fast becoming one of my favorite flowers.

 

Echinacea ‘Double Delight’

The next worse thing to browsing is deer rutting. A buck uses his antlers to rub the bark off the tree trunk. I lost a beautiful 4 year old magnolia tree to this rubbing. The tree could have survived the first rubbing but the buck came back to damage the other side! As we all know, young trees have very thin bark that offers no protection from such damage. The cambium (the bright green layer under the bark) is only a cell or two thick. The cambium provides the tree with a vascular system. A girdled tree often dies because it can’t transport water and nutrients.

A damaged tree from a rutting buck.

A buck loves to rub his antlers on young, flexible trees to remove the velvet that covers them. Not because the drying velvet is itchy; antlers have no nerve endings. Bucks rub their antlers on trees to attract receptive does and to demarcate territory warning other bucks to stay away. They also simulate battle with other bucks on these trees, perhaps to strengthen their neck muscles in preparation for the real thing.

Picture taken in my own garden a few weeks ago

It is possible that a buck will come back to rub on your tree again. It’s important to protect it. You should surround the tree with a 6 foot barrier that will keep a determined deer away from the tree trunk. This can be made of rebar and wire mesh. Or you can purchase from Tuscan Garden Works- two halves of an obelisk style trellis that will hook together. These are very attractive and can be re-used for trellising roses or other climbing plants when you remove them from the tree. Spray-on repellents are not effective in controlling buck rubs.

Just a note on treatment of a tree that has been damaged by a buck: Don’t put a wound dressing or paint on the tree. Trees are capable of healing a surprising amount of damage on their own. You may want to do something for your tree- even a Band-Aid. But the best thing will be to only cut the shaggy bark away and let the tree will heal it’s self.

After loosing my magnolia tree and realizing that a brazen buck had staked out my garden as his area…I was livid! That’s when I purchased three of the Scarecrow motion sensors for the back and side yard.

Deer are creatures of habit, once a new feeding area is found to be to their liking, future damage is easily predictable. Deer have learned to adapt to the changes we have imported to their environment. They have lost their fear of “man” and have adjusted their feeding schedule to avoid us and our dogs.

Zinnia ‘zahara starlight’ one of the fuzzy flowers which deer resist.

Ornamental grasses and sedums are not favorites on the deer buffet.

Aromatic foliage is more often than not shunned by deer. Some plants that have pungent aromas are: basils, lavenders, thymes and yarrows (Achillea), monarda (bee balm), and artemisia. But If you classify the geranium and pelargonium as “smelly” plants, deer like them.

Fuzzy and prickly foliage is generally disagreeable to deer, unless they are very hungry. Lambs ear(Stachys byzantina), Rose Campion, Rudbeckia, Echinacea, and verbascum, hollies, barberry, Oregon grape and pines are examples of plants with fuzz and prickles that deer seem to leave along, unless very hungry. The new growth on roses is very succulent and deer love the buds and flowers but generally leave the old thorny stems alone.

I love the Zinnia. Deer don’t!

The following lists include plants that the deer generally leave alone. Sometimes they browse on these plants in winter or early spring but by mid-summer you can count on them to not be preferred as deer “buffet”.

Trees

Mature trees can withstand deer browsing, as it affects only the lower leaves and branches, but young trees and sapling are more accessible and easily harmed. Deer lack upper front incisor teeth, so they must rip branches off, leaving very ragged edges. They reach branches as high as six feet by standing on their hind legs. Cages can be constructed around individual trees and shrubs using chicken wire and rebar or have something beautiful custom made by Tuscan Garden Works!

 

Deer Resistant Trees: American Holly (Ilex opaca) American Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) Atlas Cedar (Cedrus atlantica) Birch, (Betula papyrifera, pendula) Bitternut Hickory (Carya cordiformis) Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacia) Chinese Chestnut (Castanea mollissima) Colorado Spruce (Picea pungens) Common Honeylocust (Gleditsia triacanthos) Corkscrew Willow (Salix matsudana) Dogwood (Cornus kousa) European Hornbeam, (Carpinus betulus) Golden Chain Tree (Laburnum anagroides Green Ash (Fraxiunus pennsylvanica) Hawthorn (Crataegus) Hinoki Cypress (Chamaecyparis obtuse) Magnolia (magnolia) Maidenhair Tree (Ginkgo biloba) Northern Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa) Norway Spruce (Picea abies) Pine, Pitch, Mugo, Red, Scots (Pinus) Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum) Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)

Deer Resistant Shrubs: Boxwood (Buxus sempervirens) Bush cherry (Prunus avium) Bush Cinquefoil (Potentilla fruticosa) Butterfly Bush (Buddleia davidii) Cotoneaster (catoneaster horizontalis) Deciduous Azaleas (Rhododendrom spp.) Firethorn (Pyracantha coccinea) Forsythia (forsythia) Holly (Ilex aquifolium) Japanese Barberry (Berberis thunbergii) Lilac (Syringa vulgaris) Mountain Laurel (Kalmia latifolia) Oregon Grape Holly (Mahonia aquifolium) Russian-Olive (Eleagnus angustifolia) Spirea (Spiraea) Viburnum (Viburnum) Weigela (Weigela florida) Witchhazel (Hamamelis)

Deer Resistant Perennials: Adam’s Needle (Yucca filamentosa) Alyssum (Alyssum) Aster (aster) Astilbe (Astilbe) Baby’s Breath (Gypsophila) Basket of Gold (Aurinia saxatilis) Beebalm (Monarda didyma) Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia maxima) Campion (Lychnis coronaria) Catnip (Nepeta) Columbine (Aquilegia) Common Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) Coreopsis (Coreopsis) Dame’s Rocket (Hesperis) False Indigo (Baptisia) Boltonia (Boltonia) Dusty Miller (Centaurea cineraria) False Lupin (Thermopsis) Flax (Linum) Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia) Forget-Me-Not (Myosotis) Foxglove (Digitalis) Gaillardia (gaillardia) Goldenrod (Solidago hybrids) Hellebore (Helleborus) Iris (Iris) Jacob’s Ladder (Polemonium caeruleum) Lamb’s Ear (Stachys byzantina) Larkspur (Delphinium elatum) Lavender-cotton (Santolina) Loosestrife (Lysimachia salicaria) Lupine (Lupinus) Meadow-Rue (Thalictrum) Meadowsage (Salvia) Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria) Monkshood (Aconitum carnichaelii) Peony (Paeonia officianalis) Poppy (Papaver) Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea Purple Rock-cress (Aubretia deltoidea) Red Hot Poker or Torch lily ( Kniphofia) Rock-Cress (Arabis caucasica) Rose Mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos) Russian Sage (Perovskia x hybrida) Scabious (Scabiosa) Snakeroot (Cimicifuga) Sneezeweed ( Helenium autumnale) Soapwort (Saponaria) Speedwell (Veronica) Sundrops (Oenethera) Valerian (Centranthus) Wormwood (Artemisia schmidtiana) Yarrow (Achillea)

Deer Resistant Groundcovers: Barrenwort (Epimedium grandiflorum) Bearberry (Arctostaphyllos uva-ursi) Bergenia (Bergenia) Bugle Weed (Ajuga reptans) Dead Nettle (Lamium maculatum) Ferns (ferns) Ginger (Asarum) Hens-and Chicks (Sempervirens tectorum) Lady’s Mantle (Alchemilla) Lavender-Cotton (Santolina chamaecyparissus) Lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis) Pachysandra (Pachysandra terminalis) Periwinkle or Myrtle (Vinca Minor or major) Snow-in-Summer (Cerastium) Sweet Woodruff (Galium) Deer Resistant Vines: Bittersweet (Celastrus scandens) Fiveleaf Akebia (Akebia quinata) Fox Grape Vine (Vitis labrusca) Goldflame Honeysuckle (Lonicera x heckrottii) Japanese Wisteria (Wisteria floribunda) Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) Deer Resistant Annuals: Lobelia (Lobelia erinus) Moonflower (Ipomoea alba) Nassaturtium (Tropaeolum majus) Snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus) Zinnias Deer Resistant Bulbs: Autumn Crocus (Colchicum) Common Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis) Crown Imperial (Fritilaria imperialis) Giant Ornamental Onion (Allium giganteum) Glory-of-the-snow (Chionodoxa) Narcissus, Daffodils, and Jonquils (Narcissus) Siberian Squill (Scilla Siberica) Snowflake (Leucojum) Striped Squill (Puschinia) Winter Aconite (Eranthus)