Oh Deer!

Protect Your Plants by Deer-Proofing Your Garden

They’re pretty and delicate, with large brown eyes. “Oh look! A deer!” visitors might exclaim with delight, watching the lovely woodland creature amble through your rural yard — straight for your garden.

Once at its destination, this destructive herbivore will make short work of your prized petunias and organic lettuce, while you are left to wring your hands and replant – for the second or third time. How can you prevent the damage and still enjoy the wildlife? Here are a few ideas:

Plan Ahead

First, spend some time planning ahead this year before you plant your garden or design the landscape around your home. There are a number of tools, tips and tricks to prevent your yard and garden from becoming the favorite diner of choice for local deer and rabbits too. Define the area to be protected. If you have a large yard and garden, you might consider consolidating your landscape efforts and vegetable garden to a single defendable place.


Try container gardening on your porch or deck.

Install a fence.

Plant garden varieties that are deer resistant.

Get a dog.

Consider the times deer are most likely to feed (early morning and evening, and on nights under the full moon). These are the times you must be on the most alert for catching the hungry critters, including rabbits.

If you can’t beat ‘em — consider alternatives such as planting a garden and landscape with natural plants to encourage wildlife and enjoying the viewing — and don’t worry about what gets eaten. Provide water and a salt lick for the deer in an area of your yard where they might be welcome.

Fencing

Consider putting in place a fence. Black tailed deer can easily leap over most fences. To discourage a deer from entering your yard or garden, an installed fence should be at least eight feet high. If installing a fence around an entire area is too expensive, individual plants may be protected by chicken wire, or plastic netting. Chicken wire may also be laid on the ground around the plants to discourage deer, who dislike stepping on the wire.

Make sure when putting your protective wire or mesh in place that no parts of the plant stick out through the netting where they would be in nibbling danger.

Solid natural fencing is another choice, but may take years to develop. Deer are not likely to jump over a solid hedge as they are unable to see what is on the other side. A solid plank board fence can accomplish the same purpose. To prevent the deer from seeing to the other side (and observing no danger) make sure the board fence or shrubbery is kept at least above deer eye level (around five and a half feet tall).



Plant Deer-Resistant Varieties

Deer will munch on just about anything, even plants that are labeled “deer resistant” (Note: there are no “deer-repellent” plants).

“We have a list of deer-resistant plants,” noted Lynn Green at Pioneer West in Centralia. “But people will come in all the time and say, ‘Yep, the deer ate my plant.’”

There is just one plant Green said she has learned has yet to be eaten by the deer: the Lenten rose or Christmas rose (hellebore).

“It’s a really pretty landscape plant that blooms in December. You can get it in many different colors now. Another flower deer won’t eat is a bulb, the daffodil,” she said.

Another plant variety that appears to be not so well liked are any of the strong flavored plants such as the alliums and sages. Many alliums (an onion-like bulb) are also very beautiful. But a hungry or a young deer will nibble on anything.

Many native species of plants are unappealing to deer, which is perhaps why the native species continue to thrive and do well in our landscape environment.

Bring on the Scare Factor

Deer are extremely cautious. While the scent of a human is not as frightening for many of our tame rural and small town deer visitors, and while deer will become accustomed to you, there are steps you can take to make your yard less appealing.

Consider putting unfamiliar objects around your yard, and moving these frequently. A portable circulating bird bath/fountain can be set up at different places in your garden.

Use large, unfamiliar antique items you don’t mind leaving out in the rain, to scare your deer. And example would be to lean an antique bicycle against a tree, and move the bicycle around on a weekly schedule.

Set up a fun scarecrow you can transport from place to place. Have fun with your garden decorations. The scarecrow could “wear” shiny old CD’s, or foil pie plates, and streamers.

Bring the kids into your yard. Set up a trampoline or a volleyball net near the garden and encourage fun outdoor activities.

Arm the youngsters with a “super soaker” squirt gun and have the children hide out and wait for the offender to approach.

Turn your dog loose in your fenced yard. Or set up a wire run at different locations around your yard or garden for a dog. The deer will never be quite sure how close the dog can get to them.

At Green’s home, her personal yard and garden are protected by several lines of defense.

“We have a fence, and a big dog to scare the deer,” she said. “The fence is just a chain link fence and is not that tall, but they don’t like the dog.”

To scare the smaller herbivores (rabbits) Green has more help.

“We have a cat and a wiener dog,” she laughed. “They keep out the rabbits.”

Other ideas on keeping the deer out include a popular and inexpensive choice: setting up a motion-activated sprinkler system. The same system will also discourage cats and dogs who might mistake your garden and landscape for a bathroom.

“You set it up just with a hose, and it comes on when the deer come into the yard,” Green explained. “It also scares rabbits too. But you have to move it around, or the deer get used to it.”

The bottom line in managing deer, rabbits and other perhaps unwanted visitors to your garden is to practice good management, and consider the native wildlife a joy and bonus of living in Lewis County.

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Some other deer resistant plants include:

Flowers (including bulbs)

Columbine

Foxglove

Iris

Lupine

Trillium

California poppy

Daffodil

Tulip

Shrub resistant varieties

Oregon grape

Boxwood

Dogwood

Holly

Mountain laurel

Trees

Most trees, when young, are in danger of having delicate shoots and leaves nibbled down to a stub. Make sure young trees, especially fruit trees, are protected. Wrap a cone of chicken wire and netting around the young trees.

Birch

Hawthorn

Flowering dogwood

Juniper

Spruce

Japanese flowering cherry