Deer Proof Garden? Not Really

Mother deer with twin fawns

Deer damage the garden, but they also provide magical moments

There are days when I consider fencing off my so-called “deer proof garden” to completely protect the landscape from deer damage.

And then I wake up in the morning to a sight like this mother deer with her two little spotted fawns.

There’s something magical about having magnificent wild creatures wandering around my property that makes me willing to compromise on the garden.

So I’ll continue modifying my gardening practices, and try to take a philosophical approach to the deer damage – all so that I can enjoy magic moments like the one pictured here.

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Garden Defender Deer Fence

Garden Defender fence

Garden Defender fence can be ordered from www.GardenDefender.com

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Do Deer Eat Hanging Basket Flowers?

Osteospermum

Osteospermum (African Daisy or Cape Daisy) is deer resistant

One of the things I most look forward to in late Spring is getting my hanging baskets planted up. Of course, with my deer population I have to think about what annual flowers deer don’t like

The good news

First, the good news: there are some annual flowers that deer don’t eat. Anything in the daisy family will be fine. A good choice is osteospermum (African daisy), which is pictured here.  Other deer-proof annuals include marigolds, mimulus (commonly known as Monkey Flower), ageratum, calenduala, dusty miller, poppies, black-eyed susan, and nicotiana (flowering tobacco).

All herbs are deer proof

All herbs are fine, and lavender, sage and thyme make lovely additions to hanging baskets. Sage has many different varieties – just look for the latin name ‘salvia’ in the plant name and you know that you’ve got a sage. For planting in hanging baskets, be sure to get the dwarf variety of plants such as sage and nicotiana that come in different heights.

Geraniums are borderline. Depending on the year, sometimes my geraniums make it through, other times they don’t. the stronger scented geraniums are safest, as deer don’t like a strong herbal smell.

The bad news

Next, the bad news: deer do eat many, many annual flowers.

Hanging basket flowers that deer love to eat include pretty much everthing that isn’t listed above as deer-safe. In particular, deer love to eat the hanging basket favorites lobelia, petunias, allyssum, snapdragon, and begonia.

Preventative measures

The good thing about hanging baskets is by definition, they hang. You can have anything in your hanging baskets if you hang them high enough that the deer can’t reach them. But be aware that deer have been known to stand on their hind legs to reach tasty morsels!

Another preventative measure is to spray your hanging basket flowers with something that is unpalatable to deer. Common sprays include Bobbex (which actually works), cayenne pepper sprays and PlantSkyd.

A big disadvantage of sprays is that they wash off with water. So if your hanging baskets are in a place where they get rained on, you’ll have to reapply the spray after every rain. This may or may not be an issue for you, depending on how often you get rain in your area. And if your hanging baskets are under cover – such as on a porch or under the eaves – you may not need to reapply the spray as often.

As far as PlantSkyd goes – I absolutely detest the smell. Honestly, it smells like an abbatoir and nothing would make me spray that on my plants.

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Deer Proof Ferns

Japanese Painted Fern

Japanese Painted Fern

Ferns are a good choice for a deer proof garden. I grow about 15 varieties of hardy outdoor ferns and the deer seldom touch them. My favorite fern is the Japanese Painted Fern (pictured here) which has beautiful silver and burgandy coloring.

Ferns thrive in moist shady conditions. A mulch such as well-rotted leaves or cedar chips under and around your ferns will help keep the moisture in the soil. Ferns will also grow in dry shade but will not be as lush.

Here is a list of ferns that are reliably deer proof in the landscape.

Common Name Latin Name
Christmas Fern Polystichum arcostichoides
Cinnamon Fern Osmunda cinnamomea
Hayscented Fern Dennstaedtia punctilobula
Holly Fern Cyrtomium falcatum
Japanese Painted Fern Athyrium goeringianum (nipponicum)
New York Fern Thelyptens noveboracensis
Ostrich Fern Matteuccia struthiopteris
Royal Fern Osmunda regalis
Sensitive Fern Onoclea sensibilis
Wood Fern Dryopteris marginalis

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Deer Resistant Plants

Salal (Gaultheria shallon)

Salal (Gaultheria shallon)

To find out what is deer proof in your neighbourhood, look at your neighbours’ landscapes. Are there any particular plants that the deer tend to leave alone? That will give you a good idea of what the deer will leave alone in your neighbourhood.   Ask around and see if there is a general consensus among your neighbours before investing in a particular plant.

And even still, there’s no guarantee when it comes to those fickle deer. I’ll give you an example: my neighbour across the street has a gorgeous 10 foot tall Beauty Bush that suffers virtually no deer damage. You’d think I’d be safe planting a Beauty Bush, right? Think again. Any leafy growth on my poor little Beauty Bush gets nibbled back almost as fast as it appears.  I’ve now got it wired off and will leave it that way for a few years to let it gain some height.

Another important issue to consider is where do the deer travel? Look around for deer pathways, and try to avoid planting any “borderline” plants directly on their route. Deer are creatures of habit, thus they tend to travel the same pathways.

For example, I can grow the North American native plan salal (Gaultheria shallon) in most areas of my landscape, except for a certain pathway that the deer travel everyday. Any salal along that route gets nibbled, especially the tender new growth.

Here is a complete list of deer resistant plants.

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Boxwood: Deer Proof Evergreen Shrub

boxwood-shrub

Boxwood: deer proof evergreen shrub

Is boxwood deer proof? The answer is “yes”.

Keep in mind, though,  that if deer have the run of a property, they will taste just about anything new that appears.  As one writer remarked: “They’re in the restaurant and they’re going to try the entire smorgasbord.”

Boxwood is a slow-growing evergreen deer proof shrub. It can be grown “natural” (see photo of untrimmed boxwood shrub below) or trimmed into a variety of shapes (see photo of trimmed boxwood).

Boxwood is available in most local nurseries. If you prefer mail order, reputable mail order nurseries for shrubs include Rare Find Nursery, Fairweather Gardens, and Roslyn Nursery.

Generally speaking, boxwoods are slow growing. However, there are different varieties and some grow faster than others.  Check with your nursery staff.

Untrimmed boxwood shrub

Untrimmed boxwood

img_2898

Boxwood trimmed into a shape

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Advice on Deer Repellents (Video)

Deer repellents are basically anything that deer don’t like to smell or taste. One of the best tips in this short video on deer repellents is that deer get used to any repellent – so change your products from time to time. Also, deer repellents wear off so you need to reapply, especially after a rain. Or you could do what I do and forget about deer repellents and just concentrate on planting things that the deer don’t eat or can’t reach!

This video is hosted by well-known New England meteorologist and horticulturist David Epstein, from www.GrowingWisdom.com.

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Deer Proof Your Garden: 4 Foot Double Fence

A little known fact about deer is that although they are good jumpers, they don’t like to jump wide and high at the same time. Gardeners can take advantage of this by building a double fence.   Homegrown Gardens explains how this is done:

The key is to build two parallel fences, about four feet tall, and place them about four feet apart. This way, the deer trying to jump into your garden won’t try for fear of getting stuck in the gap. Planting between the fences will create even more of a visual barrier, further discouraging the deer, try a vine or a climbing rose. Prevent the deer from crawling underneath by using a picket fence for the outside barrier, or pin a wire fence to the ground with landscape staples.

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5 Ways to Deer Proof Your Garden

Deer Fencing (photo: www.americannettings.com)

Deer Fencing (photo by AmericanNettings.com)

To discourage deer from eating your garden, you have have five basic options:

1.  Fence the deer out.

Although fencing your property or garden area takes time and money, this is by far the best solution. It will save you stress and hassle in the long-term.

Fencing can range from the black netting shown in the photo at left, to wire, wood, branches or stone. The important thing about fencing is that it needs to be high enough (six or even seven feet high) or wide enough (you can get away with a four-foot fence if you use the double fence method). Also, make sure that the deer can’t crawl under it (they are amazingly adept at flattening their bodies and squirming under fencing), poke their noses through the openings, or lean on it and push it over. I speak from experience!

2. Plant things out of reach of deer.

One of the best deer proof gardening tips I ever got was from a local landscaper who advised me to put my money into one mature tall tree rather than two or three small trees. If the branches are too high for the deer to reach the tree will be off to a good start. If you’ve already bought ornamental trees and they aren’t out of reach of the deer, I suggest you put fencing or wire cages around the trees for a few years to allow the branches to grow out of reach of the deer.

3. Scare deer away.

A dog can be your best friend in the deer proof garden. Deer tend to stay away from yards that have dogs. No dog? There are gadgets on the market designed to scare away deer. These range from scarecrow type things that move in the wind (or are even motorized) to automated sprinklers and floodlights that get triggered when deer get too close.

4. Make your garden unpleasant for deer.

The most common way to make your garden unpleasant for deer is to spray bad tasting stuff on your plants. My experience with this technique is that it is time-consuming (you have to reapply the spray regularly, especially after rain) and of limited benefit.

5. Choose plants deer don’t like.

If you can’t do #1 (fencing), then choosing plants that deer don’t like is your next best strategy. Here is a list of deer resistant plants.

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Artist's Deer Proof Garden

One of the most charming deer proof gardens I have ever visited is the Yellowpoint, BC garden of  artists Grant Leir and Nixie Barton. They have their entire garden fenced with handmade willow panels. You can visit their garden during their art gallery open hours, which are 11 – 5 Thursday through Sunday.

Here are some photos that I took recently while touring their deer proof garden.

mosaic sculpture in Barton Leir garden

barton leir garden

barton leir pathbarton leir path 2

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