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Health & Fitness

Yes, You CAN Outsmart the Deer!

If the flowers in your garden have become a gourmet treat for deer, there are ways to get your garden back!

Ask anyone who gardens in West County what the most dreaded enemy in the garden is.  Japanese Beetles?  Moles?  Squirrels?  Nope.  It’s deer.  The same majestic creatures that dot the landscape can also ruin trees, shrubs, flowers and a gardener’s spirit.  But, it doesn’t have to be that way. 

There are many ways  to keep the deer out of your garden and keep them moving down the road for dinner. 

First, are you diligent about selecting plants that are deer resistant? Any good gardener knows that deer-resistant one year is NOT deer resistant the next- you’ve got to be on your toes. I can tell you some plants that they NEVER browse.

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Almost all herbs are deer resistant.  

Grow lavender, rosemary, chives, sage and thyme with abandon.  Many popular annuals are deer resistant. Lantana, Dusty Miller, Ageratum, Vinca, Coleus and Marigolds are good choices. Deer abhor many perennials.

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All ornamental grasses, Russian Comfrey, Sweet Woodruff, Solomon’s Seal, Russian Sage, Castor Bean, Acanthus, Iris and Daffodils have never been browsed in my yard. 

There are plants that deer just LOVE and you’re better off not planting them unless you want to live in a state of continual frustration. Impatiens, Hosta, Roses, Hydrangeas, Salvia top that list.

I endured heartbreak many years ago concerning my beloved David Austin Roses. I had a lovely rose bed with a vintage birdbath in the center. I was giving a wedding for a friend and the roses were going to be the cake topper. I walked outside the day before the wedding to get the mail. Something looked different- the deer had nibbled ALL of the roses! Not even a bud remained.  I was beyond frustrated and admit to being a little wacko by this point. 

When the wedding was over, I got rid of the roses and planted an herb bed. It is almost as lovely as the roses were, plus I have fresh herbs for cooking and lavender bouquets all summer long.

If you plan on adding some trees and shrubs to your landscape this spring, you might want to bring some “Liquid Fence” home along with your plant material. Young, pliable plant material is very tasty to deer. They will devour tender Dogwood, Magnolia, Hydrangea, Red Bud and more.

A few years ago my Dad gave me the most beautiful ‘Bracken’s Beauty’ Magnolia for my birthday. It’s my favorite tree.  As summer wore on, I was lulled into a false sense of security. The deer didn’t nibble on it at all. I stopped spraying it with Liquid Fence. Sure enough a few weeks later, as I was weeding, I saw it. They ripped off all the lower branches!  And they just LEFT THEM! If they’re going to destroy the tree at least eat the leaves!    

Like a crazy person I ran to fill up my sprayer with Liquid Fence. I sprayed and sprayed.  But, the damage was already done. It’s still living, but my heart sinks every time I pass by it.  It’s become a mere image of its former, majestic self.

Another way to keep deer out of your gardens is to erect a deer fence. Instructions and photos on how to construct the fence will be in my next blog entry.

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