Creative Ways to Deer Proof Your Backyard or Garden
Deer Proof Plants
Do these plants really exist or work? If you surf the net, you can find lots of plants that could be used for lessening the intrusion of deer in a garden or yard. Unfortunately, if hungry, the deer will eat anything. Sometimes they won’t leave out even cactus. But still, we can look at the plants that are less preferred by deer.
Native plants that grow in the native habitats might prove less attractive to deer, compared to the highly fertilized, watered and colorful garden plants. The bottom line is that, the most deer proof plants are those that have the strongest scent. Here’s the list, anyway –
• Shrubs
• Sage – Preferably Russian ones with extreme fragrance
• Yucca – The ones featuring sharp and stiff points
• Lead plants
• Potentilla
• Copper rose – Preferably the Austrian ones
• Quince
• Spirea – Preferably the 'Blue Mist' variety
• Winged euonymus
• Golden currant
• Lilacs
• Pyracantha
• Ground Covers
• Oregon grape holly
• Prostrate Rosemary
• Perennials
• Bearded Iris
• Garlic Chives
• Rosemary
• Spined Prickly Pear Cactus
• Yarrow
• Angel Trumpet
• Bouncing Bet / Soapwort
• Mint
• Larkspurs
• Marigolds
• Periwinkles
• Zinnias
• Spider Flower
• Geranium – Preferably the native and wild varieties
• Bee Balm
Deer Repelling Sprays
There are a wide range of deer proof sprays to keep the deer off from your field. These repellents could be homemade or you can simply purchase online. Your local home improvement or gardening supply store sell them too. But be choosy while selecting your deer sprays. While some are really good, substandard sprays put horrible odor and unpleasant spots on the plants.
If you use sprays, make sure you do it in early spring. You should keep going till fall. Majority of the deer repelling sprays must be reapplied at 2 or 3-month intervals, as a minimum. Spraying every 2 weeks can help as well - especially if you’re living in a place where the climate is humid and there are lots of rains. Newly grown plants are deer's favorite. So put these repellent just when these plants start sprouting. Deer are easy to deter if you don’t allow them to develop a habit of feeding on your garden’s greenery.
Likewise, you should avoid spraying when it’s about to rain. Spray especially on the non-windy days as the temperature is likely to be at 40 degrees at least. But don’t forget to change it over occasionally, as deer might get used to the foul odors and tastes. Instead, just altering the deer repellent spray you use makes good sense. And be sure the check the active ingredient before you switch to a new one. The big idea behind changing the brand or product is changing the active deer proof ingredient.
Nevertheless, some brands are out there which do use the similar active ingredient, but the strength varies with their different products. So be smart about rotating your repellent or ingredients each and every season. Most of all, see if the product is natural, biodegradable and eco friendly. A gallon concentrate of a product can be turned into as much as 16 gallons and will cover space as vast as 32,000 sq. And there are thousands of recipes if you want to make homemade deer sprays.
Fencing options
For starters, trying the fencing option is good. Sadly, those pretty and picket varieties won't do. If you want effective fencing, make sure it’s between 4 and 7 feet high. From the land level, you also need to fit it at 45 degree angle. Nevertheless, the electrified variety also remains your option. But people in modern times do want to go for polypropylene mesh deer fencing because of the durability and neat look they come with. Actually, the look of these fencing is neat in a sense that it’s close to invisible if you look at it from a distance. Then again, this deer proof fencing is strong enough for keeping the deer out without causing any harm to them.
There are other chemical-free options that combine high-end technologies like motion sensing, light sources, water repellants, ultrasonic noise repellants or even simple solutions like scarecrows or an FM radio to make your garden or yard deer proof.
