Help! I'm getting ready to landscape our new yard, and the deer are standing on the sidelines, salivating. What can I do to keep them from eating everything? They've already munched on my mondo grass, and eaten a Fatsia to the ground. I'm trying to choose plants that aren't appealing to them, but from what I've heard from the neighbors, that doesn't really fly. They just eat everything! Any help would be appreciated!
Leslie
help with deer
Sorry, after years of buying "deer resistant" plants, repellents, noises, lights and poachers the only thing we found that comes close to working is fencing. We fenced an entire acre. The fences run close to the kitchen but far from the garden. I can stand at the sink and watch herds up to ten less than twenty feet away and they watch me back, unabashed. I say close to working because they crashed a section of perimeter fence last month and then tore up the decorative stick fences around the kitchen garden. I think they were so tangled in creative garden decor they were spooked. Plants were not eaten but we will have a lot of clean up and repair shortly.
Deer will eat everything if they are hungry enough and most anything if they are just browsing. They will come right up to the front porch to eat the hosta planted there. I agree with Laurel on the fencing. They were eating my tomato plants and even the hot peppers. We fenced in an area about 20 x 30 just for the vegetable garden. It isn't high enough to really keep them out, but the interior fencing for the tomato plants seems to confuse them so they don't jump inside.
We also have problems on deer munching everything. Last year my husband put a fence around my vegetables garden. I haven't have any problem so far.
We gave in and put up an 8 ft fenced garden too. As far as landscaping around the house, there are a few things that have not been bothered by the deer in our 16 years here.
Jap. Plum Yew http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/125700/ (shade)
Rosemary (Makes a great shrub)
Golden Monterey Cypress http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/79403/
Lenten Roses (Hellebore)
Daphne odora
Jap. Cleyera http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/1469/
Dianthus 'Bath's Pink'
Osmanthus 'Goshiki'
Gardenia
Loropetalum
Junipers
Leucothoe (shade)
Inkberry Holly
Banana Shrub http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/1187/
Here is a pic of our fenced garden. Half is mine for flowers and the other half is DH's for veggies and annuals.
Oh, to clarify, the Leucothoe I have is Agarista popufolia http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/64852/
And to add:
Yaupon Holly
A hosta farmer told me they use electric fencing to keep the deer at bay - yes that is correct - electric fencing about 12 to 18 inches off the ground (sounds incredible and hard to believe it would be effective). He says the deer don't even bother with the thousands of hostas they grow each year even though we stepped over the fencing to pick out a few varieties to buy.