I know this has been brought up before, but, I need help! The deer seem determined to eat my green bean plants down to only nubbins. I have tried repellants, fishing line, and dogs, and this problem just won't go away. Does anyone have any advice for me before I lost my entire bean harvest? Thanks in advance!
Serious problem with deer!
Just in case anybody ever reads this thread, I found a product that seems to work. It is Sweeneys Deer Repellent and so far no deer have come back into the garden. You hang small round "deer repellent stations" around your vulnerable plants (there are six to the package) and it will put out a smell that supposedly triggers a "flight-response" in deer. So far, so good and am keeping my fingers crossed.
I have been spreading blood meal around everywhere, and I have had good luck with Bobbex, a taste and a smell deterrent.
Blood meal? I'll have to try that around the fence. Thanks for the advice!
So far so good with the Sweeneys repellent. It hasn't really rained since we put it out. We are supposed to get rain nearly every day this week and I think that will tell the tale if this product works.
The deer incursion has devastated my bean production though. The chewed up plants can't seem to recover from it. I've put down organic fertilizer and we make sure that they get adequate water, but the bugs have now arrived in force to attack the stressed plants. I'm considering pulling them up and replanting for an early fall harvest. I've put up almost 40 pounds of beans already, I could wait to put up some more later.
I'm going to write to the county powers that be and request that they increase the number of deer that the hunters can take this winter. We are overrun with deer right now. Some of my rural neighbors have given up even trying to have a garden. On many roads around here there are dead deer that have been hit by cars, doing damage and injuring drivers in many cases. We've had a few scary moments. You have to be vigilant coming home to rural areas.
I wonder how farmers dealt with the deer problem a century ago? Lots of deer meat on the table? More natural predators?
A century ago there weren't nearly as many deer. Housing has driven them out of their former haunts so they haunt us.
We had a cull this past February but they didn't get enough! Those they did get went to shelters so good came of it.
They have eaten hundreds of lily buds, several potted hosta and two fields of hosta plantaginea. I used the Sweeney's baits and they still munched away. I've tried Blood Meal, Milorganite, I Must Garden spray, Deer Scram and wish I could say they worked but they haven't worked for me.
The best I can advise you to do is invest in enough trellises (cover them with deer mesh) to surround the beans totally. Keep the trellises about a foot away in all directions. Please let me know how it works for you.
Last year we put deer fencing around the previous vegetable garden, now a flower garden due to attacks by deer (at first), then diving crows. It's the only peace I have.
Alternatively, you could install deer fencing using rebar for the posts (still a foot away from the beans in all directions) but leave an opening so you can harvest. You'd have to tie the deer mesh to the rebar.
Pirl - Holy cow! Your problem is much worse than mine (so far!) I think that adequate deer fencing is going to be the only real way to deal with this. I seem to be losing the bean plants that were chewed on. I still have time to plant more for an early autumn crop, but It won't make up for the summer beans I could have had. Oh well.... the deer don't seem to like the squash! I really appreciate your taking the time to advise me on this. I will let you know how the new fence works! Thanks again.
Thank you for your response.
The deer also don't like asparagus, thank God!
Some kind of fencing would be required to keep the deer from your beans. I wish you luck and it seems you need it!