Effective Deer Deterrents

Observe the yearly patterns of deer, and target your controls accordingly

It ’s hard to trust that just over a hundred age ago market hunt had almost eliminated white - dock deer from America . But because of their adaptive nature and the disappearance of innate predators , there are now more cervid than ever before . Edgar Guest staying at the Mohonk Mountain House in upstate New York , where I am the grounds superintendent , often ask how we keep the deer from feed all the industrial plant . We have 500 acres of gardens and background that border the 7,500 - Akko Mohonk Preserve , and we have a lot of deer . Over the years , we have spring up multiple strategies to prevent deer damage , and many of these methods can work out in a place garden , too . To acquire our strategies , which are based on the theory of integrated pesterer direction ( IPM ) , we became conversant with the deer ’s yearly cycle and used that timetable to specify when and where they will be eat . With this knowledge , we know the best sentence to utilise our most effective ascendence , which are fencing and repellents .

If fencing in your entire garden or belongings is a viable and stinting pick , it is by far the best scheme . Many fence manner and designs will in effect keep the deer out . The expectant considerations are esthetic , the sizing of the area to be argue , and the economic return . Since Mohonk Mountain House is a public garden and recourse , perimeter fence is not an option for us , so I erect temporary fences around specific plants and bed when I ask them .

I use Cintoflex mesh fencing , which is made from a potent plastic that has UV inhibitors for greater length of service . To build a fencing using this material I lumber rebar or tetraiodothyronine - posts into the ground , then attach the fencing directly to the post with credit card fastener . If I can install it tight to the plants , I utilise 4 - foundation - magniloquent fence . Deer do not feel well-to-do jumping over a fencing if they are going to down in trees or shrubs , so I place the fencing as close to the plants as I can without throw stems or leaves perplex through . If there is plain earth on the interior of the enclosure , I utilize 8 - foot - tall fence , rather , which usually does the antic , although an casual deer might make the leap .

Another vulgar method acting of control we use is spraying plants with repellents . I spray plant inside the fence as well as those outside because the fences can sometimes be toppled by heavy Methedrine or excessive snow . The key to winner with repellents is to start spraying them before cervid commence browsing and to change repellents ofttimes , which keeps the deer from getting used to one taste . In the 15 - acre inwardness garden area around the buildings at the Mohonk Mountain House , I use only raw - based repellents such as Deerbusters , Deer - Off , Deer - Away , Liquid Fence , Milorganite , Plantskydd , Scoot Deer , or Bobbex . These product are made from ingredients like dry rake , nutrient products , or biosolids . I have also had good hazard with Pisces photographic emulsion sprayed on the leaves , although its odor can be revolting to humans as well . I have not had near outcome with predatory animal urines . In areas away from the main edifice , I use some chemical - based materials , include Tree Guard , Thiram , Defiant , and Repellex . consequence are varying , so some experimentation may be necessary to see what works well for you .

While fencing and spraying repellents are the tactics we use most often , we have find that another salutary direction to combat cervid is to centre on the selection and care of plants . Deer like more plants than they do n’t care , so survival is a key consideration . In some surface area of the garden , I grow plants they do n’t like , including grasses , ferns , stack , and bulbs like daffodils and cosmetic onions .

favorite food source variegate regionally , so the best direction to find out what deer do n’t eat in your arena is to get in touch with your local extension agentive role . I have a list of trees , shrub , vines , medulla , and herbaceous plants the deer avoid in my garden . I share this information with regional wing office as well as with Cornell University .

We have also discover that a well - paced , balanced fertilizer programme helps . cervid dearest to eat the riotous growth on plants that results from overfertilizing , so we avoid pop the question them that tempting snack . A balanced fertiliser program also hold open our turfgrass sizeable and thus appeal to deer . In this guinea pig , since they ’re helping with the mowing , we ’re felicitous to lease the cervid graze .

We use these various control methods establish on where the cervid are in their life cycle throughout the year . These strategies have allowed us to keep the cervid damage in our garden to a level we can tolerate .

An annual timetable dictates deterrents

To make the best decisions about the timing of ascendancy methods , it is helpful to know the deer ’s seasonal spirit stage . This timeline is based on deer metal money that live in the northern half of the country , essentially north of a line drawn from Philadelphia through northern California ( above the 40th latitude ) . If you experience in the South and can limit the procreation season ( or the rut , when the bucks begin to fret their antlers and press for their territories ) you could come after the same strategy laid out here but with an adjust time table . In the southern part of the country , the breeding period is irregular because the fawning season is n’t based on the need for fawns to be bear when there is sufficient food uncommitted , as it is in the North .

January to April

SEASONAL ACTIVITY

The deer ’s metabolism slows , and they become less active to conserve DOE . This is the sturdy sentence for deer to survive .

feed habitsThey need 4 to 5 pounds of nutrient a 24-hour interval , so they will browse on any available woody plant material .

ControlCheck fence regularly . Spray repellents if there is a warm enchantment . By February move out the tree guards , because most bucks have finished shedding their antlers .

Mid-April to June

Does establish fawning territory , which can range in size of it from 5 to 20 acres . A distinctive doe gives birthing to two fawns .

Feeding habitsThe new mother need 7 to 10 hammer of food a day . The deer are now oft raiding gardens , direct sprouting herbaceous plant cloth , bulbs , emerging tree and shrub bud , and tender woody shoot .

ControlStart spray repellents before browse begins . Keep selective fence up and start to remove it gradually in May .

July to Mid-August

Fawns are develop .

feed habitsGarden raids are common and predictable . The cervid are eating mostly herbaceous stuff and occasionally woody plant .

ControlSpray repellents weekly on herbaceous plants , monthly on woody plants .

Late August to December

Bucks begin fray their antlers on trees and shrubs to throw off the velvet . The sexual practice segregate , and male provide pheromone deposits on the ground that trigger females into estrus round .

Feeding habitsDeer may spend more clock time in the Sir Henry Joseph Wood feed on mast crops like acorns , nut , and heavy fruit . When these seasonal food origin are plentiful , cervid expend much less time raiding garden .

ControlDecrease the absolute frequency of spraying repellant if the deer are not present . Place tree guards around the shorts of flora to protect them from bucks rubbing their antlers .

October to December

The rutting and facts of life cycles set out .

Feeding habitsThe deer continue eating mast crops , but raids into garden become more frequent . They exhaust mostly herbaceous material and turfgrass until a hard icing forces them to switch to woody plant .

ControlStep up the frequence of spraying repellent . By the time a hard frost hits , be installing temporary fencing material around important plants .

Effective Deer Deterrents

Temporary mesh fencing is effective at keeping deer away from plants, and it is almost invisible, especially from a distance.

Top deer-proof plants

In accession to those mentioned in the text , the following plants have never been eaten in the generator ’s garden ; your experience may differ .

perennial and annualsAngelonias ( Angelonia angustifoliacvs . , annual)Basket of gold ( Aurinia saxatilis , Zones 4–8)Bleeding hearts ( Dicentra spectabilis , Zones 3–9)Globe amaranth ( Gomphrena globosa , annual)Lambs ’ ears ( Stachys byzantina , Zones 4–8)Lantanas ( Lantanaspp . and cvs . , annual)Lily - of - the - valley ( Convallaria majalis , geographical zone 2–7)Russian sage ( Perovskia atriplicifolia , Zones 6–9)Snapdragons ( Antirrhinum majuscvs . , annual)Spider flowers ( Cleome hasslerianacvs . , annual )

Trees and shrubsBeautybush ( Kolkwitzia amabilis , zone 5–9)Chaste trees ( Vitexspp . and cvs . , Zones 6–9)Daphnes ( Daphne×burkwoodiicvs . , Zones 5–8)Shadbushes ( Amelanchierspp . and cvs . , Zones 4–9)Spireas ( Spiraeaspp . and cvs . , Zones 4–9 )

Temporary mesh fencing is effective at keeping deer away from plants, and it is almost invisible, especially from a distance.

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Attach the fencing with plastic fasteners.

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Pull the fasteners nice and tight.

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Spraying many different repellents on a rotating basis is the mainstay of the program.

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