[CH] OT: Deer Resistance - x/p to DePepperMan

radiorlg@att.net
Fri, 07 Jul 2000 13:51:23 +0000

Just found this information on deer resistance from 
Martha Stewart's site of all places. I know how 
everyone feels about Martha (and I feel the same 
way most of the time) but I thought I would pass it on:

With more than 15 million deer in the United States, it’s
hardly a surprise that our gardens fall prey to their 
grazing. Ken Twombly has lots of experience with deer at 
his nursery in Monroe, Connecticut. And he’s found that 
although few plants are entirely deer proof, some plants, 
such as oriental poppies, forget-me-nots, peonies, 
primroses, boxwood, salvia, and ferns, are more resistant 
than others. 

Deer will eat almost anything when they’re hungry; they 
especially love new growth. To protect your garden beds, 
consider using plants that act as natural barriers. Try 
edging a bed with low-growing, deer-resistant plants, 
such as Heuchera or Pulmonaria. Deer will browse the 
edging plant, be repelled, and move on. 

PLANT LIST
DEER RESISTANT PLANTS

Euphorbia dulcis ‘Chameleon’ 
E. cyparissais ‘Fen’s Ruby’
Salvia nemorosa ‘Blue Hill’
Spirea nipponica
Boxwood, Buxus sempervirens 
Heuchera ‘Regal Robe’
Lungwort, Pulmonaria longifolia 
Japanese Painted Fern, Athyrium nipponicum var pictum 
Pieris japonica ‘Valley Valentine’ 

It isn’t much of a problem for people living in heavily
populated, urban areas, but for those in the country and 
the suburbs, deer can become a bane to the garden when 
they trample and eat your foliage. People have developed 
a number of tricks to deal with this difficulty—some of 
them effective, others that don’t work at all. Ken 
Twombly, owner of Twombly’s Nursery in Monroe, 
Connecticut, has a good deal of experience cordoning 
gardens from the reach of deer. Today, he shares some of 
his strategies and dispels a few myths.


Deer, are creatures of habit, always approaching the same 
locations at the same times. The trick to confounding 
them is convincing the deer that each trip to your garden 
will be a waste of their efforts, that they will 
encounter the same deterrents with every visit. A fence 
is a good start, but deer have been known to jump over 
twelve-foot fences. However, a five-foot fence will act 
as a barrier simply because the deer can’t see what’s on 
the other side. If you choose to use a mesh fence, make 
sure it’s about seven-and-a-half feet tall, and check 
frequently for holes. 

Tapes of barking dogs, pie tins, and bags filled with 
human hair are sometimes thought to work, but in
reality, they are unsightly, noisy, and minimally 
effective.

On the other hand, sprays such as Tree Guard are very 
effective. Tree Guard was originally developed as a 
dental anesthetic but had an exceptionally bitter
aftertaste, which is what makes it a hindrance to deer.

There are, however, two downsides: You must be
diligent in applying sprays, and many leave a whitish 
residue on the leaves (but this is better than having no 
foliage at all, says Ken). Apply it once in the fall and 
again in the spring. Another idea is to hang small 
hotel-size bars of soap out of sight on the inner
branches of a shrub or tree. The deer are repelled by the 
oil, which has kept them away>

I hope this helps out the folks, like me, who have to 
deal with deer eating their plants.

RisaG