How To Keep Deer Out Of Garden

How To Keep Deer Out Of Garden

There is nothing more beautiful, than looking out your window and watching deer graze peacefully, unless they happen to be grazing in YOUR garden! Do you ever have that issue? Have you wondered how to keep deer out of garden? Well, you have come to the right place! I will share a few tips with you on how to keep deer out of garden.

Everyone knows the best way to keep deer out of garden is a fence or cover, but while everyone knows this, not everyone can afford to do it. The purpose of this article is to look at the least expensive, easiest and environmentally friendly methods of deterring Bambi and any other uninvited dinner guest.

Dogs:
Dogs are excellent deterrents unless they are in a pen. If kept in a pen the deer will soon learn the dog is of little threat to them. Deer are highly adaptable and quickly learn what is and what is not an actual threat. If your dog can not safely run free, then you may want to consider a motion-triggered device such as a light or radio. Bright sensor lights work to scare deer at night while the radio or alarm set with a motion trigger work great in the day.

Scent Repellents:
You may also consider allowing your dog to mark areas around your garden if he is willing to oblige. There are many commercially-deer repellents available such as fox urine, coyote urine, or wolf urine these products require frequent reapplication especially after it rains and thus can become quite costly. Another natural repellent is to put human hair clippings around the garden, as deer smell the human scent and stir clear.

Shiny & Noisy Objects:
Shiny objects such as old CD’s, DVD’s or tin pie pans attached to a string and blowing in the wind reflect light during the day and are helpful for spooking the deer as they have a hard time figuring out what it is. Pie tins work great when you put a few near each other and they can clink together to make some noise too.

Crop Selection:
Many find it helpful to plant crops that deer do not like as a border or around plants the deer prefer to help turn them away. You may wish to try bee balm, chives, garlic, iris, oregano, rosemary, or other highly fragrant herbs, however, avoid roses as deer seem to find them delicious!

Pepper Spray:
Then there is always hot pepper spray, not only do deer find it objectable but so do rabbits and most bugs. You can buy it or make your own using the following recipe.

Put one quart of water in a pot. Add one-half cup of dried hot peppers such as cayenne or about a dozen chopped cayenne peppers. Bring water and peppers to a boil and then turn off the heat and allow cool. Strain out peppers and add a few drops of non-toxic dish liquid for sticking power. Place the liquid into a spray bottle label and date. You are now ready to spray!

You should re-apply spray every 3-5 days depending on how bad your problem is, and after each rainfall.

CAUTION: Red pepper spray is hot, so use caution so that it does not come in contact with your eyes or skin. If using spray on vegetables that are ready for harvest be sure to wash off residue before eating.

Fishing Line Fence: 
Like some humans, deer are reddish green color blind, their color vision is limited to short blue and middle green so if you’re going with fishing line go with blue. The blue fishing line is almost invisible to deer however when they brush up against it they become spooked, why? Because they can’t tell exactly what touched them. True the deer could easily force their way trough the fishing line, but they are reluctant to challenge or jump what they can not see well. I would recommend at least a 10-pound test monofilament line.

This type of fence is easy to install with 4-6 foot T-post, driven in the ground about every 12-16 feet and spacing the line at one-foot intervals on the post. Don’t hang anything on the line, as the object is to make it as invisible to the deer as possible. This way is not one of my favorite ways on how to keep deer out of garden. While it does work, when you use it, you do also run the risk of some animals getting tangled in the line. So that makes this one of  the last things to try on my list.

If you found this post on hot to keep deer our of garden helpful, you may also want to check out a few of these others.

• How To Keep Rabbits Out Of Your Garden
• Hydroponic Gardening 101
• Seed Saving – A Beginner’s Guide
• 7 Signs You Are Over Watering Plants