UGA Cooperative Extension

Bryan County Extension
Agriculture & Natural Resources

Deer In The Landscape

It's part of this county agents job to receive and answer calls with regards to horticulture, wildlife, chemicals, crops, diseases and insects. And over the last few weeks with the drought in full swing you would think that most phone calls would be on how to save my lawn, or what can I do to conserve water but, it hasn't been. The number one question asked is: "What can I do about my visitors of the night that prune my roses or eat my day lilies?" Those silent visitors of the night are "deer." They have become the number one pest of home owners. This could be attributed to human encroachment into the deer's habitat. The major cause for so much activity in the last couple of months is our extremely dry weather. Deer just love to browse on succulent, well watered, fertilized shrubbery. I had a gardener tell me she had just bought some new plants for next days planting. Over night the deer left nothing but stems.

What is the most foolproof method to control deer? I will try to rank these methods in the order of what I think is most successful.

1. Do what I did. Move to a second floor apartment.

2. Fencing is the most reliable deer control solution, but it may not always be practical because of appearance, zoning restrictions, cost, or terrain. Six foot fences are usually effective.

3. Plant things that deer don't like to eat. This is the hardest because deer vary from neighborhood to neighborhood on what they will or will not eat. (We have a list of plants that has a somewhat high degree of deer tolerance.)

4. Dogs running loose will help safe guard your investment ( This is not a legal move.)

5. Sprinklers and floodlights – I had great results with this one. You hook either the sprinkler or floodlights to a motion detector and when the deer come into the area you are protecting, they are either hit with a jet spray of water or a glaring light.

6. Milorganite – This is a fertilizer made in Michigan from dried sewage. This explains why deer don't like it. It has been tested and found safe for even vegetables, and can be used as you would use any organic fertilizer. Milorganite can be purchased at most garden centers.

7. There are many sprays, predator urine, and other strong scents that can either be bought or made. I am not sure of these items but, a lot of the people I've talked to think these are the way to go.

If you are interested in any of these home made remedies call 653-2231 and I will mail you the recipes. If you consider yourself a true naturalist, I can also send you a list of plants that deer love.