Herbs and Deer

[mj]

Are there Herbs that will deter Deer from the garden?

MJ

[brooklyn1]

Yes... plant a fence.

[despen]

Yep, I agree completely. Absolutely the only thing that has a chance of working.

I've tried everything else. If read the deer don't like this, they don't like that. Well, the truth is, they may not like some kinds of plants, but they'll eat them anyway.

Last year I put up a 6 foot high fence:

have high hopes for this working.

[D. Staples]

6 ft is not high enough, they can clear that flat footed.

[mj]

Yes, yes, yes my electric fence works great for my raised vegetable gardens but I was hoping for something a little more attractive for my rose garden. I too have tried everything else so I guess I will have to fire up more juice. MJ

[Janet Baraclough]

The message

from mj contains these words:

No :-)

Janet

[brooklyn1]

That's a nice looking fence. You could have gotten a bit more height by raising the sections another 6" off the ground, deer wouldn't fit underneath and they don't dig. But most importantly having more space underneath would facilitate mowing/string trimming... I learned that the hard way by placing my fencing too close to the ground and then having to reset it or live with weeds. I truly hope you didn't set your wooden posts in concrete (sure looks like you did), the concrete will hold water in the posts and they will rot within less than half the time they would have set directly into the ground... you can set metal posts in concrete but never wood (if you're concerned with wind simply use larger posts, the next size doesn't cost much more... and you wont need to dig nearly the diameter hole as for concrete), and occasionally a wooden post will prematurely rot in the ground (could be a fault in the lumber), you want to be able to jack it out easily to replace it, can't do that with concrete. Also if you live where the ground freezes wooden posts set into concrete are much more prone to heave. Next time you want to build a wooden gate check out the various metal gate kits... makes for a far sturdier gate and a lot easier to build. Typically wooden gate posts are 6" X 6"... wooden fence corner posts are 5" X 5". Who advised you to set your nice wooden posts in concrete?

I used this gate bracket kit on my vegetable garden gate; very strong, maintains perfect squareness without cross bracing, hinges are integrel and trouble free, makes a gate very easy to build, and very inexpensive:

[Janet Baraclough]

The message from [e-mail] contains these words:

Your hopes are higher than the fence; get a higher fence and remember tall the gates have to be the same height (and kept shut).

Janet

[Frank]

There are things they don't eat but nothing I know of will keep them away from the stuff they like. As others suggest, fence is the only answer and avoid repellents as if they even work they wash off eventually. Only vegetable in my garden deer did not eat was onions.

[brooklyn1]

Right, deer won't eat alliums, they won't eat daffodils either. There are many plants that they won't touch unless they're starving, like spruce (spruce needles are too sharp, they won't risk nibbling hawthorn either) but when hungry enough they will eat sharp needled and thorny plants. And for some reason deer won't eat blueberry bushes but they will eat the berries, if the birds don't get them first... I've seen crows take on deer for blueberries and win every time. The only thing that works to keep deer out is strong fencing, deer will push through a wood picket fence that's only been nailed. As to fence height, a lot depends on terrain, unless there is space and the ground is such for deer to get into a full run they are not going to clear a six foot fence... and deer aren't stupid, they are not going to jump a fence into an enclosed space that is too small, they know how much running space they need to get out, they truly look before they leap. Deer can leap a great distance but they can't attain the height some like to think they can. When it comes to survival deer sensory perception is far more acute then humans... a deer knows it's physical capability better than any olympic/professional athlete ever lived. A fawn is taught to run, leap, dodge and evade from the moment it can stand. I've watched new born fawns go through their paces together for hours, it only looks like frolicking to humans but their every movement is deadly serious business, to deer it's the difference between life and death. Unless they are being persued by a pack of coyotes a six foot fence will definitely keep deer out of a typical tract home yard, and if being persued by preditors deer are not going to stop to snack.

[Glenn Lynn]

I don't know where you got your information about wooden posts, but what you say and what actually happens are two different things. I have been using wooden post set in concrete for y e a r s (at least

45) and none of the things you mentioned ever happened. If yours are heaving from frost, you probably did not set them correctly. You know, I hope, that you set the concrete below the surface level of the ground so they don't heave.

Glenn Lynn

[Frank]

Netting works well too around some plants and bushes. They are generally browsers and nibble here and there and move on. Little things may deter them but when starving they will eat anything and die with a full stomach of food that would not sustain them. They will even climb steps to eat something on your porch.

[Naga Jolokia]

that's true. i set my treated wood posts into concrete and they still seem fine after about 7 years now. there is no sign that they are deteriorating yet. i also set the concrete a little bit above ground to keep water from collecting around the post. but since i am in zone 7b, i don't have to worry much about heaving.

[Naga Jolokia]

it might be too late to get another fence now. one thing you could do it to add about 2 more feet of net fence on top of the wooden fence. the net fence is nearly invisible but the posts supporting it might be unsightly. you can use thin metal/iron rods as posts to support the net fence.

[Phisherman]

My roses are not eaten, perhaps being surrounded with garlic helps. You'll need more than an herb to deter hungry deer--electric fence works well for me.

[despen]

I know, I read 10ft is what's required.

I'm hoping the dense vegetation on both sides of the fence will help. In places where there is a clear landing zone now I plan to add plantings or other obstacles.

Most of the deer I see around here are accompanied by fawns. I hope the fawns can't jump the 6 feet high.

If the town allowed 10 foot fences, I would have built one.

[despen]

Thanks. I like it too.

The town says 6 feet is max without variance. I don't think I would have gotten a variance.

I don't have anywhere the fence meets the lawn. The only thing growing up to the fence are the pacasandra. Much of the back yard is pretty dark, nothing grows. The few weeds I have to pull any way.

My idea.

The entire fence and gate are pressure treated. The 4x4 posts are specially treated for being in cement like that. I think I'm down deep enough to avoid frost heaving.

There is gravel under each post and the concrete slopes away from the post.

The fence is going thru it's first winter but the gate has seen a few winters and hasn't moved. So I hope I'm okay.

I installed one 12 foot section of a vinyl fence and gate on the other side of the house. It's nice but I decided I'd rather look at wood than vinyl.

[despen]

That's plan B. Well, by now, probably plan J or K...

I think the neighbors might complain if they have to look at it but in the summer we get enough vegatation that they won't see it. I can put the netting up and take it down as needed.

[Lelandite]

Instead of herbs, get a motion detector that barks like it's going for the kill whenever something (deer)crosses its path. One will work but two will work even better.

DEM

[enigma]

brooklyn1 wrote in news: [e-mail]:

a really high one lee