Deer Control Tips

Winter is here in full force, bringing with it cold weather, snowfall, warm fires, and grazing deer. For many there is a fascination with seeing deer in a snow covered field or even your yard. Unfortunately, for a gardener it can be a dreaded sight. 

Since a deer’s food source is much scarcer in the winter, deer become less discerning. The woodland crops, such as beechnuts, acorns and sumac peas, which are in abundance in the fall become in short supply, hidden beneath snowfall and matted leaves.  Deer depend on the crowns of mature conifers and cedar for survival in the winter season. The loss of adequate wintering habitat due to development and deforestation is a serious threat to the deer population. As a result, the deer turn to your ornamental shrubs, evergreens and grain fields for their food source.

Deer' food shortages are most likely to occur in the winter months.

The list of plants that deer will not eat is extremely short. It is better to come to terms with the fact that when a deer is hungry it will eat anything, including bark off trees. The only sure fire method of protecting your yard or garden during the winter months from foraging is deer fencing. 

Deer are creatures of habit. Their habits are controlled by their needs; food, shelter, and procreation. If left alone, a deer will follow the same routine every day, shifting their pattern only because of weather conditions or the availability of food. They do not migrate and does are known to stay within the same 4 mile radius for their entire lives. This means the deer you saw last year will most likely be back this year and the year after. Over time a feeding site will attract increasingly more deer, wrecking havoc on homeowner’ plantings.

You will save yourself a lot of anguish by making the investment in a proper deer fence around your yard or garden, if you have a serious deer problem. Deer can leap very high and at a distance of up to thirty feet. An effective fence needs to be at least 7.5 feet tall. Deer have poor depth perception limiting their ability to determine where the deer fence ends and the sky begins, making the deer hesitant to jump the fence. Deer may also try to go under or through a deer fence; be sure the deer fence is securely staked and goes all the way to the ground. Polypropylene deer fencing is virtually invisible from a distance and is more cost effective than conventional metal deer fencing, making it a great option.

With preventative measures, you have a good chance of protecting your treasured shrubs, trees and gardens this winter from foraging deer.

by Teresa Odle

Once you see the “telltail” signs of deer damage on your plants, it’s often too late. Because deer have no upper incisors, they tear your precious vegetation with their lower incisors and upper palate, leaving the sure-sign jagged edges on plant foliage.

Deer repellents can ward off deer, at least temporarily. With attention and repeated use, you can keep deer away from your crops and ornamentals, especially when the plants are at their most vulnerable or productive stages. And now’s the time to buy, while Deerbusters is offering 50 percent off on most Deerbuster Deer Repellents.

If you’ve got large plants to protect, a concentrate is your best bet. It costs a little more but goes further. Concentrate is more compact to store than ready-made repellents and with the 2.5 gallon bottle, you can mix up to 20 gallons of premium liquid repellent before all is said and done. That should cover the equivalent of 3000 to 4000 high shrubs or flowers. Or you might prefer powder, which comes in a 16-oz. size. And if your deer are finicky and only after your hostas, a bottle of premixed spray is all you’ll need. All of the Deerbusters Deer Repellents are made with natural ingredients — egg, garlic, and hot pepper.

Keep a record of your regular spraying to be sure to spray regularly and stay one step ahead of these quick and quiet creatures. These repellents will work for up to three months before reapplication.

Enter the coupon code Protect10 at checkout to take 50% off on all DeerBusters Brand deer repellent. Not valid on hanging sachets or weather shield products.  Expires July 21st, 2010.

by Teresa Odle

Deer and other animals love gardens and can’t help but trample on, munch, and sometimes downright destroy vegetables or newly planted flowers. It’s a dilemma when nature’s creatures live nearby and you’d like them to continue to wander in the back 40 but not through your lettuce. There are ways to deter deer and other animals with scaring devices and repellents.

Generally, scaring devices are used near gardens and lawns to frighten away unwanted deer and animals. Homemade

Use an Ultrasonic Deer Repeller to keep deer out of the garden

scaring devices (aka shotgun blasts and explosions) can be inhumane and likely get you in trouble with your neighbor. Ultrasonic scaring devices are heard only by animals and can cover up to 4,000 square feet. You also can hook your garden hose up to a spray repellent three-second burst of water. Most of these devices have motion detection; this one detects motion in a 35 x 45 area.  Or try a radio station that doesn’t appeal to animals (or your kids to make it more fun). Proprietary technology in the DeerChaser Electronic Repeller activates an LED light and FM radio station for 15 seconds up to seven minutes while it detects motion in the area.

DeerBusters Deer Repellent will protect your plants from damage.

Repellents are applied near or directly to plants and may keep animals out of the garden longer. Many gardeners have tried homemade remedies like placing bars of soap in the garden, only to find the deer have eaten the soap. Use caution with some commercial animal repellents around edible plants. Just be sure to read directions regarding placement and application because some have chemicals that can make their way into your carrots. DeerScram deer and rabbit repellent is natural, biodegradable and environmentally safe, but you should place it in a perimeter 18 inches away from plants.

DeerBusters Brand Deer Repellents are safe for children and pets and can be sprayed directly on foliage year-round. The ingredients’ scents, which include white pepper and garlic, are offensive to deer and rabbits. The repellent even comes in hanging sachets to help fight off raccoons in specific areas. You can put the sachets on three-foot high stakes around the vegetable garden so they’re right at animal sniffing level.