The deer have been at it again. Only, I'm thinking is getting even worse.
Remember back last year, I showed you this lovely Squid Agave?
Well....there are two of them.
And, they've been chomped.
Remember the lovely Powis Castle Artemisia that the deer NEVER touch?
I have it all over the place.
Well...they've been chomped.
Remember this agave that we put in the new Drive Bed last year?
Well...it wasn't chomped...
...it was shredded. This is an old picture. It looks worse now.
The centers of the Lophanthas have been chomped out.
Oh...they don't EAT it. They just take it out.
Remember last March, I showed you the back view of the Front Bed?
See the nice Softleaf Yucca?
Well...they've pulled it up so many times, I don't think it'll make it.
I really want to garden. I feel sorry for the hungry deer.
But, I get tired and a bit discouraged, when those hungry deer eat everything I plant.
I don't want all our plants to live in cages.
I guess we'll just have to start over....again.
I love grasses...they strangely don't eat grass. But, but I don't want ALL grasses.
No wonder so many people in this neighborhood have just given up.
Then again, some people have the same things I do....
and the deer don't eat it!
OK....thanks for listening to me whine, yet again.
The weather is supposed to be nice for the next few days.
I have a lot of clean up to do.
Happy Gardening...
~~Linda~~
I'm listening and I have to say I can't understand this either. We have a herd of about 12 deer practically living in the yard and they never eat artemesia or agave. I have had a few plants shredded by antlers this year as you have but you definitely have an exceptional problem.
ReplyDeleteI put sticks in with plants to make them move on and rocks on the roots of new plants to weight them down especially when the fawns are around. Just not sure what will work for you though.
You seem to be able to have plants in your 'deer areas', that just don't work here. Maybe we have more deer, though. I've counted as many as 26 laying in the back, at one time. That's just ONE group.
DeleteWhen we moved here, there were a lot of tomato cages here. I've used them in different ways, to shield the plants. It works sometimes. Then, if it's something they really want, they just take the cage off.
grrrr....
Oh, I'm so sorry! You definitely have a ravenous horde over there this year! I shivered a little when I saw your poor soft leaf yucca - I planted one last year out front of the house, and I would be so mad if it were damaged!
ReplyDeleteThey don't seem to eat the softleaf yucca....except blooms...they just try it out, and in the process , pull it out of the ground. Most of the time I find things in time. That one was out of the ground a long time, though.
DeleteThis really is bad ! I've had problems with rabbits and they do a lot of damage but when I see your plants .....jeez !
ReplyDeleteIf you can get hold of lion dung (it's no joke, it is for sale !) you can sprinkel it arround your garden and the deer will run a mile and the other wildlife too except for the birds and butterflies ofcourse. Good luck !
We've never seen a rabbit here. Guess we should count our blessings.
DeleteI think lion dung just might make us all run away...lol
Hi Linda....Oh I would be heartsick!! For a very short time I was bothered by deer and rabbits in my front gardens (they are not fenced.) They were really enjoying my daylilies. Well, I found a product at the local home store called "Liquid Fence" Deer and Rabbit Repellent. It is all natural and you can even use it on vegetables. It comes in a gallon size and has a sprayer already attached. I just walk around with it and spray anything the deer and rabbits like to eat. You don't need to use a lot. It has worked better than I ever would have imagined. I absolutely swear by it. Maybe this product would work for you too!
ReplyDeleteI do have some Liquid Fence. It works for a while. Just have to keep spraying. I especially put it on newly planted things. Things that have been in the ground a long time, are usually safe, though. Guess that's changing.
DeleteI wonder if it's the Axis deer that are doing the damage? The White Tail didn't eat that stuff before, right? Reportedly, the Axis, which are non-native, are so much more destructive than the White Tail.
ReplyDeleteMy neighbor swears this is true: Put a fishing line string "fence" around your beds and the deer get spooked when their noses touch the line, which they cannot see. Neither can you at a distance, so it's not as restrictive as a wire cage around each plant, which I wouldn't want either. I haven't tried this. He told me about it after I built a fence. I just couldn't take the destruction any more. Plus, I figured I'd soon pay for a fence by constantly replacing expensive plants.
I'm a bit afraid too, that the culprit this time has been the Axis deer. We've only seen the one doe. But, one is all it takes.
DeleteI might try that fishing line thing. Can't hurt. Thanks for the tip.
You do have an exceptional deer problem, as Shirley said. I think it's remarkable that you have any sympathy for the deer at all. I would be ready to bring in wolves to get their numbers under control! Grass gardens can be very beautiful, so that's a plus.
ReplyDeleteI do feel sorry for them. They are hungry. And, with the drought, not much is growing for them to eat. BUT....that doesn't mean they should eat MY landscape!
DeleteWe could use some kind of natural predator around here. I might need to be careful what I wish for, though. Might trade one problem for another.
Wow! We live out in the country, and I don't have the problem with deer as bad as you! Would that deer repellent you spray on work? I've heard other gardeners say it does, but I don't know if you are willing to do anything like that. I have tried those motion-activated sprinklers and they actually work. We used them in our vegetable garden last year. Just have to hook them up to a hose, but I'm not sure how many areas you would need to have them in. I hope you find a solution.
ReplyDeleteWe've sprayed repellent on. But, it only works so long.
DeleteOur veggie garden is fenced. That seems to be the only thing that deters them. We live on a golf course. The sprinklers out there don't seem to impress them. They're just not afraid of anything.
Yeah - my mother in law has a similar problem. It's almost like the deer stake out new plants to eat - they leave the plants alone in your neighbor's yard because they recognize them, but in your yard it's new and it's a tasty treat.
ReplyDeleteSome of the plants they're eating now, have been there quite a while...with no damage. I'm going to have to figure out something...because I'm NOT giving up!
DeletePowis Castle, too? The others I could see. You are helping me decide, if I move to your area someday, it's a courtyard if a house (where I'm allowed to have a really high wall) or an apartment patio way up high. Here, I can have a 3-5' courtyard wall, and the deer have loads of natural predators!
ReplyDeleteWalls and fences seem to be the only things that work.
DeleteAnd, I thought the sweet little deer were so cute, when we first moved here....ugh.
The deer like our fruit trees and cabbage and broccoli in summer. There are a few natural remedies online to keep them away -- thanks for stopping by and commenting on the trapping shed post. :)
ReplyDeleteThe deer here are so domesticated, they're not afraid of anything. They'll walk right up to you. There are SO many of them. And, they multiply every year. I'm just going to have to figure a way to co-exist with them.
DeleteOh my! Those are some hungry critters. I'm currently under siege by bunnies. They've eaten my color guard yucca and my crinum lilies among other things. Hang in there.
ReplyDeleteWell....at least we don't have bunnies. Strangely enough, we've never seen a single one here. We had them all the time in our suburban garden, with a wooden privacy fence. Here, with fields all around us, there aren't any. At least not right here.
DeleteBlessings to count, I guess.
Oh what little devils you have over there. That is too frustrating. i have also had some centers cut out of some agaves. But the spiky lophantha, that is ridiculous. I have kept the deer out of the walled garden but those small critters do just as much damage. The cotton rats are eating all my plants. I see their trails running through the plants!
ReplyDeleteOh "deer"!! We have problems with the resident deer herd in our little town, but you have a serious problem! The problem with "citified" deer is that they start eating "junk food." If they stayed out in their native habitat, they would have food.
ReplyDelete