Odocoileus virginianus, commonly known as whitetails, are graceful, majestic deer that are the bane of many a garden's existence.
Certain perennials that are disagreeable to whitetails serve as natural remedies for the problem of deer invaders in gardens. A proviso is that seriously famished deer may adjust their diet to include plants that they normally reject in times of plenty. Starving deer consider everything in their path.
Seventeen deer-proof perennials, for a range of sunlight and shade conditions and temperature zones, are described:
•Michaelmas daisy (Aster novi-belgii),
•wolfsbane (Aconitum lycoctonum),
•blue dogbane (Amsonia tabernaemontana),
•gas plant (Dictamnus albus),
•lamb's ears (Stachys byzantina),
•gooseneck loosestrife (Lysimachia clethroides),
•'Excelsior Group' foxglove (Digitalis purpurea 'Excelsior Group'),
•'Bevan's Variety' bigroot geranium (Geranium macrorrhizum 'Bevan’s Variety'),
•spotted dead-nettle (Lamium maculatum),
•white baneberry (Actaea pachypoda),
•white sage (Artemisia ludoviciana),
•English lavender (Lavandula angustifolia),
•'Dutch Master' daffodil (Narcissus 'Dutch Master'),
•Deutschland false spiraea (Astilbe 'Deutschland'),
•red valerian (Centranthus ruber),
•green santolina (Santolina virens), and
•cotton lavender (Santolina chamaecyparissus).
.JPG "Stachys lanata and Stachys olympica are scientific synonyms for this drought-tolerant plant.")
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Comments
jptanabe, The deer may still hang around but they'll have to be quite determined or quite famished to invade gardens with barriers formed from these perennials.
With their olfactory sensitivity, they can detect a range of fragrances, so repugnant odors are intermingled with the agreeable aromas. It's the uncertainty of the bundle of scents which makes them hesitate and, usually, turn away.
Some great suggestions for keeping my yard looking good - and I'm sure the deer will still hang around!
Dustytoes, Such a treat to live next to a protected area in which deer in all likelihood feel safe and enjoy their food options. Sometimes, though, deer do seem to want to check out the neighborhood, to see what's growing on the other side of the fence.
Deer browse in the uncultivated area next to me. Fortunately they are satisfied with what nature offers them. But I also do have deer-proof perennials and shrubs, just in case.
Even though lamb's ears are often regarded as invasives, I've found them to be quite sensitive to their environment. The lamb's ears which sprouted on the north side of my east-facing porch do flower, but those which compete with a vast array of plants in the uncultivated area to the south of my house do not tend to flower.
Hopefully your lamb's ears will flower, for they really are lovely.
Right. That's a great point. Although if everybody did that, deer would probably get to eat those plants, too ;-)
Mira, Gardeners can get so frustrated with deer visitors in their gardens, and drastic measures end up being taken, such as chemicals and unsightly fencing.
It's nice to know that there's a gentler, greener solution to this issue. It's also an attractive solution.
You've added some fabulous photos of the plants deer will not eat. And I never knew that lambs ear got flowers - mine just grow close to the ground. Maybe they are not mature enough. Anyway, I live next to a protected area and the deer are abundant. I know they DO eat rhododendrons and love to chew the buds and leaves off all winter long.
Thanks for the info.
I really like this article. Such a great idea to use these plants to protect other flowers and vegetables.
Mira, Reams could probably be written about the etymology of foxglove. I thought about including a summary because it's so interesting and still puzzling, but I hadn't done that with any of the others, so I set the information aside with the idea of coverage in its own article.
Ethnobotany interests me, but I decided not to include the "medicine cabinet" profiles because of the focus on selecting plants which deter deer from gardens.
Your appreciation of and interest in plants are obvious. Nature is a joy to behold and to study.
I love your photos of plants. I learn new things about plants I know and discover others which are really nice to look at, and which I might consider planting. Right now I learned, for instance, about the Dutch Master daffodils, which I see a lot here in Romania, the Excelsior Group foxglove, an more. It made me curious to find out how these names originated.