Deer repellent?

awatkins said:

Anybody have suggestions to keep deer from eating shrubbery? We've had no trouble whatsoever until a month or so ago when something ate our pretty shrubs right down to the ground. These are planted up against the front porch and while deer roam our property like they own it, they've never bothered anything until now.

My dad heard that mint repels deer and other animals, so he gave us a huge batch. I've planted it in two long boxes and it's doing great. I'm thinking of splitting it up into many separate deep pots and setting the pots among the shrubs. (Don't want to plant it in the ground, as mint will spread like crazy.) Have any of you heard that mint works as a repellent?

I'm open to any suggestions! As soon as the bushes start to get new leaves and shoots, something comes along and eats them (eats, shoots, and leaves...sounds vaguely familiar). Help!

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I've found that mint does help, but I do plant it in teh ground. It does spread, but it's not hard to keep picked back, and I use so much mint that I can't get enough.

There used to be a commercial deer repellent on teh market, but darned if I can remember what it was, and I have no idea whether it's still around.

Jamesaritchie said:

I've found that mint does help, but I do plant it in teh ground. It does spread, but it's not hard to keep picked back, and I use so much mint that I can't get enough.

There used to be a commercial deer repellent on teh market, but darned if I can remember what it was, and I have no idea whether it's still around.

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Dried blood, which you will need to reapply, is available for just such purposes; and it's good for the soil.

In some areas you can purchase a compound derived from urine for much the same purpose, but it's not good for plants or soil.

deer

Medievalist said:

Dried blood, which you will need to reapply, is available for just such purposes; and it's good for the soil.

In some areas you can purchase a compound derived from urine for much the same purpose, but it's not good for plants or soil.

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Somewhere in the back of my mind is the thought that both wolf and dog urine will do the trick, but the memory is from many years ago.

I've also seen animated, talking scarecrows (work with a motion sensor) that work well, but they can be an eyesore.

awatkins said:

Thanks so much, Lisa and James! I'll definitely give the mint a try, then.

Lisa, do you know where the dried blood can be purchased? I'm guessing maybe a farmer's co-op.

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Nurseries, feed store, farmer's co-op - - - it's pretty common. It kept the deer away from our corn.

Um, divorce?

We have a camp nearby for school children - and when I visited, I noticed they had a couple of bars of soaps (some still in their wrappers) hanging from some of the trees in a garden section. I asked why and they said it keeps deer away from there. Apparently they don't like the scent of man. They claim it works.

Irish Spring.

Oh, and they do make netting that you can set up around your property. It's wide enough so the deer would have to walk on it and apparently they don't like to. It's not tall - I don't know why they don't jump over it but they don't. Maybe because it's not tall. A friend of mine used it with very good results.

One of the baseball "feel-good" movies (can't remember which one) actually had a useful suggestion. Deer were eating the new grass the coach was planting before it could become a diamond. The suggestion actually WORKS (since I tried it when I lived in the mountains.) Fresh human hair will keep them away like a charm. I just stopped by the local beauty salon and picked up a bag, and darned if it didn't work! Just sprinkle it in a circle about four feet away from the leaf edges. Be generous, and the more different people's hair you can get, the better. Replenish it every few days, like when you water and they'll stay away.

my gf lives on five acres and there is a large family of deer occupying a section. but they never come near her garden. she has a dog, and there are a few feral cats on the property. she said urine is the main key..the dog pees around the perimeter and the deer stay away. or maybe they just don't wanna come near the dog. she has a friend who hangs old cd's around her garden, the shiny reflection scares them away as well. she does have mint, which she says they don't eat, but she said she didn't think it really deterred them.

Cathy C said:

One of the baseball "feel-good" movies (can't remember which one) actually had a useful suggestion. Deer were eating the new grass the coach was planting before it could become a diamond. The suggestion actually WORKS (since I tried it when I lived in the mountains.) Fresh human hair will keep them away like a charm.

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The Rookie - I LOVE that movie. I have seen it like 100 times! Can't get enough feel-good baseball movies.

September skies said:

The Rookie - I LOVE that movie. I have seen it like 100 times! Can't get enough feel-good baseball movies.

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I agree. That's one of the best baseball movies ever. I don't remember the part about deer eating the grass, but it's been a while since I've seen the movie.

In Tennessee, it's gotten to where people put up electric fences around their vegetable gardens to keep the deer out.

Beside using one of the deer repellent suggestions (such as a commercial deer repellent), you might also tempt the deer to go somewhere else, such as the back side of your property. Deer love a salt lick like that put up for cattle. That would be available at your local Co-op or farm supply store. It's illegal to use it to lure deer in order to hunt them though.

ac

Uh, I know some individuals who went as far as to pee around the perimeter of their garden themselves. Probably not a tactic you'd like to go for, but...

katiemac said:

Uh, I know some individuals who went as far as to pee around the perimeter of their garden themselves. Probably not a tactic you'd like to go for, but...

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I guess she could invite a bunch of college students over for a keg party and then . . . oh, never mind.

Another idea to intice the deer away. Deer love apples so if you happen to have some source of "throwaway" apples (a friend who works at a grocery store?), you could put them on the far side of your property.

ac

I have 30 acres in the middle of an area of over 1000 acres of preserved farmland. Since much of that area is restricted, the hunters can't make a dent in the population. Deer bed under my office window during the winter and graze with the horses during the summer. Wild mint grows everywhere. They don't eat it, but it doesn't deter them from eating everything else they come into contact with.

That said, I had no problem with deer eating my shrubs until they discovered them. Once that happened, nothing I did made any difference to the deer. Commercial repellents were useless. Peeing around the garden (yes, I did) was fine until the first rain. I don't have time to keep replacing the pee. I didn't try the coyote urine available at the sporting goods store, but I may yet give it a shot. It's supposed to work extremely well.

Of all the methods I tried, only deer netting did wonders. I covered my shrubs with it and surrounded the vegetable garden, with a fence of it. They can feel it but not see it, so it's a great deterrent . . . until the buds at the ends of the rhododendrons pushed their way through the netting. The deer just shaved 'em right off. At least the rest of the shrub was left unscathed.

Every time a visitor voices excitement over the herd of deer drifting across my hayfield at dusk I offer several as a gift. So far I've had no takers.

I'm going to consider planting more mint. I like the idea of putting it in containers. That way I can move it around and see if there's an ideal mint-to-shrub ratio without turning my flower beds into mint beds.

Schoolmarm said:

I'm going to consider planting more mint. I like the idea of putting it in containers. That way I can move it around and see if there's an ideal mint-to-shrub ratio without turning my flower beds into mint beds.

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Funny, a neighbor gave me a bunch of mint plants one year (spearmint and peppermint); I thought it would be great around where the heat pump unit sits and drains since I didn't want anything that grew very high or got bushy there. I had NO idea how invasive mint could be, especially when it's getting watered every day. It took a weekend to pull it all out.

If your visitors don't want the deer, ask if they want squirrels. I'd be glad to send 'em mine. I even have a squirrel trap to catch the little buggers. I like having a FEW squirrels around . . . but not two dozen.

I wonder if one of those ceramic dogs put outside would scare deer away? I'm talking about the kind that look just like a dog from a few feet. My mother has a couple of the things (Christmas presents) and sometimes small kids will try to pet them since they look so lifelike. They're not too expense; it might be worth trying. I have no idea whether it would work or not.

ac

alleycat said:

Funny, a neighbor gave me a bunch of mint plants one year (spearmint and peppermint); I thought it would be great around where the heat pump unit sits and drains since I didn't want anything that grew very high or got bushy there. I had NO idea how invasive mint could be, especially when it's getting watered every day. It took a weekend to pull it all out.

If your visitors don't want the deer, ask if they want squirrels. I'd be glad to send 'em mine. I even have a squirrel trap to catch the little buggers. I like having a FEW squirrels around . . . but not two dozen.

I wonder if one of those ceramic dogs put outside would scare deer away? I'm talking about the kind that look just like a dog from a few feet. My mother has a couple of the things (Christmas presents) and sometimes small kids will try to pet them since they look so lifelike. They're not too expense; it might be worth trying. I have no idea whether it would work or not.

ac

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I make so much mint tea, and use mint for other things, that it doesn't spread too far or too fast with me. But I'd rather have mint than grass, so I'm an exception.

What you need is a guard frog to chase away those deer. The deer bends down to eat only to have what it thought was green shrubery jump and it will find another place to stay.

alleycat said:

If your visitors don't want the deer, ask if they want squirrels. I'd be glad to send 'em mine. I even have a squirrel trap to catch the little buggers. I like having a FEW squirrels around . . . but not two dozen.

I wonder if one of those ceramic dogs put outside would scare deer away? I'm talking about the kind that look just like a dog from a few feet. My mother has a couple of the things (Christmas presents) and sometimes small kids will try to pet them since they look so lifelike. They're not too expense; it might be worth trying. I have no idea whether it would work or not.

ac

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Maybe we can go into business--open a Buy One, Get One Free place. Take my deer and I'll throw in your squirrel or two as a bonus. Maybe if they take two deer I'll add a groundhog. Cliff spends long summer evenings on his belly doing search-and-destroy missions in the fields with smoke bombs, and the groundhogs stand around laughing.

Speaking of squirrels, one of my cats has adopted one. Just what I needed: a half-a**ed barn cat who can't catch his own tail bringing his squirrelly friend home for a snack on the deck.

Dogs? You're kidding, right? I live in a rural area. We have coyotes, foxes, and dogs running rampant. The deer hear them go by without raising their beadie little eyes from my tree peonies. A ceramic dog might be a nice addition to the collection of stuff the kids who do the drive-by mailbox smashings are making.

As far as I can tell, the only thing that frightens a deer is an excavator. You might want to think about just having one come in and dig randomly around your property. The deer will think you're crazy and move next door, and you'll have a good start on a whole bunch of really cool koi ponds. Or fill them all with cement, call them patios, and you'll solve any snake problems at the same time. Multi-tasking!