We can't leave well enough alone

He put up an electric fence shortly after this was taken last year.

We have tons of JB in the upstate. I never saw any when I lived in the lowcountry though. I read on the USDA brochure about them that you would not want to use the lures as they will end up bringing more to your area. It would be effective if everyone around you used them but I dont know that you could get that to happen. Here is a link if you are interested in the material. I have been going out and fighting them daily on my Japanese Maple, Redbud, and Crepe Myrtle. Its been a very rough time. I read one person actually put some of the JB in a blender and sprayed it on the plants. Dont know if it worked or not but I am about to that point. Have to find a cheep blender though.....

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/plant_health/content/printable_version/JB3-07.indd.pdf

One thing I've noticed; the deer don't seem to bother any of the tropicals around the greenhouse. I've always been curious about that, because the GH is far away from the house/dogs/people, and right next to probably 100 acres of woods/marsh. Perfect deer location to raid. But I always leave the radio on in the GH---heard that deer don't like the sound of human voices. For 9 yrs, I never had a nibble, even though I was growing out the same plants in the beds that were raided/destroyed near the house. Then one day last week we had a power outage, and the next day I noticed that deer had eaten a bunch of Xanthasoma, Vigna caracalla, Ipomea, etc. It was a buffet for them---they didn't even have to bend down to eat. The radio in the GH is one of those kind that a power loss shuts it off, and you have to manually turn it back on. I forgot to turn it back on, and apparently, that's all it took. One night of no NPR, and the deer moved in. I turned it back on once I realized what had happened, and no problem since. Could it be that simple? I'm going to rig a common motion detector/flood lightdevice to a radio for the bed suffering the greatest damage near the house. Will report what happens...

Please do.

I love the idea about setting it up with a motion detector. Off to the attic (my personal thrift store) to find an old radio........

My only thought is when that radio kicks on I hope you can't hear it in your house. You might think people are standing around outside your windows.

Deer have very sensitive ears; I don't imagine it would have to be very loud at all.

Well wouldn't that be nice if an old radio will do the trick!

We can do experiments to see what kinds of station do the best..........Rush Limbaugh, country, NPR, etc.

Well, I expect we have good ol' redneck deer down here. LOL (although they do have exquisite taste in flowers)

Ardesia, just what are you insinuating, "good ol' redneck." I represent that statement!!

I think it will be a toss up between Classic Twangy Country Western "She done left me and took my dog" and Rap.

The CW might just depress them and drive them to drinkin'. And I hear that Drunk Deer do not get the munchies.

Homeland Security plays Rap really loud to wear down the resistance of terrorists and subversives. It would work with me, or give me an aneurysm (not to be confused with embolism, according to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - had to go there to check the spelling LOL)

But, please don't put Rush on the poor deer, you want to scare them off, not traumatize them! The ASPCA would have to come is and run an intervention!

Does anyone know of a Deer Whisperer?

I'm just imagining them dancing to the waltzes on NPR.

Not me - I'd just make a CD and play it over and over --- I'd get that guy that sells shazoom or whatever it is ....gives away 'not one but two' knives' and 'wait wait ..if you order right now...' Then, I'd have a few minutes of Rachel Ray... a few of Martha... add a few seconds of Dr. Phil telling our little garden munchers that 'this will be a changing day' .. I'd drive them crazy with a little of the music from the grandkids kids Wii games..played over and over and over and over......oh and for sure I'd add a little Nancy Grace snarling and snapping....... Just a personal CD to give our little nightly thieving visitors a taste of what we hear all day long and night...that will drive them crazy fer sure!

Dr. Phil master of the obvious.

Nancy does like to beat a dead horse, horse close to deer.

Tape Barney the purple dinosaur singing .. that will have them running ..

X

X
Barney!! Oh no! What have you done??? That song is now in my head...oh noooooooooo.

Sorry .. I know the hell and torture you are going thru .. a couple glasses of wine or beer might help.

X

..........Good Idea.......

Maybe it would help if we all had some - on your behalf of course.

Hmmmm, I seem to be a little wound up today. Not a bad idea.

We'll all have a nip and a toast to forget the ole Barney Blues!

Oh drat, you went and mentioned it again, now we will all have to have another drink.

Perhaps two ..

snort..maybe just a nip off the old ambien...

Talk about songs stuck in your head .. i was on icanhascheezburger.com and saw a lol cat with and amended folgers coffee jingle .. I've been singing all morning

"The best part of waking up, is folgers on your butt"

I'll never get rid of that one!

If you are finding Popillia japonica destroying you plants, you might try using Milky Spore.

Pheromone traps will actually DRAW more to your yard. I wouldn't even hang them across the street.

The Milky Spore stays in the ground and works for many years. However, you cannot treat your lawn with pest/herbicides as it will destroy the Milky Spore.

Here's the Wiki on Milky Spore
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milky_spore

Good grief, what a monster I created with a simple observation! I love it!! " Folgers on your butt"!! Never saw that coming.. Like I said originally Humans and their solutions equal trouble so many times.

The J. Beetles seem to be slacking a bit the past couple of days. They're still here, but in fewer numbers. I hope they're almost done! (I know my Cannas and Lisianthus hope so, too.)

OK... couple of months later... the noise seemed to work. That, coupled with the movement detector lights seemed to be an adequate "protector of the crop". But these boogers are adaptive as all hell, so I have to be thinking about what will they think of next, and stay one step ahead. Have no idea what that might be...

Oh no Stono. You've done it. I was still watching this thread. But of course I can't remember a darn thing and so I reread it when it popped up. Now I've got that Barney song floating around and it is only 9:30 or so on my day off. I've got company coming and I will have to run around like a crazy woman cleaning and all to that Barney tune that I hated from the moment I heard it.