How to keep Deer Out of the Garden!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyone have any tricks on how to keep deer out of the garden?? I've already heard use hair. That hasn't worked. Are there any other ideas you can suggest???? Please!!! Thank You, Julie

A fence --a big tall fence.

Seriously.

Sprays work and then they don't
The squirter thing works and then it doesn't

a dog hanging out 24/7 in the garden would work -- but that is awfully hard on the dog weatherwise and companionship wise (I think anyway)

Prayers work for lots of things but not deer
Incantations and spells don't work
Throwing Green Giant Green Bean cans at their heads doesn't work (I have not tried other veggies)
Shoo-ing doesn't work
Cussing doesn't work
If you chase them during the wrong time of year --they will chase you back --after snorting and pawing the ground
Banging on the window won't work
Mooning them won't work


A fence will work --but it has to be tall.

I agree with the tall fence suggestion. The deer in our urban area are getting bolder and it's not unusual to see them at mid-day. This pic of two bucks was made in early June. I think they dropped by to make sure I had planted their favorite green beans. I have had a running battle with these darn things for years and if I could invent something that kept them from eating plants 100% of the time, I would be very rich. Almost every thing we have tried worked for three days or less. Once they get used to any movement or odor you have to find something else. We have tried various brands of soap,motion detection lights, human hair, streamers,scarecrows,mothballs and results are poor. The white webbing fence in the pic is part of a kit sold by Cabelas called Plot Saver. It includes a concentrate made of eggs and pepper that you spray on the fence every few weeks. After using it, I didn't have a deer visit for a month,although they were probably eating someone else's garden. There are many homemade recipes on the internet which would be as good as anything else. They all usually include eggs, milk and hot pepper. I suggest mixing up only what you will use immediately and not leaving any in your sprayer because the fermented eggs and milk leave an odor that will repel the deer AND you. Good luck. Dan

after years of battling deer i can tell you with absolute certainty that nothing will work except a fence at least 7 feet tall. another thing to remeber is that deer will not jump over a fence if they don't know what is on the other side. i bought one of those mesh deer fences and it worked fine. the fabric was kind of dark so i guess that helped.

Also the smaller the fenced area the less likely they are to jump in. So if you only can do a shorter fence....better to have two or three plots that are smaller in size.

Dan, I have taken a cue from your post and maybe know what I have done wrong..... maybe throwing the can was a good idea .....just not a green bean can...... maybe olives...or sauerkraut....

I just re-read my post and see I failed to mention that last year was when I didn't have a deer visit for a month after using the spray on the fence. So far this year for some inexplicable reason they have not jumped or crawled under this short fence even though they continue to pass through the yard. "Encouraging" friends tell me it's only a matter of time. My fingers are crossed. Oh yeah, opening the window and barking like a half-crazed dog no longer works either. LOL. Dan

I snorted right back when faced with a snorting gent --- but then backed down when he got that Look 'O Love in his eyes.

LOL -- yes, a tall fence is the only sure-fire way to keep deer out. I live in the middle of a cedar swamp full of deer (and other critters) and have a 2-1/2 foot fence around my garden, mainly to keep my dogs out. My garden is about 40 x 25', with my greenhouse on one long side, the tall bean trellis on one short side, and our house near the other long side. Not sure why, but the deer haven't invaded for years, other than very late in the season if I fail to get the carrots and beets out soon enough. If I have to have a fortress around the garden, I kind of would rather not! Maybe plant something attactive to deer nearby, so they leave the garden alone. Now, if I could just keep the 'coons out of my corn...

We have a four foot fence around the two sides of our garden that offer access by deer. On one of those sides is an old orchard, and on the other is a pasture. Both of those areas back up onto the woods where deer like to wander and we see them in the pasture and orchard sometimes. DH put up about a 2 1/2 ft. electric strand about two feet out from both of those fences, where the deer would have to set up to jump. When he first turned the current on, that night we heard a deer hit the electric wire and fall back with a thump. There was a lot of huffing and snorting, but they never tried it again. That was years ago.

Get a dog, they do a wonderful joy keeping critters out of the yard or garden.

Not if it's a house dog, though. Ours doesn't do a thing about the deer, but of course we wouldn't let her chase them anyway because we'd be afraid of losing her.

A few years ago my aunt was having an impossible time keeping deer out of her vegetable garden and flowers. She had tried many different deterrents and nothing worked for long. She ended up getting the biggest German Shepherd I have ever seen. I swear that dog had to be part horse. He was tied on a lead and could go from the house to the edge of the garden. Less than a week later she heard him barking one afternoon. She looked out the window and he was by the edge of the garden reared up on his back legs trying with all his might to break the chain. Less than 25 yards away were six deer eating her plants. It had taken these deer only a matter of days to figure out exactly how far the dog could go. And we refer to them as DUMB animals ??? Dan

Julie, the only successful method I've ever read about, for keeping deer out of one's garden, is this....you might want to Google it for clarification though. Let me see if I can explain this -- It takes 2 parallel rows of fencing going around the whole garden, and the 2 fences have to be a certain distance apart from each other. I forget what the distance apart is, but the distance is the length of a deer's leap. So for instance, let's say that when a deer leaps over a fence, its leap is 5 feet long. If the fences are 4 feet apart, that means that the deer would land ON the interior fence if it jumped. It can't jump a tight 3 foot leap (the area between the fences) and it can't jump 8 feet to clear the interior fence. The article stated that somehow, the deer knows it can't clear both fences so it won't try to jump them. Does that make sense??? Again, this is something I read, not something I have first-hand knowledge of. If you try it, please let us know if it works!!! :) ....LOVE the idea about throwing cans! The mental picture make me laugh! ;)
Glenda

Glenda, this is what we do, too. Our electric fencing is about three feet out from the livestock fencing and they can't set up to jump with that arrangement.

Another thing I've seen which I thought was very clever was a sort of rustic wood-stacked fence of split rails slanted outward at about 45 degrees. The top edge is closest to the deer, but they can see that there will be something that could entangle their legs when they come over the top and hit the ground, so it deters them. I couldn't find a photo, but there's a description here:

http://www.doityourself.com/stry/deer-fencing-tips-and-tricks

Here's another description:

http://www.uvm.edu/pss/ppp/articles/deerfences.html

and another article:

http://www.nytimes.com/1984/03/20/science/new-fence-capitalizes-on-deer-s-poor-3-d-vision.html?sec=health

and a pdf:

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/pdf/ec/ec1557.pdf

I think this arrangement would work --

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1108962/

i agree about the dog. we had a golden retriever and even though he was strictly a house dog just his scent when we took him in the back would keep the deer away. had him for 8 years and never had a problem.

Hey guys, Peanut butter works much better, just smear it on the wire, and they can't wait to lick it, talk about ringing their chimes, check it out, don't need to mix anything. Have fun watching them run. Thanks, Krispi

Krispi - THAT is entrapment!

Krispi, I don't see anything funny about being cruel to animals.

Thanks!!! My dogs chase'em but my dogs don't want to be in 100 degree weather. Especially guarding the garden. I have a 7 ft fence. I'll use it next year. The deer did not eat the cabbage or the corn, nor did they eat the broccoli. Just the tomatoes!!! I literally got close the deer and it still wouldn't leave!!! Must like my tomatoes!!!

The corn would not last with the squirrel here. I can't believe that the deer didn't eat your cabbage or the broccoli.

Glad you got enough to harvest!

You guys misunderstand, this is not cruel, it just scares them, I have touched our fence, accidentally with my nose, and it did not hurt it just surprised me. I would never do any thing to hurt the animals. The funny part is seeing them startled, and jump back. After that, they make a big detour around the area. We feed them corn at the feeder, and hand them corn tortillos every morning and evening.

Krispi I was just teasing. But after I posted I actually went to look at what the experts say (not sure how 'expert') but the general comment I found from the fence folks etc was that the deer get a mild but painful shock. The word painful was used each time from various sources. I actually assumed it was a bit of an electrical 'tickle' but maybe not.

It's painful enough to discourage further exploration, that's for sure. When the deer hit our electric fence that one time, he sounded as though he were in considerable distress. But if that's what it takes, that's fine with me. DH also hunts them in the fall so we're not especially sentimental about them. And they do so much damage to the understory of the forests, and to threatened and endangered plants, that the idea of thinning the herd doesn't bother me.

A few areas that I hunt and fish are surrounded by electric fences. I have been accidently zapped on more than one occasion as I tried to go over or under the wire. I've never received more than a mild jolt. Farmers have used these fences for many years for livestock and I'm sure the animals get the message with little or no pain. I don't see this as being cruel. To me, the cruel part is slaving away for countless hours in your vegetable garden and flowers only to have it destroyed by these long-legged rats. Dan

Especially when the woods are full of good browse and they don't need your carefully-tended crops to survive!

Greenhouse Gal, I've been very fortunate this year ( so far ) as I have only lost some lilies and gladiola to the deer. Yesterday morning I was watering my dahlias and when I raised up two big bucks (looked like 8 pointers) walked past me no more than 15- 20 feet away. I went in to get my camera and when I got back they had walked between two houses across the street. With the hot weather this year the oak trees are dropping the acorns early. The yard is getting covered. Maybe this is why the deer are not bothering the plants as much as normal. Dan

That's good that your garden isn't being ruined by the critters. They do get awfully bold, though. We use Deer Away and that seems to protect anything that we can't or don't wish to fence for protection. We have wild tiger lilies that grow down by the river's edge on our front lawn, and for years we didn't get any, but since DH has been using Deer Away they're back in full force. Another thing that worked was the stakes with an attractant and a battery which gave a slight shock when nuzzled, but I don't see them sold anywhere anymore. They seemed like a good idea to us!

juliep127, my dogs "DON'T" have to run ("chase'em") the deer don't have to see dogs to know they are present. I have dogs because I love them.. keeping away any unwanted animals or people is just a bonus ^_^ . Dogs know who or what to keep away & who is safe to be around.

My dog used to keep them out. Even his smell kept them out. Now he is going on 15. He sleeps in longer than I do. He barley moves, actually. I think his scent oozes old. They know it and now raid almost every night without fear. Never say neighborhood deer are not smart.
Darn things!!!

Beebonnet, you are so right the deer can smell the dog/dogs & won't come around.

the deer eat the tomatoes because of the liquid in them. they usually do this when the season has very little train and they cannot get in from the wet grass

So, maybe if we left some water out for them to drink, they would leave our tomatoes alone?? Good idea.

I'm with greenhouse_gal. I get so ticked off by the damage deer do. I wish that their numbers would be reduced in urban settings where they're so abundant and there are no hunters or predators.

As far as electric fences go my aunt used to visit us on our farm in northern Vermont in the summer. Every time she visited she would grab on to the electric fence for a second because she thought it was good for her heart. I've been zapped accidentally too. It's not a big deal. I still chuckle when I think of some of the things my Aunt Helen used to do.

I'd like to see Mythbusters do a segment about the connection between electric fences and ,um, urination that we were warned about as kids. Fact or fantasy ? And no, I never tried! LOL

We have 6 foot tall fences around both the veggie garden and the ornamental garden. Anything shorter and the deer will go right over it. Our fence posts are wood, so that we can add another couple of feed if we need to. So far it's worked just fine.

The veggie garden also has a couple of electric cords, one around the top and one around the bottom. It's mostly to keep the very bold raccoons from taking my ducks (we lost one a few weeks ago before we added the electric fencing, in broad daylight), but it works with the deer as well. The first two nights that we had it we heard a couple of raccoons screech when they hit it, so I'm sure it hurts. Though as they had just eaten my duck I didn't feel much remorse - I may have even giggled a bit.

The sound of those screeches must have been good for your soul! I know that we lay there and smiled the night the deer hit the electric fence when we first put it up. All the thumping and snorting and panting was music to our ears!

When we were living out in Washington State we had a raccoon that was picking off our ducks one by one. DH shot it and we cooked and ate it. It was pretty gamey but we felt that it owed us a meal.

I remember in TN a lady came and spoke to our garden club. She said she hung little strips of aluminum foil on her electric deer fence. Deer are curious and put their noses on the strips.
We're in northern MN right now and see 25-30 deer every day (hunting cabin is here).

You guys tickle me, electric fences can come in varying degrees of voltages, certain things like distance from the source, and rain, and how well you are grounded can change the way you feel the tingle, but the word painful is a definite selling point for folks who see their beloved crops destroyed, the damages that come because the deer aren't harvested and controlled properly and cried over by unintelligent, misinformed people who go home to a concrete urban life and never actually Have to deal with reality. Animals ARE smart. Just like a people, they learn Not to ignore it a second time around, and, after all... it didn't cause them to flop over dead and make you have to deal with THAT disposal!!!

Oh, believe me I am just fine with causing a raccoon some pain. It doesn't injure them, it just stings. They are clever and will stay away from it after the first zap. The charge is fairly light around the veggie garden, but it's enough. It was surprisingly easy to put up.

Greenhouse-gal: Trust me, the thought did cross my mind. But, we are on the trail to the river at the bottom of the hill and the number of raccoons we get through here is amazing. If we killed one raccoon there would be 3 or 4 more to take its place the next day. We plunked delicious prey animals in the midst of some very adept predators (we've got it all here, fox to cougar) so we needed a more permanent solution.

I am now a believer about electric fencing, it's wonderful and does a great job of protecting my crops as well as my pets.