Hi, I am very new to Brugs - growing my first ever this season from cuttings shared by kind DGers. I have 12 acres and do a bit of spot landscaping back in the woods along trails. I want to put some brugs in a few beds back there to view when walking, sitting in the open areas that get sun. I have a healthy deer population though and wondered if this was a bad idea? Anyone know if deer will eat these things? I kinda figure brugs are poisonous since they seem to be a relative of Datura. oh, and if anyone has a out of control brug that needs to be cut back. I would love some more cuttings. lol I hate to beg but I just cant buy these things around here. Thanks for any info you can give me on this planned project.
Will Deer eat Brugs?
Hi slgrowers. I don't have a problem with deer where I live, but I believe Gretchen said that she had a big problem with deer at her place. I just don't remember if she was talking about them eating her brugs or other plants. She will probably be around to answer your question soon though. Good luck.
This year I had deer eat the new leaves on my Daylilies but they never touched the row of Brugs that were planted right along side of them.
Now that there is plenty of food in the woods they haven't come back to the garden.
oh, i'd love to know the answer to your question, too. i planted some brugs along the fence, and i didn't even think about the deers that come close sometimes...i sure don't want them harmed.
best of luck on your brugs. i'm relatively new to brugs, too, and really excited with the seedlings i'm growing.
This message was edited Jun 14, 2005 4:43 PM
I'm new to brugs also. A friend just sent me one. I thought someone said the deer don't like brugs. Today I got something like deer away at true value. They swear by it. You spray once a week for 3 weeks and then once a month. They say they wont come around after while. I'm going to give it a try. If you want to know the name, I'll go look it up and let you know. Yvonne
Thanks Yvonne - wasnt so much worried about them nibbling on my plants as I was worried that the brugs would harm the deer. lol Since they are a cousin to Datura I am afraid they are probably very, very toxic. Daturas are deadly if ingested. I am not saying I want deer to eat my plants. lol but I also do not want to poison them. You own the best deer repellent you could ever buy for any amount of money though and you dont have to go to the store. Ever pee in the woods? If you have, deer wont come near that spot for months. hehe.
Gretchen had a tough time with deer, but I don't know if they ate them or just damaged them looking for what they would eat. I know she will reply if she sees this thread. I cannot remember what she did to stop them, but there was some sort of truce, lol! I had a Golden that dug to China a million times in my yard, but she never once bothered the brugs or the oleanders, both poison. OTOH, someone said their cat used them for a scratching post - all my cats used them for was a litter box, and they killed three nice brugs before I knew what was going on. Oh, well.
Deer never touch datura even when they are starving. I've watch them nuzzle it out of the way so they could retrieve the small amounts of vegetation underneath but they won't eat it. Goats have been poisoned by it though, but goats eat EVERYTHING.
Thanks everyone. I think I can plant these along the trails with no worries. Thanks again for all the input.