James Shelby PH.D - THE DEER RESISTANT DESIGN BOOK GUIDE: THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO FENCE-FREE GARDENS THAT THRIVE DESPITE THE DEER

Copyright 2020 by JAMES SHELBY PH.D

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Contents

Deer lv t graze n many types f groundcovers, ll whn new, tender grwth mrg n th rng.Th rnmntl lnt nd hrub n ur garden should b a ft fr th eyes, nt a bnut for th ll deer population. Although t mbl t mk a bkrd completely dr-rf, u n fll it wth lnt dr hate. For a nturl lk, th dr-rtnt wldflwr mix is great, otherwise check ut th uggtn blw.

Dr Resistant Flg.Dr r often frightened w by lud noises nd sudden mvmnt. K them on edge b hngng wnd hm from th brnh f tr and shrubs r by lng wnd spinners thrughut your grdn. If tht doesnt wrk, tr trtlng thm wth a uddn r f water by ntllng a motion-activated rnklr, such ScareCrow frm Orth.Intrlnt aromatic perennial herbs thrughut ur grdn tht hv nt that dr ht, uh as mnt, thm, French trrgn, lvndr, chives, sage, nd rosemary.

Dr lv th tndr nw leaves and shoots of grundvr when they first emerge n th rng. T lmnt th temptation, trt th r wth a trng-mllng dr repellent or mthng tht also dubl as a hml-fr frtlzr, such bld ml or fh muln. Be rful nt t overfertilize, which wll rult n th ft, uulnt vegetative growth that dr lv. Jut half the rmmndd dosage t a gvn tm wll lv th dr but nt vrtmult th plants, dv Clun.If ll else fl, urrund ur grdn with tll deer fnng r other impenetrable brrr. Learn how t buld ur wn "Crttr-Rtnt Vegetable Grdn".

Yu dnt hv to vd grwng all the annuals tht deer lk to nibble on. Intd, ut thm in ntnr on a bln r frnt rh r lnt thm n hanging baskets that r t hgh fr dr t rh. Yu n also try a dr-rtnt wldflwr mix.

Wth an emphasis on design, grdnng xrt Krn Chapman th u her trd-nd-tru methods fr rtng butful, dr-rtnt grdn r. Her tips g wll bnd a deer-resistant lnt list, h hw you multiple strategies, as wll hw t mbn thm tgthr t get mr bng fr ur dr-rtnt buk.

N matter where u grdn, chances are good that you truggl with dr dmg. Dr are a ntnt issue hr on my rurl 5-r GardenFarm nrth f Atlanta, GA; but th can b jut prevalent n th mdt of urbn spaces t. Grdnr often turn t deer-resistant lnt a solution. Th ft is, th tn r jut vulnrbl to a hungr dr. Today, w xlr how t protect your grdn using deer-resistant dgn.Th butful rtur r vr dtbl nd dtrmnd, not t mntn they can w out m f ur treasured plants in jut a few hur. Lng th bttl can rll tk the pleasure ut of grdnng.

Srh th ntrnt fr lnt vrt that dr wont t, nd youll find a nrl ndl number f lt dntfng deer-resistant lnt. Th m be l tzng, but tht dnt mn deer wont eat thm. There is n uh thng a deer-proof lnt. Th ft , vn th resistant vrt wll bm victim t n dr wth lmtd fd h nd an empty bll. Fund lt to b mr frustrating thn hlful. They wr a lundr lt f varietal names but offered n gudn on how t nrrt th lnt into a landscape.

Nt n to mrm n design, Krn was dtrmnd t find w to create butful gardens wth strong tht appeal tht wuld hold up t ntnul dr vttn.Krn rmmnd tht dr-rtnt design starts wth a focus on hrd. Wh ? Dr create garden chaos. Is mthng in bloom? Yu can bet th deer wll n off vr flwr n a flash. A ntl pruned hedge can b decimated overnight. Th thw, walls, t, t. n a lnd r ll lmnt whh are mrvu t th nr f a dr.It th ndbl elements whh wll rt a n of rdr, dtrtng th frm n dmg to the urrundng plant lf.

Dr nt dmg hardscape mtrl, they are a gd nvtmnt in a deer-challenged landscape. The support wll, ttrtv fnng nd clean ln f the l r bring order vn whn m urrundng plants uffr dmg.

Yu mght have already lrnd the hrd w that a feature r mn plant in ur grdn is an rtunt fr heartbreak thnk t dr. Evn jut a fw nbbl n tht ln mn tk out lk a r thumb, nd the frm n b permanently impacted.Instead, stick wth nn-dbl fl nt, like a wtr fountain or even a ntnr. Plnt n a ntnr arrangement can b rld mr l f they r munched beyond the nt f no return.

In other words, ndr what can be incorporated n your garden tht dr are unable to effect, and u those lmnt as ur fundtn.

On youve planned your hrd elements, Krn suggests determining your lr ltt th next order of business. It wll hl u nvgt th vrwhlmng lt of dr-rtnt plants. Plu, a cohesive lr hm nhn a feeling f rdr whh n hld up t deer dmg h.Th bt color hm are lmtd to a mll scope rthr thn vr hd undr th rnbw. Fr xml stick wth blu, purples, nk, nd wht for a l palette or various shades of rd, llw, orange, nd vn a tuh of url for a unt theme.

On u dntf dr-rtnt plants whh ft th color ltt and conditions f your lnd, dont jut bu n or tw. Purh nugh that you can lnt n drft. It nrl inevitable tht th deer wll d m brwng, but th wnt gt t ll th lnt n a larger grung. So, any dmg dn will b l ntbl and r t recover from.

This garden w designed rund a warm lr ltt f ntrtng bark, foliage and flwr. No fn here, but the dr rnt t ntrtd n the rtnt vrt ud n th -thng group.Karens go-to list for deer-resistant lnt is from Rutgr. Vrt n this list r rtd frm A thrugh D rdng t thr rtn. Plants deer wll hd for first r rated a D (vrl brwd), whl the plants receiving n A rnkng wll only be on th menu when a deer rll desperate.

Th rnkng tm nt a guarantee just a rfltn f vrg bhvr. A plants vulnrblt to deer wll vr bd on a numbr f factors.Plants rnkd as A r B n th Rutgers lt r the bt options fundtn lntng fr ur dr-rtnt dgn. Th m tk a hit in seasons t come, but th vrt r the lt likely t uffr a dr death blow.

Smtm, dr nibbling can work fr ur benefit. Sr an example n Karens landscape. She loves th rng tn f nw grwth on r hrub. In ft, she rfr t t th pink flwr whh come on ltr in the spring. Even thugh r is ranked B b Rutgr, th dr n Krn r r nvtbl drawn t ft on th flower buds. In th process, th r ndvrtntl runng the shrubs nd nurgng th lnt to nd ut nw orange growth fr Karen.

Othr dr-rtnt favorites n Krn lnd nlud lavenders, sages, wt lum (whh ffr rbbt rtn t), gur, lnthu (l knwn Crln wt shrub), nd weigela (vlbl n lots of frm, lr nd z).I lv calycanthus. Unfrtuntl, do th dr in m nghbrhd in t of th fact tht Karens calycanthus nvr gt a nbbl. Tht just goes t rv there r n gurnt when t comes t dr resistance. Deer tastes vr by rgn, b season, and b th vlblt (or lk) of mr appealing options.

Grung f a single vrt f plant wll muflg n unluk individuals whh l a lf or tw. On th thr hnd, using vrl of the same t of plant t rt a mn-mnultur dgn element like a hedge f boxwood r rbrvt, wll hv the opposite fft. An tn which goes missing durng a deer visit wll be mmdtl apparent.A bttr solution fr rv barriers nd hdg a blnd f plant a mx of vru vrgrn nd dduu plants tgthr. Sur, th dr wll come and rbbl nk, but th wll prefer th tt f m f the hdg lntng vr others. Sn th wont go after vrthng, the dmg wll b lost in the diversity of flg nd frm.

A gd lnd design lw incorporates lr, but tggrd lnt hght d a great jb t muflgng deer damage t. N mttr hw heavily dr brw, th layered look wll remain maybe a little mr lrd than u wuld like, but no n else likely t nt.Smtm, t not brwng that causes damage to ur plants, its the mt of th physical presence of deer. Hv you vr noticed that they tend t tk t a rtulr rut thrugh the lnd? That ttrn n wrk to ur advantage. If u can lrn t, you n dgn rdngl.

Ar f a grdn n become worn by constant ft trff but l by th hv f rgulr grdn vtr. You can dgu the dmg in th t wth durable grund covers lk elfin thm, Crn mnt r n of the thr step-able varieties. Karen fturd a Prtlnd-r garden rgulrl trampled by hug herds of dr and elk. The grdnr lntd a mdw area, whh drw th nml w frm thr t n the grdn. Tl mdw lnt varieties r bl t rvr mr ukl frm bng trampled than other tgr of plants like rnmntl gr r hrbu rnmntl. Th hrd still vt, but th do much l damage.