Discourage Those Deer

Your trees, shrubs and flowers often look like a free lunch to wildlife. Rabbits love to munch on clover and other grasses, as well as certain kinds of flowers. Deer love fruit and certain kinds of shrubbery. Moose will feed on the large and small branches of apple and other trees. And, of course, there are the ever-present gophers that populate large areas of the U.S.

All these critters, and many more, can make keeping a beautiful garden, a nice lawn or some outstanding trees in good shape a real challenge. Fortunately, there are several simple and inexpensive ways to keep the damage to a minimum.

Deer, for example, are very fond of apples. Having a feeder away from the garden will keep their focus where you want it to be, away from your plants and flowers. Or, you can try one of the many commercially available deer repellent sprays. But, you can add another item to your toolkit by careful selection of what you plant.

If you live in an area where deer frequent (and a surprisingly large number of people do), there are all sorts of options that are attractive to you but not to them. Germaniums, tansy, daffodils and many other flowering plants are not favored by deer. Thyme, myrtle, spearmint and other herbs, too, are generally left alone.

Rabbits will eat plants and flowers out of gardens, but a simple, narrow mesh fence can keep them out. Surprisingly, even full-sized rabbits can squeeze between the gaps in standard chain link fence.

It doesn’t generally need to be more than 18 inches high to discourage them, especially if there are easier food sources elsewhere. Rabbits can dig a hole under fencing, so it’s not a foolproof method. To discourage them further, sink the fencing a foot below the ground as well.

Planting a section of clover near the back of an unfenced yard will tend to keep them there and away from your garden. Monks hood, hollyhock, aster, borrage and many others are beautiful as well as not preferred by rabbits.

Gophers (and some types of mole) are found in many places around the U.S. Even a single gopher can cause considerable damage in only a few hours. And, if you find evidence of one, there are often at least one or two more around, sometimes more. They make roundish holes in the ground, sometimes with a mound with tunnels going off in two directions. Sometimes all you see is a very neat hole.

There are several methods for dealing with them, including chemical repellents, vibration producing devices and a variety of traps.

One common chemical repellent is a solution of Castor oil. The theory is that spraying it on grass and plants near where the gopher has been observed causes the oil to coat the roots. The gopher feeds on the roots, gets a sour stomach and leaves. It has been known to work.

Vibration devices are available, but the results are more difficult to judge. In theory, the beep and vibration they emit annoys the gopher and they leave the territory. The labels often say it takes up to two months to judge results. That makes it difficult to know whether they had any effect or the gopher left for other reasons. In the meantime, they can do lots of damage.

Some traps work by killing the gopher. A common type is similar to a mousetrap, except it has jaws which clamp the gopher around the middle. They are effective, but fairly gruesome, and using them requires practice and persistence.

Other traps lead them into a chamber, where they can be trapped harmlessly. The gopher can then be transported to another area. However, catching a half-dozen gophers this way is time consuming and difficult and the traps require digging large holes in your yard to get them into the gopher’s tunnel.

No single method will eliminate all wildlife from your lawn and garden. A good fence is a good start, but fencing off a large yard particularly in a rural area on a large property can be very expensive. But a combination of low-cost, low-effort methods can improve your situation dramatically.

-The Fixie Chix