What to do about deer eating vegetable garden (buy, live)

[beezle1]

I am looking for tips on how to keep deer from eating my vegetable garden. I have lived here for 17 years, up on the Palmer Divide, about 3 miles east of Highway 83. When we first moved here, we did not see deer at all, then after a few years only occasionally. Now the past few years more and more. This year they have discovered my vegetable garden and have grazed it 3 times now. I need to figure out how to get them to stop. They are eating leaves of green bean plants, kohlrabi leaves and even tomato plants.

Do simple things work to keep them away, like aluminum pie plates blowing in the wind? Any other suggestions that are not a huge amount of work?

[Hemlock140]

I put my garden in an area where they have stripped the leaves off the roses every year, so i put up 8' round posts and wildlife netting. They have continued to eat the roses by have not tried to get to the garden right next to them. We also have 2-3 cottontail rabbits munching the lawn next to it and they haven't gotten in. I think it was about $30 for everything and took less than an hour to put up.

This is from early on in May before the plants grew out.

[Baron of BBQ]

venison stew

[Marcy1210]

There are commercial products like DeerAway or something that you spray on flowers and veggies to keep the deer from eating, but they have to be frequently re-applied, especially after rains or watering. The deer will eat almost everything you want to grow. They don't eat Daffodils, Marigolds, Zinnias, or evergreen trees, but they'll eat just about every other flower, fruit, vegetable and leafy tree...They're hard to deter. You might go to the CSU Extension Service web site and see if they have any suggestions.

[Bideshi]

Originally Posted by Baron of BBQ

venison stew

A silenced .22 and a big freezer would work...

[Arrby]

I can assure you that deer will eat daffodils - at least the flowering parts. And they will eat almost any pine. I've not seen them eat spruce, however.

Really, the only preventative is serious fencing.

[smdensbcs]

Originally Posted by Arrby

Really, the only preventative is serious fencing.

Agreed. We have a decent size vegetable garden in our side yard with @ 5 ft high mesh wire fencing and so far it's deterred the dozens of deer who wander by daily. Deer can jump a fence that high, but our garden happens to be surrounded by a 3-4 foot wide moat of small (1-2 inch diameter) river rock. My guess is they don't want to risk injury by jumping to or from such unstable ground.

[ryanek9freak]

Originally Posted by bideshi

a silenced .22 and a big freezer would work...:d

+1

[mtngigi]

I've found that sprinkling cayenne pepper around can help ... buy the big cheap ones they sell at Big Lots.

[Terytee]

Originally Posted by Bideshi

A silenced .22 and a big freezer would work...

Luv it!

Chicken wire around the garden ....but I've also heard the cayenne pepper thing to, but you'd have to apply often....and I would think the run off after a rain shower, but make the produce taste peppery, no??

I believe there are also electronic devices that emit high pitched sounds that supposedly keep animals away?

It's funny how critters will always manage to find the best stuff to eat.