Sauk County Gardener Planting a “deer-resistant” garden

“A small deer came into my camp and stole my bag of pickles. Is there a way I can get reimbursed? Please call.” ~ Dave Barry

Yesterday morning, while drinking our coffee, my husband and I were greeted by a wild turkey peering into our front window from the driveway. When we looked out the other living room windows, we spied a flock (also called a rafter as my son told me) of turkeys near the side yard bird feeder dining on the sunflower seeds that had been knocked to the ground by the blue jays. Then a couple of them flew up into our flowering crab trees and were moving from branch to branch, eating the fruit. It was the first time I had seen them in our crab trees. Last week, we also enjoyed watching a fox move through our yard before heading back into the woods. It’s not unusual for us to also lots of deer, including fawns, come springtime. Living in a rural area allows us to greatly enjoy watching the wildlife; but as gardener, the wildlife – particularly deer, can wreak havoc on my gardens. Even urban areas must now contend with deer, along with rabbits and other rodents.

So, it was no surprise when I recently received a request for a list of deer-resistant plants from a local gardener. She was looking for vegetables and ornaments; they didn’t need to flower – just not be eaten. I understood her frustration. At our very first home, I planted a large garden bed filled with over 500 bulbs of daffodils, tulips, and iris. The daffodils came up and bloomed beautifully. The tulips were next on deck and I was waiting impatiently for them to bloom. Imagine a bed full of tulips ready to open one day, and every single one of the buds eaten off overnight. The deer didn’t eat the leaves, just the buds. I was livid and extremely frustrated that my hard work had been for naught. It did teach me a valuable lesson – do my research and plant trees, shrubs, and flowers that are not favored by deer.

First thing you need to know is that there are not really any “deer-resistant” plants. If deer and other rodents are hungry enough, they will eat almost anything. When food is scarce, your flowering bulbs, shrubs, evergreens, and other plants that are normally not a favorite to deer, become fair game. This is typically more of a problem in late winter and late spring. At that time, you may have to resort to fencing or repellents.

There are some plants that deer would prefer not to eat and are truly quite nice in rural and urban gardens. An added bonus is that many of them are natives, so not only will they help deter deer, but are also beneficial to pollinators and birds. There are numerous options to choose from; here are just a few to consider:

--Trees: Consider planting an evergreen tree such as a Douglas fir, blue spruce, common juniper or mugo pine. They will not only deter deer but can also provide winter interest and a wind block.  Some deciduous trees to consider are birches, magnolia, ginkgo, serviceberry, tulip tree or an American smoke tree. They are not only deer-resistant but also provide color and/or food and pollen for native birds and bees.

--Shrubs: Forsythia, common lilac, smokebush, butterfly bush or winterberry are options to also provide color and food for the birds and bees.

--Bulbs: This short list includes spring blooming bulbs such as daffodils, grape hyacinth, squill and allium. I haven’t had much success finding any summer blooming bulbs that deer would avoid.  They’ve cleaned out many of my Asiatic buds if I’m not vigilant in deterring them. It doesn’t mean I don’t plant them; I just don’t plant them in areas of my garden where I know the deer are more prone to graze.

--Perennials: This list is actually quite extensive, so here are just a few of my favorites as some are also beneficial to birds, butterflies, bees and other pollinators. yarrow, purple coneflower, Russian sage, coreopsis, lupine, beebalm, goldenrod, lamb’s ear, perennial salvia, yellow stone crop, delphinium, false indigo, butterfly weed and more. Before planting any of these, research to see if your soil and light conditions are good for these plants. I’m fortunate to have both shady and sunny locations so I can experiment with a variety of different ones.

Annuals: Some easy ones to grow include cosmos, zinnias, sweet alyssum, snapdragon and marigolds.

Herbs: Deer don’t really like any fragrant herbs such as dill, sweet basil, oregano, rosemary or sage. They also don’t care for many of the mints, but plant those with care; they can be aggressive and take over a garden space if not properly contained.

This is just a just short list of trees, shrubs, and flowers that deer will avoid if they have better options to choose from – like your prized Asiatic lilies or tulips. One thing to keep in mind - deer can’t read this list and they will sometimes eat plants that have been touted as “deer-resistant.” Pay attention to what they sample at your garden buffet and explore way ways to simply deter them from your yard. Another option - plant enough for everyone to enjoy, even the deer. For an extensive list of plants not favored by deer, visit the Extension publication, “Plants not favored by deer,” found at: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0145/8808/4272/files/A3727.pdf.

Remember to contact Extension Sauk County if you have any gardening questions. Please send an email to haley.weisert@saukcountywi.gov or call the University of Wisconsin Madison Division of Extension Sauk County office at 608-355-3250.

Jeannie Manis is president of the Sauk County Master Gardener Association.