One thing there is definitely no shortage of on Long Island is deer. They are absolutely everywhere, and while pretty cool to have a bit of nature in your backyard, the challenge comes that they seem to eat everything. From Hostas to tomatoes to daffodils, flower beds, gardens and most hedges don’t have a chance.
A Lot of time and energy is spent trying to stop or slow the “all you can eat buffet” of our backyards including many tried attempts from surrounding everything with marigolds, lavender or some other fragrant plant they seem to avoid…. Which works to an extent. But they are smart animals and very tenacious when it comes to that succulent leaf they are accustomed to. Think of it in our terms; some people don’t like onions, they stink, are very sharp on the taste buds, and make your eyes water….. But if you went into the refrigerator and the chocolate cake was behind the onion left over from lunch’s salad, would you leave or grab the cake? Of course you would, so would almost everyone. Same thing with the border plants for the deer. I have seen deer step right on the marigolds while eating the tomato plants down to the dirt.
Then there is the automatic motion sensored sprinkler system, designed to squirt a bit of water to chase the deer away. Well, after the expense of product and time of installation, not to mention the soaking received while testing the new system, I had to sit and laugh as 2 young fawns were actually running around the yard seemingly “playing” in the water like little kids.
We’ve tried it all, pet safe sprays, fences, decoys, those plants and whatever product we found, only to see yet another group wander through gently grazing away.
I guess it’s time to just start feeding them and hope they are full enough to not eat my tomatoes.
Any ideas? Please share.
Contributed by:
DonAngelo
