Deer Proofing My Garden

~ By Bonnie ~

Last year was the first year in many that I had felt well enough to attempt having a vegetable garden. I was so excited about seeing all my beautiful plants come to life.

I particularly have a passion for cantelope and I was truly looking forward to having many of them to snack on for months.

I planted a pretty good size garden. I had a couple rows of Green Beans, Tomatoes, Peppers, Onions, Cucumbers, Watermelons and of course my Cantelope.

I worked very hard to make sure that all was well with my little plants. I would spend hours a day out there tilling and pulling weeds and watering. Finally things started to happen and I could see blossoms everywhere.

Before long I had about 30 cantelope and I could not even begin to tell you how many watermelon there were. I patiently watched each day as they grew and grew.

After a couple weeks, I went out one morning to discover that 4 of my cantelopes had big holes in them. OMG I thought I must have a rat that is coming and eating on them or some sort of giant bug. I searched all the plants and couldnt find any bugs. I figured I had wayyy tooo many cats for the rats to make it to the garden.

I was so upset. I actually didnt know what was happening. The next morning when I went out there were even more cantelope with holes in them! Now I was beside myself. I called a neighbor and asked her what did she think was happening. She laughed and said "Well girl you live in the middle of a 100 acre hay field inhabited by deer!" I said you mean the deer are eating my cantelopes??????

So I went to town and bought some whirly gig things and pie pans and stakes and put them strategically around the garden. Did they help, NOT one single bit. Every morning I would trod off to the garden to the heartbreak of eaten fruit.

Once they had finished off my cantelope, the brave deer began to eat the green beans and tomatoes. They even tore down the tomato stakes!!

So I have decided this year to take affirmative action. I will not give my cantelopes and garden to the deer again!!

I began asking people what they did to keep the deer from munching on their gardens. Well I tried really hard not to laugh when they told me some of these things to do. I mean come on who thinks these things up!! So I thought I would list for you the "personal" ways I have been told to keep the beautiful but pesky deer out of my garden.

1. Chew tobacco and spit around the garden.

2. Put USED cat litter around the garden.

3. Put used coffee grounds around the garden.

4. Have a male human urinate around the garden.

5. Put rat droppings around the garden.

I dont expect I will be chewing tobacco, or stinking up the area with used cat litter. I sure as heck am not going scouting for rat doo doo. So I might just sprinkle some coffee grounds around and then have hubby do a little "watering" on them. LOL

I decided to look on the net for some more realistic ways to deter the deer. I was a bit shocked by some of the things I found online too!!

1. Use pices of bar soap, Irish Spring, works best and put them around the garden. The deer do not like the smell of the soap.

2. Deer can not stand the smell of human hair so gather it up and put it in stockings and place that around your garden.

3. Deer especially do not like the smell of rottern eggs. Mix up some eggs and water in a spray bottle and spray it around your garden. When the sun hits it and bakes it the smell will deter the deer.

4. Plant Dill around your garden. Deer will not bother anything that is even near it.

5. Sprinkle bloodmeal around. The deer do not like it's smell and it is good for your garden soil.

6. There are some plants you can plant around your garden that deer are not fond of also. They are: butterfly bush, holly, zinnias, salvias, mints, thyme and periwinkle.

Along with the other "personal" techniques I am going to use above, I am going to plant an herb garden. I am going to plant it around the outside perimeter of the garden.

Wish me luck cause this year, it's me or them and I intend to have my cantelopes!!!

Resources

Information for internet findings: 1, 2 and 3

Information for internet findings: 4 and 5

Information for internet findings: 6

         

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