Firearms.
Firearms.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I laughed out loud .... it is the FINAL/ULTIMATE solution!
My mom has hostas and the deer treat it like a gourmet salad bar. They also LOVE daylily buds & will eat rose leaves, young sunflowers, etc. too.
The only thing we found that works for sure is to put plastic netting over/around things. I use plastic netting with pvc frames to make fences for my raised bed garden. They could lean over & munch the plant tops around the edge, but it’s ‘tight’ enough they do not jump in. I have had no deer (or bunny) problems since using the fencing.
The other thing that, from our personal experience, is somewhat effective is “Milorganite” fertilizer. I’ll give you a link below. From the website: Milorganite is composed of heat-dried microbes that have digested the organic material in wastewater. It’s manufactured by the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, which captures waste water from the metropolitan Milwaukee area and uses naturally occurring microbes to digest the nutrients. After the organic matter has been consumed, the cleaned water is returned to Lake Michigan and the resulting material is dried and marketed as Milorganite.
From my personal experience, Milorganite has a slightly ‘funny’, maybe musty smell and the deer do not like it. When we sprinkle it around our plants, the plants like it & thrive and as long as we keep things “smelly”, the deer tend to stay away. I have used this stuff for years in the garden as a fertilizer & it’s a really good one IMO (doesn’t burn, slow release). Mom uses it around her hostas & it appears to help keep the deer (mostly) at bay.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Deer info - links from Milorganite site. Milorganite® fertilizer makes no claims regarding its use as a deer repellent.
https://www.milorganite.com/application/files/4014/7267/4233/Univ_of_GA_food_plot.pdf
Conclusion: We concluded that Milorganite®, when broadcast over newly emerging soybeans, is an effective temporary deer repellent, which reduces negative effects of deer browsing and benefits wildlife food plot establishment. However, the repellent does not eliminate deer damage, and efficacy varies by location.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://www.milorganite.com/application/files/8714/7267/4463/Univ_of_GA_ornamental_plantings.pdf
Conclusion: From these results, we concluded that Milorganite has potential as a deer repellent for ornamental plants. Though the repellent did not eliminate deer damage, it reduced the overall impact. The effectiveness of a repellent is highly dependent on climatic conditions, deer density & resource availability. High deer densities and low resource availability may reduce the efficacy of Milorganite as a repellent. Reduction of plant damage may further be improved if Milorganite is reapplied when deer damage is initially observed. Further research involving application rates and different plant varieties will prove useful in determining the deer’s tolerance level to Milorganite.