What gardener out there hasn't suffered the plague of dastardly deer? You watch the bud formation of those prize special double daylilies and just as they're ready to open, you go out the next morning and find the tips nipped off! It's not like they eat the whole bud....just a nibble here and a nibble there.
I'm convinced they do this out of pure devilment.
And continuous fencing around your yard can be useless in some ways unless you're prepared to install one that's 8 feet high. Anything less they can jump and a solid fence just gives them a stable. unmovable structure that they can eyeball and 'boom'.
They sail right over.
One option is to add a living fence of shrubs on the inside of your fence. Deer are hesitant to jump over and into and area where they don't know what's on the other side.
I've also discovered that deer are 'line of sight'. It doesn't help to plant those daylilies farther away. If they can see them - they want them.
Like a kid in Walmart makes a beeline for the toy aisle.
One thing deer don't like is anything that brushes against their legs or nose that they can't see.
A friend of mine owns a landscape company and some of her customers use fishing line strung around flower beds and says it spooks the deer when those knobby little deer knees brush against it. I tried that but got tired of constantly replacing the line since it breaks down quickly in the hot summer sun.
That's when I got serious about keeping these voracious eating machines out of our yard.
I went to Home Depot and loaded up on rolls of Bird/Deer Netting. That combined with garden trellises had been pretty effective at protecting my flowers so they ended up in my grandmother's crystal vase and not in their tummys.
Since the trellis/netting seemed to work pretty well, I decided to take my war on invading deer to the next level. One day when cruising the local Lowes I came across the Grand Empire No Dig fence. They have the elegant look of more expensive estate fences.
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| Decorative Estate Trellis and Fence Panel with Deer Netting |
Just be careful you don't accidentally grab the other brand by mistake. It's priced a hefty 50 bucks!
(I think I'll go out and stock up while the prices are still low on the Sta-Green.)
These do-it-yourself fence panels are very easy to put up and cost less than permanent expensive fencing panels.
Separately sold are round metal posts that have sturdy detachable pointed bottoms that you hammer into the ground. Then you line up the loops on each end of the panels, slide the post down through and into the base in the ground.
Step in the tall trellis section on each side and you're good to go.
No Dig Posts
The trellises I used for side accents can be found here:
Tall Estate Trellis - 60 Inches and are priced very reasonable as far as metal trellis go.
The great thing about this fencing is that it isn't permanent with the posts set in concrete like other fencing. You can't mess up the installation and it's moveable if you change your mind
This used to be sold as bird netting at the big box hardware stores until the manufacturers realized people were using it as deer fencing and renamed it. It's black in color and nearly invisible until you get up close.
It's a very tough netting that's long lasting unless you get a really aggressive buck that can rip a hole in it when on a rampage.
It's also made in a way that will catch on anything including your garden boots and even your fingertips.
I have plum and apple trees that the deer will stop at nothing to get at them. So, what I've done is take old wire clothes hangers and cut sections to make S-hooks and hang the netting from the outer branches so they can't get at the fruit.
Before I had finished my net fencing, as I was coming home one evening I surprised a deer standing in the driveway, licking his lips as he contemplated stripping our plum tree.
In a panic to escape, he ran across the yard and through a section of netting that was done, but invisible to those sweet bambi eyes.
That deer probably wore that netting into the next county.
When I went out the next morning I could see where where he'd pawed the ground around the tree in frustration.
Oh, deer....no fruit compote for you this morning!
More photos coming soon ~
As I continue adding to these fence panels, I will be adding more pics. I think the sloping side panels in the Empire No Dig line will look great with the Decorative leaf panels also sold at Lowes.
See you soon!
