Deer resistant trees

[xander9727]

I have a client who would like to have a flowering ornamental that the Deer are less inclined to ravage. She has had 3 crabapples destroyed (one after another) in the last 2 years.

This is the first time I have been presented with this problem, so any help would be greatly appreciated.

There is a disproportionate amount of Deer in this area and cars are the only predators.

 

[WRW]

http://www.wvu.edu/~agexten/hortcult/treeshru/resistan.htm

 

[xander9727]

WRW,
Thanks a lot.
Tod

 

[Newfie]

I live in a fairly rural area with high white tail population and they love the crap apples. One of my neighbors had the same trouble as your client and was told that hanging soaps in the tree works as an effective repellent. He has been using the perfumey kind like they have in hotels and it has worked for over a year now. You could also pi$$ all over the tree, that works too.

 

[NeTree]

But Mike, isn't the hotel stay awfully expensive to steal all of them soaps?

 

[Newfie]

Prolly cheaper than all the beer to keep the stream going for the alternative I provided. Besides who says ya have to stay? Just wander throught the halls at cleaning time.

 

[Toronado3800]

My neighbor has an airdale and a chocolate lab, both live in a convertable dog house complete with insulation and a window and are excellent deer repellers.

 

[rumination]

I don't know if they'll survive the Ohio winters, but oleander is a popular deer proof plant in Texas. All parts of the plant are extremely poisonous so if the deer do munch...well it's the last time they'll ever do it! They have fairly attractive flowers that I have seen in pink or white.

 

[Guy Meilleur]

Oleander's zone 9; they'd be 4-dead-in-O-hi-o.

I like your idea of poisoning the suckkers tho. Too bad most poisonous plants are so bitter they repel. Maybe some genetic crossing of oleander genes into hosta would draw them to their death.

 

[Newfie]

"Too bad most poisonous plants are so bitter they repel. Maybe some genetic crossing of oleander genes into hosta would draw them to their death."



Save trees, erradicate deer? I see you pick and choose your warm huggy feelings for living things.

 

[Crofter]

Yah I thought the deer were here before humans too. I need something that rabbits and coons and groundhogs and black bears and tent caterpillars and and doesnt shed and the roots arent invasive and! Lol!

 

[Guy Meilleur]

"I see you pick and choose your warm huggy feelings for living things"

Of course I do, and here's the criterion that counts:

Trees have many natural enemies armed with machines that go vroom and make little men feel big, so their numbers in urban areas are drastically shrinking. This tends to make cities unlivable and people less human all the time. :alien:

Deer have no natural enemies except people with little guns who only get to shoot them a couple of months a year. Their numbers are drastically increasing, which means the diversity of trees is plummeting and the incidence of Lyme disease is rising.

Questions?

 

[Newfie]

"Deer have no natural enemies except people "


Maybe on planet Guy. You need some coyotes and wolves down there? Maybe a mountain lion or two? A deep snow winter will fix 'em.

Don't use that differing demographics of deer vs. predator ratio between MA and NC, because I know you don't accept that "demographics" is a valid argument.

 

[Guy Meilleur]

Originally posted by Newfie
You need some coyotes and wolves down there? Maybe a mountain lion or two? A deep snow winter will fix 'em.
We don't have any predators or deep snow, and neither does most of the US.

Don't use that differing demographics of deer vs. predator ratio between MA and NC, because I know you don't accept that "demographics" is a valid argument.
Unless you can show me where I said that, you're overgeneralizing in an effort to make a point that was invalid to start with. :Monkey:

O and "demographics" refers to people only, unless you think a democracy is ruled by wolves and coyotes and the kind of deer I see outside my window, grinding rare and beautiful plants into mush as they cud, dropping deadly ticks, quick to cut and run but o so slow to think. Come to think of it, maybe you're right--that describes many of the posters to AS these days.

Bye.

 

[NeTree]

I thought it was a referance to our government employees at the IRS...

Ticks...
Wolves...
Coyotes...

Sure sounds like it to me!

 

[Newfie]

Geez Guy, see if you can't get a bit of humor while you are away. Just remember that you can only see your little corner of the planet no matter how high your horse. Believe it or not, things are different elsewhere. Think slowly about that.

 

[NeTree]

Mike, I'd gladly pee on your trees to keep the deer away, trouble is by the time I've had that many, I can't find your house.

Solution? Kegger at Mike's!!!

 

[Newfie]

After 4 you have trouble finding your mouth.

 

[NeTree]

I know, I'm such a lightweight...




:angel:

 

[tomreeve]

Some times the only thing to do to keep that pretty tree alive is to throw a fence around it. Usually deer will only go after trees for food in the colder months, so at least while it is pretty you can remove the fence. They will rub on thoses trees when shedding and growing antlers and while rutting. This will often cause un-fixable wounds.
There are a lot of commercial products to keep them away. The best I've heard are these little clips that contain essence of garlic. You pin them on trees and the deer stay away. A cheaper method would be to plant garlic around the tree, but that doesnt work in winter.
tom