You Bet Your Garden

Defy those dastardly dining deer!
By Mike McGrath

Mike McGrath All those seasonal summer plants, both the wild annuals in the woods and the tasty treats you so kindly grow for Bambi and her pals, are Gone With the Frost. That means those giant stomachs-with-legs are now deciding which of your precious shrubby perennials will be today's daily special on the "Deer Diner" menu.

You can deter the white-tailed plant vacuums by hanging half bars of deodorant soap (the stinkier the better -- if you can barely stand it being in your shopping cart, that's the one!) every six feet at browsing height. Or try this cool new deer-repellant tactic from Sweden:

Mix 2 1/2 pounds of bloodmeal (a natural, high-nitrogen fertilizer available at garden centers) into a bucket, half full of water. Stir well, add 1 cup of ammonia, and keep stirring. Cut pieces of Oasis (that green florist block stuff -- available at craft centers or from a, d'uh, florist) into big cubes and place each cube on top of a three-foot-tall stake, so that the staked cubes will end up about 28" (browsing height) off the ground. Dip the cubed stakes into the bucket and let 'em sit there until the Oasis is really saturated. Then place the stakes about six feet apart around the plants you wish to protect. Re-saturate the cubes every couple of weeks or after a really heavy rain.

Tired of this never-ending battle? Consider a new landscape of deer-resistant plants. You'll find a great list of the plants that deer eat last and sample designs of deer-resistant gardens at the excellent Web site www.mydeergarden.com, where you can also purchase customized designs for your unique landscape.

Or, if you simply insist on growing the plants deer love the most, check out www.bennersgarden.com for the ultimate in deer-defying invisible fencing.

You Bet Your Garden can be heard Saturdays at 11 a.m. on WHYY 91FM.

Information about the program and more of Mike's gardening tips can be found at You Bet Your Garden online.