WSAZ - John Marra - Headlines

Deer Resistant Plants for Your Landscape

First, I want to start off by saying that there aren't any deer proof plants out there. But there are some that are called deer resistant.

One thing to remember about selecting plants for your landscape that are deer resistant is if the right situations exist and your landscape plants are the only attractive food for the the deer, they will chomp on your favorite shrubs or flowers no matter how deer resistant they might be labeled. With that in mind, let's get down to the meat of this program and give you a abbreviated list of deer resistant shrubs and flowers.

As for shrubs and climbers, consider these landscape plants: Barberry, Boxwood, Rose of Sharon, Privet, Holy, Russian Olive, Juniper, Rhododendron, Azalea, Forsythia, and Lilac. As for Succulents try Yucca and Hens and Chickens.

Now for flowers, there is a long list of deer resistant plants and include: Chrysanthemum, Lily-Of-The Valley, Daffodil, Iris, Zinnia, Tulips, Calla Lilly, and Dusty Miller. Keep in mind that the most favorite flower out there for deer is Hosta.

All trees are susceptible to deer damage. Young trees with a trunk less than three inches in diameter is fair game for bucks in the summer. They use the trees as a rubbing post to help shed their velvet over their horns, as well as to leave their scent. They can scrape off a great deal of bark, and if substantial, the tree can die.

After trees get mature, the following trees can offer some protection: Scotch Pine, Douglas Fir, Colorado Blue Spruce, Paper Birch, and Serviceberry. As I mentioned earlier, you have to have several deer damage tactics -- and planting the proper deer resistant plants is a good start.

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