Novice gardener in deer country ...
March 4, 2017 6:52 AM
I'm a lifelong urban dweller about to move to a house surrounded by woods--and deer. Lots of deer. Whats the best strategy for planning my garden, and reconciling "start small" with the need to build a 6-foot fence around the thing to keep the critters out?
If you've started and expanded a garden in similar circumstances, what did you learn along the way? Is something like this raised bed kit a good solution? Or would it be better to build a raised bed and then just fence in a bigger area that can accommodate more raised beds in the future? (This is for a family of 3; one is a kid and the other 2 work full time).
If you've started and expanded a garden in similar circumstances, what did you learn along the way? Is something like this raised bed kit a good solution? Or would it be better to build a raised bed and then just fence in a bigger area that can accommodate more raised beds in the future? (This is for a family of 3; one is a kid and the other 2 work full time).
There's a huge deer population in my town and they are voracious. I sit and watch them hop effortlessly over 6' fences 'til the cows come home. Our deer laugh at a 6' fence. They also rub any "deerproof" plantings in your face before the ink on the receipt from the garden center is even dry. They devour things like ceanothus, escallonia, and other commonly recommended planings. A lot of folks run a 6-8' fence of some type and then another 2x4 "beam" 1-2 feet above that, with an open area between it and the bottom fence, as a visual barrier.
I would go with raised beds inside a larger enclosure as tall as you can make it. Do not underestimate what these hooved locust will do.
posted by humboldt32 at 9:08 AM on March 4, 2017
I would go with raised beds inside a larger enclosure as tall as you can make it. Do not underestimate what these hooved locust will do.
posted by humboldt32 at 9:08 AM on March 4, 2017
Yeah, a 6 foot fence won't do the job. A friend of mine who lived in the country near Leesburg, VA and depended on his garden to feed his family had a 12 foot fence around it.
posted by Bruce H. at 9:28 AM on March 4, 2017
posted by Bruce H. at 9:28 AM on March 4, 2017
My parents have this problem too. I wish I had an answer, but my mom's solution was to become resigned to losing most of her vegetables. Things that didn't work: 6' fence, metal mesh around the garden, and spraying coyote pee on the plants (how they bottle that last one I have no idea!). None of that had any effect. The deer are even so bold as to approach my parents' windows up to about 6 feet away and stare at the people in the house. Good luck!
posted by ClaireBear at 9:29 AM on March 4, 2017
posted by ClaireBear at 9:29 AM on March 4, 2017
T-posts strung with fishing wire has worked for us in the past. In our case the deer ran into the wire once and never came close again, but I could see entanglement being catastrophic. I would go with electric fencing, it's cheap to run and very effective (I am not smrt and have buzzed myself on the electric fence something like five times and it always takes me a minute to realize what's happened - so it's not agonizing).
Personally I am getting bids from contractors for an 8' deer fence with an inner 4' fence for my garden, but that's mostly to keep dogs from my hens. The double fence is a tried and true deer deterrent - you could go as low as 4' for both. Deer don't have great depth perception.
posted by annathea at 9:56 AM on March 4, 2017
Personally I am getting bids from contractors for an 8' deer fence with an inner 4' fence for my garden, but that's mostly to keep dogs from my hens. The double fence is a tried and true deer deterrent - you could go as low as 4' for both. Deer don't have great depth perception.
posted by annathea at 9:56 AM on March 4, 2017
Yep, I was about to say that 6' won't cut it. My mom's solution has been a raised bed that is entirely encased with a cage made of deer fencing or chicken wire and PVC piping.
posted by Stewriffic at 10:08 AM on March 4, 2017
posted by Stewriffic at 10:08 AM on March 4, 2017
Electric fencing has no effect whatsoever where I live. I am planning to make a raised garden inside a walled courtyard this year. It is my last choice, because there is no good soil there (there is only a thin layer of soil on top of previous paving), but I have no other ideas left. A good thing about it is that the walls provide windstill and some reflected warmth for early growth.
To prevent the deer from coming right up to the house and staring in the windows while dropping their ticks on the lawn, as they do, I'm planting a thick bed of lavender. Don't know yet if it will work.
posted by mumimor at 12:10 PM on March 4, 2017
To prevent the deer from coming right up to the house and staring in the windows while dropping their ticks on the lawn, as they do, I'm planting a thick bed of lavender. Don't know yet if it will work.
posted by mumimor at 12:10 PM on March 4, 2017
My parents live out in the country in a fairly wooded area that has a sizeable population of deer - as in you will likely see a group of 10 or so wandering about every morning and evening.
My mom has a decent sized vegetable garden; however, the deer don't really bother the garden despite the lack of a fence. The deer don't come that close to the house and are generally afraid of people.
This is probably because there are hunters on my parents' land every year which causes the deer to see humans as a threat.
So have you considered hunting? It might deter the deer and even if it doesn't, you will get some tasty venison out of it. Sadly it is probably not a solution for this year since most hunting seasons are in the fall.
posted by nolnacs at 12:33 PM on March 4, 2017
My mom has a decent sized vegetable garden; however, the deer don't really bother the garden despite the lack of a fence. The deer don't come that close to the house and are generally afraid of people.
This is probably because there are hunters on my parents' land every year which causes the deer to see humans as a threat.
So have you considered hunting? It might deter the deer and even if it doesn't, you will get some tasty venison out of it. Sadly it is probably not a solution for this year since most hunting seasons are in the fall.
posted by nolnacs at 12:33 PM on March 4, 2017
I've gardened with raised beds in deer-infested woods for many years. Northern Virginia and central and Western North Carolina.
It will take a long time before you get 1200 dollars worth of food out of that fancy thing you linked to.
I buy 5 untreated 10 foot 2*6s and put screws in them to make a square. Put the square on the ground and dig deep within the square. Break it all up. At least 4 inches down. Throw the rocks in the woods. Get a bale of peat and 80 lbs of cow manure. Spread that over the top and mix it in. Now you have many cubic feet of gardening manna. There is nothing you can't grow in that. There might be a couple things you are supposed to add depending on your local soil and what you are growing but I, like my parents before me just do the shit, peat and dirt that's there thing. That fifth board goes diagonally, flat on top of the dirt so you have something to walk on.
I nail five foot lengths of 1*1 inside the corners and wrap this black web stuff around the bed and over the top, fasten it with a staple gun. I got a roll of it at a coop, it's kind of like some of the stuff you see here but it was much cheaper. Square half inch holes and I hang it loose. I reuse it and the 1*1s every year. I might have spent 60 bucks that first year including plants, lumber, sphagnum, manure, net, screws, and a staple gun.
If the critters were determined they could easily get in but they don't. They think it strange. The neighbors will too. You can't see inside unless you are right up on it but the plants still get sun and rain. First year, I kept finding little green tomatoes in the yard with a single puncture wound. It was my red/green-challenged poodle.
I have Alpacas. If there are some near you, it's much better than cow manure. If you bring your own containers I'm sure the farmer would delight in some free labor, especially in the spring when some of them have been bad pacas and shat in the barn all winter.
I gave up on the flower beds. The first Daffodil has survived 4 days.
posted by Mr. Yuck at 12:36 PM on March 4, 2017
It will take a long time before you get 1200 dollars worth of food out of that fancy thing you linked to.
I buy 5 untreated 10 foot 2*6s and put screws in them to make a square. Put the square on the ground and dig deep within the square. Break it all up. At least 4 inches down. Throw the rocks in the woods. Get a bale of peat and 80 lbs of cow manure. Spread that over the top and mix it in. Now you have many cubic feet of gardening manna. There is nothing you can't grow in that. There might be a couple things you are supposed to add depending on your local soil and what you are growing but I, like my parents before me just do the shit, peat and dirt that's there thing. That fifth board goes diagonally, flat on top of the dirt so you have something to walk on.
I nail five foot lengths of 1*1 inside the corners and wrap this black web stuff around the bed and over the top, fasten it with a staple gun. I got a roll of it at a coop, it's kind of like some of the stuff you see here but it was much cheaper. Square half inch holes and I hang it loose. I reuse it and the 1*1s every year. I might have spent 60 bucks that first year including plants, lumber, sphagnum, manure, net, screws, and a staple gun.
If the critters were determined they could easily get in but they don't. They think it strange. The neighbors will too. You can't see inside unless you are right up on it but the plants still get sun and rain. First year, I kept finding little green tomatoes in the yard with a single puncture wound. It was my red/green-challenged poodle.
I have Alpacas. If there are some near you, it's much better than cow manure. If you bring your own containers I'm sure the farmer would delight in some free labor, especially in the spring when some of them have been bad pacas and shat in the barn all winter.
I gave up on the flower beds. The first Daffodil has survived 4 days.
posted by Mr. Yuck at 12:36 PM on March 4, 2017
We (northeast Wisconsin) created a 12 foot fence on the cheap by installing fence posts and then a) stapling 4 foot high rabbit fence all around and b) attaching 12 foot lengths of PVC pipe with cross Ts to the posts as well. We ran a line through all the Ts and then stapled 8 feet of netting to the rope, lashing it to the rabbit fence with zip ties. There's also a gate so we can get in/out easily. We haven't had any deer get through or over it yet except that time someone left the garden gate open.
posted by carmicha at 4:09 PM on March 4, 2017
posted by carmicha at 4:09 PM on March 4, 2017
Much depends on the specific deer. A six-foot fence doesn't keep them out of my yard, but they don't jump over the 5' fence I have around the garden, I'm guessing because they don't like landing in a cramped area. Unless you're really ambitious and also have a lot of money to spend, I'd go with something low-key to start with, and adjust if it's necessary for the deer and if you decide that gardening is something you want to do more of. This kind of fencing is relatively inexpensive and easy to install with the posts linked to it.
posted by metasarah at 6:49 AM on March 5, 2017
posted by metasarah at 6:49 AM on March 5, 2017
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posted by Rust Moranis at 7:02 AM on March 4, 2017