Do Deer Eat Rhododendron and 5 Ways to Stop them Now

Like many gardeners around the world, I share my garden with different “animals,” consisting of deer. So, the question is do deer eat rhododendron?

Do deer eat Rhododendron

Do Deer Eat Rhododendron

The regional deer do not like most rhododendrons that we have here, although they do like azaleas and evergreen azaleas, in specific, are comparable to deer sweets or candies for them. This does not mean deer do not eat rhododendron. In fact, if they are hungry enough they will eat anything. This is why we say deer resistant plants rather than deer proof plants.

Most people cannot fence in their front lawn or garden, so many must essentially surrender their front garden to the deer. There are ways and plants to help keep deer away from all other plants in your garden.

So try changing to the buddy plant systems to things the deer do not appear to like. Instead of Hostas, try planting Brunnera – a beautiful foliage plant with tiny blue flowers.

You can plant tulips in the pots and keep them on the deck close to the house. You may also plant daffodils and snowdrops.

So far, the deer have left the Crocus alone, so each fall, and I include more of these. For fall bulb color, I discover the deer typically don’t eat Nerine or Schizostylus. However, given that these tend to be a bit costly here, I’ve just planted a few of each so far, and I’m enjoying seeing whether or not Bambi and his buddies will eat them.

If these will work for me, time will inform. Ferns appear to be typically deer resistant, as do hellebores of all types. Hellebores make fantastic buddy plants for rhododendrons, having the included perk of beginning to flower around mid-January in our location, with numerous brand-new ranges having attractive foliage.

The deer do not like anything with highly fragrant foliage, so I’ve planted great lavender deals in the sunniest areas, and I might put in some rosemary too. These might not typically enter your mind as great buddy plants for rhododendrons; however, they appear to get along relatively well in my garden.

Tips to Keep Deer out of your Garden

I’ve seen several methods that other regional garden enthusiasts utilize to motivate the deer to move along. Two of my neighbors’ use movement-triggered sprinklers near their most valuable hydrangeas (deer-like hydrangeas!).

These appear to work well here, and I’m informed that simply the sound of the sprinklers beginning suffices to get them to move.

Other neighbors confine little trees and shrubs with versatile plastic fencing products as a short-term barrier.

And a few of the residents utilize numerous deer repellants (Bombax is preferred here). They spray their plants routinely in the spring to train the deer to keep moving by their home, looking for something less smelly. Periodic spraying is required as a mild suggestion that the plants smell bad.

An excellent concept I saw just recently was to put down wood pallets on paths leading from an unguarded garden location to a secured site. In this case, the plants in the back garden were much enjoyed by the deer.

However, they might access the area by going along a narrow path next to your home. The pallets imitate a livestock guard, and the deer do not wish to stroll throughout the wood slats. The garden enthusiast in question stated that the wood pallets get extremely slippery when damp.

However, he can up-end them while working, then pop them back on the ground as deer deterrents.

The very best obstacle of all is an excellent fence. Regional suggestions state fences ought to be at least 8 feet high. Many of us can keep the deer out with an introductory 6 feet fence as long as shrubs are planted in beds next to the fence line.

The theory is that deer require to see an open space where they can land securely upon finishing their dive. This appears to operate in our location: those people with thick shrub plantings in a broad bed near our fences have not had any issues with backyard gardens; however, the neighbors with great deals of yards see the deer routinely.

It appears deer will eat anything if they get starving. The technique is to make your garden less welcoming than your neighbors. Because deer do not like rhododendrons, you may as well plant lots!

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