Deer do eat hydrangeas quite happily.
Keep the creatures at bay with these smart strategies from gardening experts.
Matthew Benson
Yes, deer do eathydrangeas, but you might take some simple steps to protect your blooms.
Credit:Matthew Benson
Deer also stay away from hellebores and irises.
Another quick fix is to scare them away with loud noises.
A motion-activated sprinkler, for instance, can deter deer by providing noise and a surprise splash of water.
Identify deer damage by looking at the remains of browsed plants.
Because deer dont have upper incisors, they feed by tearing vegetation with their lower teeth and upper palate.
That often leaves jagged stems behind.
Implement some of the following strategies to minimize deer damage.
Use deer-repelling plants as a barrier.
No plant is completely deer-proof.
Garden designer and author Ryan McEnaney suggests using such plants to create distance between your hydrangeas and the deer.
Arrange scented plants around hydrangeas.
Plants with strong scents are usually a deers lowest priority to eat.
Plant hydrangeas close to your home.
Keeping your hydrangeas as close to your house as possiblemakes the shrubs a less appealing target.
And plant hydrangeas as far as possible from wooded areas to help reduce deer damage.
Select woody types of hydrangeas.
To outsmart deer, its best to plant hydrangeas with woody stems, McEnaney says.
That’s because deer tend to go for tender stems rather than woody, tough ones.
Install an electric fence or an 8-foot deer fence.
Surround the hydrangeas with netting.
Use metal stakes and netting to create a temporary fence around your plants.
Use repellents to reduce damage.
Repellents wont eliminate deer damage and must be reapplied after it rains.
McEnaney recommends using Plantskydd, an all-organic deer repellent.
However, some are less likely to be munched on when deer make their way through your yard.
All deer herds are different.
Overall, the deer in my neighborhood tend to be less interested inclimbing hydrangeasandoakleaf varieties.
Landscape Plants Rated by Deer Resistance.
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station.
But Will Deer Eat It?
James City County Williamsburg Master Gardener Association, Virginia Cooperative Extension.
Ornamental and Garden Plants: Controlling Deer Damage.Oklahoma State University Extension, Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.
