Affordable and Expert-Recommended Methods for Deer Repellent in Your Own Backyard: 3 Cost-Effective Solutions to Prevent Deer Intrusion
Amy Enfield, a senior horticulturist at ScottsMiracle-Gro, shares her expertise on keeping deer out of yards. With 30 years of experience in the lawn and garden industry and 13 years with ScottsMiracle-Gro, Enfield has a wealth of knowledge, holding a BS and MS in Horticulture from Michigan State University, an MS in Plant and Environmental Sciences from Clemson University, and a PhD in Plant and Environmental Sciences.
To effectively deter deer, Enfield recommends a multi-faceted approach. This includes using strongly-scented herbs, creating homemade sprays, and implementing visual deterrents, while rotating these methods frequently to prevent deer from becoming accustomed to any single deterrent.
Strongly-scented Herbs
Planting deer-resistant herbs like rosemary and sage can help keep deer at bay due to their strong smell. These herbs not only add a touch of beauty to your garden but also serve as a natural deterrent.
Homemade Sprays
Creating sprays using natural ingredients that deer dislike can be an effective deterrent. A popular recipe includes a mix of hot sauce, garlic powder, liquid dish soap, and water. Apply this spray around plants and garden edges to create a scent barrier. Alternatively, recipes including eggs, garlic, and cayenne pepper blended with water and strained can also be effective. Sprinkle used coffee grounds around plants as an additional scent-based deterrent.
It's important to reapply sprays frequently, especially after rain, and rotate scents every few weeks to prevent deer from becoming nose-blind to a particular smell.
Visual Deterrents
Visual deterrents can be just as effective as scent-based ones. Using motion-activated devices such as sprinklers that spray water when deer approach can startle deer and deter them. Setting up noise-making scare devices, like party poppers attached across deer paths, can create sudden loud pops and confetti, effectively startling deer and discouraging further visits. Hanging highly scented soaps, human hair, or dryer sheets around your garden can also act as visual and olfactory deterrents.
Additional Tips
Combining multiple methods enhances effectiveness, as relying on only one can lead to deer habituation and eventual feeding despite deterrents. Tall fencing (8 feet or more) can be an excellent physical barrier but may not be practical for all DIY settings. Regularly monitoring your garden and refreshing deterrents keeps deer guessing and helps avoid habituation.
In late winter or early spring when food is scarce, supplement scent-based methods with physical barriers, such as steel garden fencing, to protect the garden. It's a good idea to move the deterrents around in the yard occasionally to prevent deer from becoming used to them.
Approaching a deer problem from a few angles and rotating deterrent methods helps prevent deer from becoming accustomed to a single deterrent. It's important to avoid using deterrents that could harm wildlife or pets, such as chemical-based products not intended for garden use, or sharp objects like barbed wire.
Visual deterrents can also be useful for protecting soft fruits from pests such as birds and other mammals. Deer-resistant plants can make a yard less inviting to deer. Horticulturist Peggy Anne Montgomery recommends deer-resistant bulbs such as daffodils, alliums, and hyacinths.
Remember, it's not just deer that can be a problem in gardens. Other pests such as gophers and coyotes may also need to be considered for pest control.
Sources:
- Rebecca Sears, Green Garden
- Amy Enfield, ScottsMiracle-Gro
- Peggy Anne Montgomery, Montgomery Horticultural Services
- Ferry-Morse
- University of Rhode Island Cooperative Extension
Gardening and maintaining a home-and-garden lifestyle can be enhanced with smart strategies to keep deer away from your yard. utilizing a combination of strongly-scented herbs like rosemary and sage, homemade sprays containing ingredients deer dislike such as hot sauce, garlic, and cayenne pepper, and visual deterrents such as motion-activated sprinklers and scare devices can help deter these animals.
