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Category: Potpourri | Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 2:43 pm

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Not long ago I posted a picture of the deer that we spotted in our backyard. Over the weekend we had another snow storm and once it cleared out 4 deer dashed through the snow and stopped to visit their local cafe'....my backyard. We all watched them as these young deer found their way to my Yews again. This time we laughed and said...won't need to go out and trim them this spring we have free help :) I let the yews grow upwards last year and only trimmed and shaped from front and back. I wanted them to get a little taller to serve as a nice back drop for some of the flowers that grow in front of them. The deer didn't stay too long because there must have been some noise outside that spooked them.

Deer are very common here and even though there are many around, when they stop by their local cafe' it causes everyone to stop and watch. They are so graceful when they run as if in slow motion and I wonder how they can run through all that snow an not trip on large branches that have fallen throughout the woods and hurt a leg or two. This reminds me of the next story:

A couple years ago in the spring when I was working on one of the gardens out front, my girls were out back playing. Not long after we were all outside I heard them screaming "MOM!!!!!!!!!!!!" I dropped my garden tools and started running thinking some bad thing happened. They are old enough and responsible so I knew I didn't have to babysit their every move. We ended up meeting in the driveway halfway when they said 'MOM....there is a deer leg in the backyard!' OK GROSS I thought...no way! I went to where they led me and sure enough, there was a leg from the knee joint down and not that old. ICK...I don't know what happened to that deer but I do know we have coyotes out there too. I told my kids to stay on the grassy area and not in the garden where they found this leg and later had my husband dispose of it through a burial.

Last spring while I was prepping the 'driveway strip garden', I was moving some plants around and dug up a hoof! Ok..now I was working in that part of the garden last year quite a bit and there was no hoof. I have no clue how that got there. I carried it way out back, dug a hole, placed it in and covered it up. I wonder what the heck I will find this spring!


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toni wrote on Mon Jan 12, 2009 2:58 pm:

No deer to nibble on plants around here, just the blasted squirrels and an oppossum once in a while. We do have Coyote sightings off and on.

I guess it's a tossup as to whether you just sit and enjoy watching them or chase them away from your plants.

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Frank wrote on Mon Jan 12, 2009 3:25 pm:

>>> wonder what the heck I will find this spring! <<<

Don't you just love surprises :)

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Droopy wrote on Mon Jan 12, 2009 4:12 pm:

We've got roe deer and deer, but fortunately not in our garden. The roe deer and deer are real pests in some areas, especially on cemeteries and official yards. The poor gardeners don't know what to do to prevent damage.

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cheerz2you wrote on Mon Jan 12, 2009 4:52 pm:

I have had some success in keeping deer away using these tips:

1) Go to your hairdresser and get all the human hair that has been cut. Then sprinkle it around and on the plants.

2) Using a bar of Irish Spring Soap and an old ladies nylon - hang the soap from a branch or in the area that they are having a feast on.

3) Create a Hot Pepper spray stew. Go to Costco or Sams Club or one of those giant warehouses and buy a large container of 'hot pepper flakes'. WARNING: when you put this concoction together have lots of ventilation!
In a large pot of water, boil the water then pour in about half the bottle and let it steep for awhile to make 'pepper tea'. Let it cool then pour it into a spray bottle. Spray the areas that they are enjoying so much. This will not last very long and will need to be reapplied after rain or heavy dew in the morning.

This stuff 'has' worked for me in the past and the deer dont chow so much on my plants. My issues are the chipmunks :(

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