Designing a deer-resistant garden
Ruth Rogers Clausen authored 50 Beautiful Deer-Resistant Plants to show us some carrot alternatives – yes, plants that deer don’t want! Then we find that nursery seedlings and year-old woody shrubs taste especially attractive to deer because of “extra” fertilizer that nurseries use to grow plants quickly. Your newly-purchased deer-resistant plants are now salty-yummy to deer. Help!
Ms. Clausen gives 25 pages of cultural treatments, such as page 26, hang a bar of soap on attractive shrubs. Rather than 8-10′ high fences, page 33, build terraces, berms, and barriers into your garden. Irrigate early in the day to avoid tasty-wet leaves in the evening when deer hunt for dinner – that’s good for the plants, too. Don’t lure them in with “deer candy,” like azalea, coleus, yew, and 35 other known deer favorites. She admits no plant is entirely a deer deterrent, but why not choose from these 50, which have been rated “deer-resistant,” due to their fuzziness or aroma. The author gives USDA Hardiness Zones for all plants, helping with winter survival. – Nancy Norris, Horticultural Editor
50 Beautiful Deer-Resistant Plants
By Ruth Rogers Clausen
Published by Timber Press
133 SW 2nd Ave. #450
Portland, OR 97204
Timberpress.com
■ 7″x 9″
■ Softcover
■ 224 pages
■ Price: $19.95