Deer and rabbits may be cute little animals we enjoy seeing, but don’t let them fool you. They are naturally going to want to eat everything that they can, so letting them roam in your lawn or garden might not be the best idea as they can really wreak havoc. The August edition of Bottom Line Personal magazine says to keep deer out, you can use large shrubs on the perimeter of your yard or a simple black mesh fence that’s about 8 feet high (that is a deer’s approximate vertical leap). Also, deer are often scared away by criss-crossed wires from tree to tree (at 8 feet). For rabbits, the fence only needs to be 2 feet above the ground and 6 inches below it. You can also control deer by smart planting. Although a deer’s diet varies with the region and the year, there are several plants that are completely safe in your yard. Ferns are considered deer resistant along with jasmine, rosemary, junipers, iris, daffodils and calla lilies. Deer also avoid vines and rhododendrons.
We have a whole family of rabbits that have destroyed lilies, phlox and a few other plants. I may have to resort to the fence below the fence, as we have a privacy fence, but they dig under it.
