Deere Rag

Deere Rag

Signs that it's time to install deer fencing

A well tended garden is a source of beauty and fresh food, often for more than just the gardener. Along with a variety of smaller pests, deer are a prime source of damage to garden. If several deer establish a feeding pattern in an area, discouraging them will remarkably improve the garden.

Many animals graze in gardens; signs of damage specific to deer include the type and location of the damage, the animal's scat, and hoof prints. Perhaps, the most obvious sign that deer have been in a garden, the prints left by deer will be two to three inches long and have a distinct tapered oval shape cloven down the middle, much like a "broken heart". Deer that have been standing or grazing in an area will leave tracks that are uniformly deep, and found in sets of two or four. Running deer leave staggered prints, and these tracks will be deeper in the front and shallower in the rear. One or two sets of tracks through the week are not cause for concern, but recurring and multiple tracks may indicate grazing.

Deer scat or droppings, take the form of small, elongated pellets. In the winter, the pellets are hard and tend to scatter; during the spring and summer, the change in diet leads to pellets that clump together and stay in a single mass. Deer droppings are sometimes mistaken for rabbit droppings, but tend to be elongated rather than perfectly round.

Deer will eat mostly any kind of plant life, especially if other food is scarce. When in season, deer favor berries, small fruits, and flowering plants; in the winter, anything green, and most twigs, will do. Deer tend to avoid ground fruits such as tomatoes and melons, preferring to graze at or above their standing height. Foliage damage at this level will usually eliminate smaller garden pests as the culprit. Deer teeth have no front incisors; they strip bark and leaves by raking and gouging the plants, or tearing the leaves and fruit from the tree. Deer damage tends to be ragged, and leave bare stems and scarred bark.

Preventing deer damage most effectively means keeping the deer away from the garden. Methods such as poison and chemical deterrents can have unwanted side effects, or affect undesired targets. Deer fencing is a proven and reliable method of discouraging large animals without harmful effects; this fencing comes in many kinds, from nearly invisible netting to sturdy wire.

To learn more about deer fencing and other deer fence products,visit DeerBusters.com

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John Deere 8640