By Bill Ward
Published in The Boerne Star on February 18, 2003
“Will the deer eat it?” That’s a question the local nursery people hear more and more as suburbs continue to expand all around Boerne. Unfortunately, there may be no simple yes or no answer to that question.
“It depends” would be the best answer for many landscape plants.
Dave and Cindy Barrett, who run the Where Wild Things Grow nursery in Leon Springs, have been keeping notes on what landscape plants are browsed by deer in this area. Because Dave Barrett does landscapes in several different subdivisions, he has been able to collect a lot of empirical data on which plants whitetail deer eat and which they ignore.
Barrett has observed, however, that a plant ignored by deer in one area may be browsed to a nub by deer in another area. Even different parts of the same large subdivision may show differences in deer browsing. Generally, this is a function of how out of balance the deer population is with its natural food supply.
Barrett uses native plants whenever he can because those seem to have the best chance of surviving the deer as well as the droughts. But just because a plant is native is no assurance the deer will not eat it in your yard.
Have you ever driven along a country road line with evergreen sumac or possum haw thriving among the deer and then gone home to find that your subdivision whitetails have trimmed all the leaves off those same plants? I have.
For many years certain governmental agencies and nurseries have published lists of “deer-proof” landscape plants. In recent editions of such lists, the “deer-proof” section has gotten shorter or has been replaced entirely by “deer-resistant” plants. As the whitetail population is growing ever larger in the Hill Country, the deer’s menu is less selective. This is especially true in developed areas where the natural vegetation is replaced and the natural predators are reduced.
Barrett has noted some native plants he uses in landscapes are “very resistant” to deer browsing. These included Texas betony, lantana, chile pequin, zexmenia, black-foot daisy, agave (century plant), cactus, American beautyberry, skullcap, evergreen sumac, and several salvias (sages). Not all of these are resistant in my neighborhood.
For example, American beautyberry and evergreen sumacs don’t stand a chance unless they are protected by a wire enclosure. Our deer even take bites out of prickly pear and chew on agave. No yucca blooms of any kind are safe.
Salvia gregii, indigo spires, skullcap, Texas betony, and other “deer-proof” plants have been eaten all the way to the ground in my yard. Barrett has a way to sure this problem, and it works. Keep the plants in pots for a few months until they develop their natural odor and get woodier.
When these plants are first brought from the nurseries, they are tender and have no smell. Good deer food.
Once they are tough and smelly, they are safe to plant outside. Another good idea is to by leftover salvias and similar plants the nurseries might still have in late fall or winter. By that time of year, these are tough and scented enough to go directly into the ground without attracting the deer.
Nurseries also sell odorous sprays which keep deer away, but spraying must be repeated periodically and after rains. This might work best for tender plants that become deer-resistant after they age for a period.
Dave Barrett suggests a good way to find out what you can safely plant in your yard. Simply walk or drive around and take note of what plants are thriving in your neighborhood.
Other native and “native-compatible” plants that probably are deer-proof in most areas include agarita, damianita, Texas mountain laurel, cenizo, sotol, rosemary, Mexican oregano, Russian sage, Copper Canyon daisies, and all the native grasses. If your deer population includes axis deer, all bets are off.
