Nursery Care Sheets

Deer Resistant Landscaping

Increasing deer populations can lead to trouble for many gardeners. Those who have experienced such problems know that they will have to protect their precious plants or risk seeing them stripped of their bark or chewed to the ground. However, not every plant appeals to the deer’s taste buds. Although certain textures and tastes are preferred, if there is nothing else available deer will eat just about anything. Keeping in mind that there is no such thing as deer proof, there are plants that are considered deer-resistant. Deer resistant describes those plants that seem to be the lesser choice among area deer populations. The following list includes those plants that we have deemed deer-resistant and have had success with in areas of high deer populations.

Annuals
Ageratum
Alyssum
Calendula
Calla Lily
Cleome
Snapdragon
Dusty Miller
Fuchsia
Heliotrope
Nicotiana
Salvia
Strawflower
Verbena
Vinca
Zinnia

Perennials
Achillea spp.
Acontium spp.
Ajuga reptans
Alchemilla spp.
Anemone spp.
Anthemis tinctiria
Aquilegia spp.
Arabis spp.
Artemisia
Asclepias incarnate
Astilbe spp.
Aurinia saxatilis
Bellis perennis
Campanula spp.

Centaurea cineraria
Centranthus rubber
Convallaria majalis
Delphinium spp.
Dicentra spp.
Digitalis spp.
Echinacea spp.
Epimedium spp.
Eupatorium
Euphorbia
Ferns
Filipendula
Galium odoratum
Geranium sanguineum
Gypsophila paniculata
Helleborus
Iris
Kniphofia uvaria
Lamium maculatum
Lavandula angustifolia
Linaria purpurea
Linum perenne
Lobelia cardinalis
Lychnis coronaria
Monarda didyma
Myosotis alpestris
Nepeta
Pachysandra terminalis
Paeonia
Papaver nudicaule
Perovskia atriplicifolia
Phlox subulata

Rudebecki hirta
Salvia officinalis
Sempervivum
Solidago rugosa
Stachys
Thalictrum
Tradescantia virginiana
Verbascum

Shrubs
Barberry
Beautybush
Boxwood
Butterfly Bush
Caryopteris
Cotoneaster
Daphne
Deutzia
Dogwood
Elderberry
Forsythia
Holly
Juniper
Japanese Kerria
Common Lilac
Mountain Laurel
Mugo Pine
Potentilla
Russian Cypress
Smoke Bush
Spirea
Spruce


St. John’s Wort
Fragrant Sumac Winter Creeper Viburnum

Trees
European Beech
Bottlebrush Buckeye
European White Birch
River Birch
Dogwoods
Filbert
Douglas Fir
English Hawthorn
Honeylocust
Japanese Tree Lilac
Japanese Maple
Red Maple
Silver Maple
Sugar Maple
Katsura
Magnolia
Pawpaw
Lombardy Poplar
Spruce
American Sweetgum

Vines
American Bittersweet
English Ivy
Japanese Honeysuckle
Wisteria

* Trees least likely to be eaten, however, protecting the trunk to avoid damage from deer rubbing their antlers is recommended.

Occasionally deer problems can not be solved by plant selection alone. In addition to planting these deer-resistant species, other methods of repelling deer may need to be considered. One method is by using organic or chemical-based repellents that maintain an unpleasant odor to deer. The most tried and true method of avoiding the damage caused by deer is to fence or physically prevent the deer’s access to the plant material. This is often a less desirable choice because it often detracts from the beauty of the landscape, but so do plants that have been demolished by deer.

Do not try to feed the deer to prevent them from the grazing in your garden. Providing food for the deer will only attract more the your yard. These animals will remember where the food was and return expecting more. This can create greater problems for you and your neighborhood.

* Parts of this list have been adapted from Resistance of Woody Ornamental Plant to Deer Damage, published by the Department of Natural Resources, Cornell University.