Winter Season Guide

Protecting Your Lawn and Garden from Deer and Pests

Updated April 8, 2019

Protecting Your Lawn and Garden from Deer and Pests

Every homeowner wants to have a lawn and garden that is beautiful, which is why most people choose to decorate this part of their home with flowers, fruits, vegetables and other plants. Taking good care of your garden will help make it look colorful, and it will also start to produce good homegrown products along with beautiful flowers. However, while your lawn and garden may be thriving and blossoming, it may also be attracting pests, critters, and even deer! Your gorgeous lawn and garden may look like a good spot for a good meal, and these pests and deer may go out of their way to visit.

You wouldn’t all your hard work to go to waste, right? All the hard work you put into starting to plant, choosing flowers, and maintaining your garden area will be destroyed. The good thing is, there are also ways for you to keep these things and animals away from your beautiful flowers, fruits, plants, and vegetables. Below are some of the things you can do to protect your lawn and garden against deer and pests:

1. Install Garden Enclosures

If deer and other pests frequently visit your garden, then you may want to protect your vegetables or other produce by installing garden enclosures. Some examples include:

  • Bulb Cages or Wire Cages – You can protect your growing plants by wrapping chicken wire around it. This will help pests and critters away from your plant. Wire cages can be used to protect plant beds or individual plants.
  • Fences – Installing fences can also be effective to keep deer and other animals away from your flowerbeds, and other types of plants or flowers. Make sure that your fence is at least eight to ten feet high and made from wire mesh. This will ensure that deer are kept out of your garden plants.
  • Row Covers or Netting – If you have newly growing plants that you want to protect, you can use row covers or garden nets, and place them over your growing trees, seedlings, and other small plants.

2. Use Strong Scents or Commercial Repellants

You can also use scents to repel critters and other animals away from your lawn and garden. You can either use commercial repellants or choose to plant strong-smelling plants to keep those critters away from your growing vegetables and flowers. You can use capsaicin spray to coat your plants. It will make your plants hot, similar to peppers, which will work as a deterrent for animals such as deer, skunks, and even raccoons. Make sure that you reapply them after rain or after you water your plants. Make sure that you also wash your vegetables well before eating or consuming them. There are also commercial insecticides that are safe for humans. Spraying these on your produce can keep it safe from insects and other critters.

 

3. Other Methods

To keep deer away from your garden and lawn, you can also hang bars of soap or human hair near the area. You can also install scare devices or motion activated deterrents to protect your plants. Motion activated deterrents can spray water to scare deer away from your area.