Keep Deer Out of Your Garden Through Winter and Early Spring

The Best Way to Keep Deer at Bay

There are many people who find deer are beautiful, majestic animals. But those of us who live in Connecticut see them for what they really are: Complete and Total Garden Destruction.

Deer damage can be absolutely catastrophic. Yes, it’s a nuisance when they chew up your hostas or gobble your flowers. But this time of year, with all the annuals finished, deer are more likely to go after conifers like arborvitae and hemlocks, or broadleaf evergreens like euonymus, rhododendron or ilex. And when they tear away at the lower leaves and branches of these shrubs, they’re not going to grow back evenly. Your shrubs may be permanently damaged and need to be replaced.

For this reason, we at Connecticut Green don’t take any chances with deer. We’ve tried a number of products over the years, and we’ve found a pair of repellent sprays that are very effective. The repellents we use don’t work by making your garden smell badly. They actually make the leaves taste very bitter so the deer won’t eat them. This doesn’t hurt the animals – it just keeps them from devouring your foliage. One nibble of those nasty-tasting leaves, and they’ll move on!

We’ve noticed over the past few seasons that the deer population has become more aggressive in their eating habits. And this winter is not only expected to be great for deer hunters in terms of a large population, it’s also expected to bea low-acorn year, meaning that deer will be hungrier than we’ve seen.

That’s why, this year, for those clients who have deer issues, we recommend two applications of deer repellent.  The first treatment will be applied in late November and then a second application will be added in February or March, as the weather permits. These two sprays will keep your plants safe from deer over the winter and into early spring, as the deer await the growth of new, wild plants to eat. Trust us: you don’t want to take any chances here. Hungry deer will destroy your garden – and we’ve worked with you for too long to let that happen!

Contact us to schedule your deer repellent treatment today.