TOPIC: Handling Deer

I researched this topic in this forum's archives a bit, and didn't see a lot of referance there.

About deer:

1] Are you having problems with these very smart animals?
2] What sort of problems? Stomping up planted beds? eating the tops? eating the berries?
3] If you are having problems, how are you handling it, other that the obvious solution of a long rifle and a deer stand???

My apoligies to you guys if this has been gone over too much.

I guess that nobody is having probelms with deer? That's encouraging!

A friend of mine was ridin' an ATV around the property when he scared up a group of does that had been in one of our patches. As a precaution, I started peeing in a five gallon jug and mixing it with water. Once it was about half way full I sprinkled it around the perimeter of that patch. I haven't seen any droppings, tracks or deer since but I can't guarantee it was the urine solution that did it. Sorry if all this sounds insane/unsanitary, another buddy of mine recommended I try this.

OK here is a tip I have heard of and I am going to try it. It sounds simple but it's worth a try and it doesn't cost much. Oh by the way I have heard that your urine idea works for a while too. OK here it is:

Take a 10 lb fishing line and run it from tree to tree all around your sang patch at about nose level to a deer. Apparently the deer will walk into the line and back off when they feel the tension. Yes I have seen deer crash through some pretty thick thickets and this is not going to stop them if they are on the run. But it is supposed to work if they are just grazing in the woods. If it does break or some tree branches fall on it, just re-string with new line. It would not stand out much either unless a trespasser walks right into it.

I have heard deer dislike Moth Balls, human hair and the smell of cow milk for some reason but I have never tried these yet either. All are fairly cheap to buy or get a hold of.
Good luck,
Latt

Urine from we humans is the best, works the best from anything I've heard. I look for a stump that is elevated above the ground and preceed to \"decorate\" it.

As with any bio-degradeable thing... it has to be replinished periodically....

On a whim, I \"googled\" this topic.

I found that , after spending about an hour running down various leads there, that the electronic devices are not very good. And that the farms that grow Christmas trees have a plan that includes dried slaughterhouse products.

Specifically, dried blood, and dried eggs. These are rehydrated, spread around the trees in both thick [for bad deer problems], and thin, for lesser problem areas.

Sounds pretty gooey and smelly to me!

I really wish this worked in severe problem areas like where I live. White tailed deer overpopulation is such a problem here that the \"conservationists\" have actually joined the \"we need to kill these deer\" bandwagon. They are now being hunted by select people even on preserved land. The reason is that overgrazing in our wooded areas has begun to result in deforestation which will ultimately result in the forest not sustaining itself and unnatural fields, and more deer (more fields = twin babys, to a deer). All of the \"woods\" in Westchester County, NY look like someone has taken a brush hog through them. There is very little to NO ground cover left in most areas down there. In my county right above them, the problem is not as bad- yet. But it is quickly escalating.

I live around a reservoir that supplies NYC with clean drinking water. The land bordering this watershed has been free of development for about a hundred years and the deer have definitely done justice to it. It is nice that we will never have \"neighbors\" but in a way we have the pestiest neighbors of all, a ton of nearly domesticated deer.

Just yesterday I was walking to my compost pile, when I was greeted with the nose-blowing noise of a young deer eating no more than 10 feet away from it.
Did I mention that I eat 16 eggs a day and pee on the compost pile about three times a day, every day?

These deer don't care about pee, eggs, or even firecrackers. Unfortunately, around here, the only thing that works is fencing or hot lead. And I am stocked to the brim in both of those areas.

Just picked up a new Henry .17 HMR, actually. What a wonderful little rifle. So far, so good.

Forgot to add- about dried blood..

I add dried blood to my soil mix for the vegetative growth of flowers/veggies. I have noticed that, something, perhaps skunk or raccoon, loves to dig up the soil around my plants even a month after planting.

Now, I also add bone meal, a blend of organic ferts (espoma this year), and my 3-5 year compost/worm casings.. So maybe it is not a direct result of the dried blood, but I see no disturbance in my old compost piles or where I throw pure organic blend..

Overall I just want to say, be careful using dried blood, because it may attract some unwanted pests.

Also be aware that dried blood is quickly broken down to ammonia by soil bacteria, creating a spike in the nitrogen concentration of localized soil. Be careful how close you dump the blood, and how much you put near your ginseng beds. This could indeed burn a plant if too close!

Sengsational,

I am a organic gardner and make my own compost and use bonemeal, blood meal and epson salt for organic fertilizers.

My garden area was originally around 5.7 PH wise, and when I checked it this year is was in the 6.6-6.9 range (3 different raised beds).

I have been mulching with straw for years then in Feb or so would fulff that up and burn it off before breaking my garden.

I think the combination of buring off that straw (ash sweetens soil, raises ph) and using bone meal (bone meal will also raise PH) is what has raised my PH up in that 6.6-6.9 range.

I did not burn it off this spring, I checked the PH first and saw that it was getting a bit higher than I want it and I am going to switch to using gypsum insead of bone meal for the next few years to boost calcium.

I expect that eventually it will get back down in the 6.0-6.5 range (where I want it to be).

When I plant my tomatoes I add a about 3 table spoons of bone meal (using gypsum now), and about a tea spoon each of blood meal and epson salt and a couple shouvel fulls of my home made compost and man they really grow big and stout and last until fall making maters

Bonemeal is a good source of calcium and phosphorous, but the draw back is it will raise PH so you should only use it if your PH is lower than your target.

Bloodmeal is a good source of nitrogen - not sure how it might affect PH. I don't use much of it on tomatoes. If you do you will get lots of vine & leaves but not a lot of maters.

Epson salt is magniseum sulphate - a trace mineral that is important for long life - healthy plants. It will help your tomatoes keep on producing late in the year.

I have found that I better chain up my daughters shepard dog or she will go after that bone meal and blood meal and dig up what I have planted.

After I have watered it in good or after it comes a good rain or two - no problem but when it is fresh in the dirt our dog will sure go after it and dig to get it.

TNhunter