Deer Fencing

[BXmark]

I was going to fence in an area for a garden to keep out the numerous deer we have around here. I had planned to use 5 foot wire fencing. I see several deer fences advertized that are 7.5 to 8 feet high. Will a 5 foot high fence be adequate or am I kidding myself. What are some of your experiences?

 

[IndianaPaul]

BX:

I tried 5 foot fence here (So. Indiana) 2 years ago, worked on keeping the young ones out, but does/bucks did not seem to be too bothered by it. A couple of the neighbors use 8 foot fences and that seems to work for them, but then their gardens are pretty small (less than 100' x 100').

Paul

 

[JJT]

You're kidding yourself. 8' is the minimum I'd put up, or plant extra..... Even having a dog is no insurance against the deer.

 

[IndianaPaul]

JJT:

Amen to the deer versus the dog. I moved my German Shorthair's kennel to about 40 feet from the garden first year out here. Within 30-45 days, I could pull into driveway of an evening and the deer would be browsing within a few feet of the kennel. Even had a doe and fawn sunning themselves last year on hillside about 50 feet away from him!

After first week, he quit barking and just watches them now.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

We are required to use 9' in NY but for your garden you can use 7'-8' and be ok. You would be wise to buy 8' field fencing with solid strand stays and set your post every 15' and steak the fence down in the centers to keep the deer from going under them. The solid strand stays help keep the fence standing straight on its own so you won't have to stretch it too much. You will be looking at at least $1.50 - $2.00 per running foot if you install it yourself but it will easily eliminate your deer problem. Your other alternative is if you can find some heavy 6' chain link and not the stuff you use around you yards but the industrial fencing and set that for the first 6' then go to TSC or any farm store and get some 4' field fence and attach that above the chain link with about 6" overlap. This won't look as nice but may save you a few dollars if you can find the chain link it is also a lot harder to install. If you get the cheap chain link most any buck will rip right thru it if they are hungry enough but your biggest concern will be them going under it. There are a few companys that make the 8 foot field fence and it varys in price depending on the time of the year but you can see some at <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.bekaert.com/na/>http://www.bekaert.com/na/</A>

 

[toddwulf]

8' would be a minimum. My neighbor ran his 10'. Keep in mind if they can jump from an elevated point (above) close to the fence, even 10' wouldn't be enough. They can jump VERY high, particularly when they are VERY hungry.

Todd in Placerville

 

[Robert_in_NY]

That would be the only way they will jump 10' is if you built the fence in a ditch. Most deer and I am talking 19 out of 20 will get caught in the wire before they make it over 9'. Our deer if they get scared which happens if dogs attack the fence will usually jump into the wire about 6' off the ground. We have never had any jump 8'-9' high fencing as they won't even attempt it and in most cases there is plenty of other food around when people are growing gardens but to a deer it is a treat to graze on vegetables but they will not kill themselves for a treat. Most likely the deer will try to go under the fence and they only need a couple inches to get their nose under and any slack in the fence and they will get thru as we had a doe do this to get into a divider numerous times.

 

[JoeR]

In Florida the deer like to eat the leaves and fruit off citrus trees. They can do some damage to a grove... I have seen some grove owners install six foot fences angled at 30 degrees. The fence is high tensile wire, with most of the strands electrified, and spaced 6 to 8 inches apart. The deer can jump high, but for some reason they do not like the fence angled like a backslash " / " since this makes the jump high and increases the distance at that height. I must admit that the deer in Florida are small compared to deer in most other northern states.

Joe

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Much simpler solution, deer can't stand the smell of scented soap. Get yourself a bunch of the hotel size bars, and hang them about 2 feet above the ground all around the garden, about every 10 feet. The deer won't come near that place.

 

[Knight9]

I've been contemplating the same issue. We have only been in our new place a year and there are deer everywhere. This spring will be our first garden. I'm going to hold off and see how much of a problem we have, but if the deer do invade the garden (and I'm sure they will /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif), here is what I plan to do.

I want something that looks "pretty" (wife's request) and since the deer will only be a problem for or fairly short growing season, I don't want a permanent structure designed only for deer. I will try to put in a nice picket fence around the garden with 4x4 posts put in at the appropriate level. Then I'll put brackets on the back of the posts inside the garden that will accommodate a metal post (maybe T-style or tube). These metal posts will have the mesh on them, and add an extra 4 - 6' in height. When the season is done, I will pull out the posts from the brackets and leave the attractive picket fence.

I'm hoping this will work. So far it is all theory, but I'm fairly sure I can make it work.

Kevin

 

[Scott_F]

Agree with Franz. Latest issue of Organic Gardening suggests the same thing. Hang some mesh bags of Irish Spring soap every 8-10 feet aroung the garden.

 

[fishman]

BXMark,

I used electric fencing last year to keep the deer out of the garden. One strand 6" high to keep out the bunnies (didn't work too well) and one strand at 3.5' high to keep out the deer (worked great). Total cost for the setup was less than $50. One thing though, my garden was only about 30'x60', and chock full of tomatoes, corn, etc. They may be willing to jump the fence to get into a more open, larger space.

You can't walk around my place without stepping on a hoofprint or some other sign of deer presence/w3tcompact/icons/blush.gif. They have no fear and confidently eat corn under my feeder while we watch them in plain view 20 yards away. Maybe we've got some kind of unwritten deal going or something. Last year I did dump quite a bit of inedible produce about the place, and they always cleaned it up/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Mikemas]

I agree with fishman about the electric fencing. I installed a single strand of high tension at 48" and a low strand at about 6" around my 75'x100' garden. I had no varmint damage of any type this past season thanks to the fence and my dog. The key to the electric fence is to put a tab of foil baited with peanut butter on the hot wire to condition the deer. The deer cannot resist licking this and it gives them quite a jolt. They completely disappeared from around the garden about 1-2 weeks after installing the charger. They reappeared after removing the charger to eat the winter rye groundcover. Also, the dog helps by doing an excellent job on the smaller varmints. (groundhogs, rabbits, & raccoons)

Mike

 

[Boondox]

I tried at least a dozen varieties of soap, and the deterrent action lasted at most two days. Also tried human hair, dog fur, dog and coyote pee, human pee. A single round from my Marlin .35 worked on one deer, but the #$%! fell over and crushed my basil!

What finally worked for me was long posts (6' above ground) and a short (4') fence with fishing line strung from the posts. The deer couldn't see the line, and it really seemed to spook them.

The other thing I had great luck with was putting my chicken tractor (mobile coop) near the garden. Not sure if it was the movement of the birds or the smell of their manure blocking the scent of danger, but the deer stayed away from the garden that year. They ate the blueberries instead.

Pete

 

[Boondox]

I think Robert hit the nail on the head. If you make it inconvenient enough to reach your veggies, they'll look elsewhere.

Pete

 

[mdbarb]

How does one collect coyote pee and live to tell about it.

Not that I really need to know....

 

[Knight9]

<font color=blue>How does one collect coyote pee and live to tell about it.
</font color=blue>

Sneak up on them while they are sleeping and put their paw in a basin of warm water....works every time!!! /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif/w3tcompact/icons/tongue.gif

Kevin

 

[Boondox]

With a catheter and thick gloves.

Seriously, they actually sell the stuff in garden stores around here. Turns out about the only folks who swear by it are the salespeople. /w3tcompact/icons/mad.gif

Pete

 

[Robert_in_NY]

They raise them in cages and the urine runs down into a trough and to a barrel where it is then taken to be bottled for scent. Same for fox scent and numerous other animals, the water on the paw trick works well the first time but they get wise to it after that. Have fun.

 

[mdbarb]

lotsa coffee in their doggie dish then have them sit in meetings with long winded talkers.......