Deer resistant evergreen trees are mostly used as hedge trees. This is because these trees are resistant to deer damage. Read through the following article and find information on evergreen trees for deer fencing.
Do you live in an area, frequently visited by hoofed friends from the wild? If yes, then you must be facing the brunt of hospitality after these herbivorous guests leave after a short visit. I am talking about deer whose taste buds tickle at the sight of an evergreen tree. They love to munch on rhododendrons, yew, hemlock, azalea, burning bush, hosta, daylily, crocus, cedar (especially ‘Pyramidalis’ cedar), arbovitae, etc. These trees, if used as a fencing, will not stand a chance when a deer comes knocking, or should I say ‘munching’ by. You see, your hundreds of dollars go down the guts of the deer. These trees are not resistant to deer eating off their green foliage and most of them never recover. What you need to do is, invest in deer resistant evergreen trees.
Different Types of Deer Resistant Evergreen Trees
What makes deer resistant evergreen trees deer proof? These deer proof evergreen trees tend to have a characteristic that is not preferable to the animal. It may have a sticky foliage or a hairy or feathery foliage that deer are not very fond of. It may even emit an odor that the deer is averse to. Maybe the tree is just ignored as the deer has not developed a taste or liking for a particular tree. A rutting male deer may rub antlers on young trees. But this may severely damage the bark. Thus, protect young trees by placing at least 4 sturdy stakes on each side of the tree. Below we enlist names of a few evergreen trees that are deer resistant.
Colorado Blue Spruce
This is an evergreen tree that can grow up to a height of 30 to 60 feet and has spread to about 10 to 20 feet. It has silver blue needles with an aromatic odor. These prickly needles are not very inviting for the deer and therefore, it makes a good deer proof tree.
Atlantic White Cedar
This evergreen tree with moderate growth rate grows about 35 feet in height. This tree is said to have good resistance to deer damage.
American Holly
This slow growing evergreen tree has prickly leaves. Deer generally do not prefer prickly leaves and thus can be grown as a deer proof tree.
Italian Buckthorn
This is a narrow, evergreen shrub that is not only fast growing, but also easy to care. This is also found to be a deer proof tree.
Mexican Orange Blossom
This is one evergreen shrub, that deer never seem to touch. It has white fragrant blossoms in late spring and grows up to a height of about 6 feet.
Boxwood
Just about 2 to 3 feet tall, this is a ‘dream come true’ for every gardener tired of deer damage. This plant can be used as a formal edging and won’t be eaten up by a deer.
Spruce
Spruce trees are evergreen trees that are deer resistant. They can grow in full sun and acidic soil, up to a height of about 40 to 60 feet.
Juniper
These are evergreen shrubs that grow up to a height of about 3 to 10 feet. These shrubs are deer resistant and hence are generally avoided by deer.
Yucca
The yucca is an evergreen tree that has long sword shaped leaves. Grow this plant and deer won’t linger around it.
Scotch Broom
This spring-flowering, evergreen tree is also found to be safe for use in areas visited by deer.
Austrian Pine
This large evergreen, pyramidal conifer is also a deer proof tree. You can use this tree to be grown as a screen tree or in your backyard garden.
These were some of the deer resistant evergreen trees that you can grow in your garden. Deer can eat anything and everything in your garden. It depends on the area you live in, species of trees grown and the hunger quotient of a deer. If a really hungry deer drops by, it won’t mind eating up something that it does not normally favor. However, planting the evergreen trees mentioned above will make sure that they will survive deer damage.
