Deer Fence Netting for Effective Garden Protection
Why Do You Need Deer Fence Netting
Providing sufficient protection for your garden or small vegetable farm is a very important thing to do. If you have problems with deer, rabbits, birds and other animals, you need to consider putting up protective netting around your garden. Deer fence netting is a recommended method if you live in an area commonly frequented by deer. Bird netting is ideal for keeping birds away from your crops.
Plants Deer Like Best
There are certain plants that deer like to eat. If you are wondering why your garden is constantly under attack by these animals, you may have plants that they like to eat.
There are some plants that you may want to avoid planting if you do not want to get a regular visit from the deer herd. These plants include: knockout roses (deer love eating the blooms), host as, daylily, arborvitae, cherry trees, apple trees, yew, pansies, azaleas, redbud tree, and English ivy.
Deer-Resistant Plants
If you have some of the plants and trees mentioned above and you would not want to part with them, it would be a good idea to get some plants that resistant to Bambi’s relatives. Planting some of these can be a good first line of defense, which could provide a good barrier together with a sturdy deer fence netting system.
These deer-resistant plants include: Bleeding hearts, globe amaranth, Angelonia, Lamb’s ear, Lantanas, Lily of the Valleys, Russian sage, snapdragons, spider flowers, chaste trees, daphnes and shadbushes.
Deer Fence Netting Benefits
The need for deer fence is very much like with the need for poultry netting. Both netting systems are designed to protect livelihood. With poultry netting, you can protect your chickens from being attacked by predators. With deer netting, on the other hand, you would be protecting your plants from deer attack.
It should be taken into consideration though that putting up a netting system to keep deer away, your concern should also be with the deer. As much as possible, it would be best if you can use a netting system that would not hurt the animals. After all, the main objective of the fence is to just keep the garden safe from the deer, right?
A deer enclosure can be used to surround an entire garden or it can be small enough to fence in individual plants. The size of your deer fence should depend on whether you want to keep the animals totally away from your farm or yard, or if you simply want them to stay away from your beloved plants.
There are different types of materials used for deer fencing. You can go for plastic, metal, wood or a combination of these materials.
One important thing to remember when considering putting up deer fencing is that, it would be better if you can build a complete enclosure. It means that the fence should go all the way around the garden. It may be alright to just fence in one or two sides, especially so if you have seen the deer enter from those areas. But you must understand that if you decide to block an entry or two, the deer will be forced to adapt a new behavior. They would probably be deterred by the fence for a while, but soon they will follow the line. Eventually, they will figure out that the enclosure is not complete and there are openings that they can use as entry points.
Deer Fencing Types
There are several different types of fencing to keep the deer away. There is the traditional wire fencing, which is the cheap option. The problem with this fencing type is that it can be hard to maintain and it is unattractive. It is also not environment-friendly because it can wear down and rust easily, therefore endangering the deer who would try to pass. Keep in mind that you do not want to hurt the animals; you just want to keep them away from your precious garden.
Another type of deer fencing is the polypropylene mesh. This type of fence is popular because it is almost indistinguishable from a distance. This means that it would not create an eyesore or block the view. It is also easy to attach to trees and quite flexible in case you would need to put it up in vegetated area.
There are different Polypropylene grades and it would be best to go for the higher grade because it is more stable and durable. Lower graded materials may not be able to stand up well once the deer decided to give it a try by pushing their way around or through the fence.
Installing electric fencing is another option, but this is not allowed in some regions. You may need to inquire with some local agencies first before you can consider this fencing option. The good thing about an electric fence is that it can completely keep the deer away once they have suffered from an initial electric shock. The bad thing about this option is that it needs regular maintenance and it may not be the safest option for families with small chicken and pets.
No matter what type of deer fence you choose, there are some things that you should keep in mind. First, deer need to be trained in avoiding the fencing line. The best thing that you can do is to deter the animal from the line by tying white streamers on the fence. Once the deer see the streamers, they would understand that they cannot enter and thus they would eventually change their paths and not bother your garden again. Another thing to remember is that you need to put up a fence that is at least seven feet high as these creatures can really jump high especially when they need nourishment.