Deer, varmints

I have read with a chuckle some of the deer responses and am in awe of the
variety of varmint attacks on iris the country over.  Juri P. is happy he has
only a fungus.  Nothing that has happened here can top Karin Hinsen's account
of deer and wild pigs.  I have grief with the woodchucks as well and
recommend Michael Pollan's (book- Second Nature) account of one man's coming
to terms with the woodchuck.

To address some of the advice I should have added what we have done.  I did
not want to be long winded.  We have bought every repellent manufactured.
 The best is Deer-Away.  It is wax based and lasts a long time, rain proof in
summer.  Deer leave plants covered with Deer-Away alone however- it is
expensive, what you garden for is covered with gray wax and, beside one or
two valued shrubs, the amount of work required  to maintain plants with
repellents would confine you to very few plants.

Human hair, soap (any brand including the favorite green wrappered Irish
Spring are vaguely temporary and will never deter a hungry deer no matter who
says so.  I have lost quantities of hosta decorated with those and eggs and
pepper and other unspeakable things.  Fish line in the trees and shrubs is
not gardening, along with pie pans, buckshot, pellets, radios, clackers in
the lawns, dummies hanging and moving in the trees, etc.  A dog must keep
it's mind on business and must not sleep in the house.  A dog that chases
deer can be shot in New York.

This dabbling in deer deterrents finally brought us to electric fencing.
 They are tall green poles with yellow fixtures which stand out for about a
mile,. I think.   They have four wires mounted about 20 inches apart.  The
bottom wire is dead as the cats are bothered by it.  This allows fawns to
crawl under from time to time my worst problem now.

We have about 1-1/2 acres fenced.  The neighbors call it Stalag Seven (our
box #) and make jokes about militias.  It is basically ugly. The yellow wire
fixtures stand out but are necessary so children and strangers see this fence
and not walk into it. A large sign says STOP electric fence in the drive.
 One last thing - such a fence keeps out deer (except fawns in fall) but
keeps you in.  A prospective fencer wants   to consider that!   Last year was
our first full year of gardening inside fencing and was 
mostly successful.  Another aside - where there is a long run uninterrupted
by trees or shrubs a second run of  fence is behind the main to prevent
jumping over.

This may be more than anyone in safe territory wishes to know about deer.
 Think of the obstacles open country gardeners face, my husband who
cheerfully put up the fence calulates the cost of each iris grown here at
about $25.00 a stalk and inedible to boot.

Claire Peplowski
Upstate NY zone 4, nr. Berkshires writing on a grey and sleeting day
requiring the 4-wheel drive to get the paper.
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