Top Deer Resistant Plants

Video by Michaela Parker

Oh, deer! White-tailed deer can be quite the nuisance in the garden. It’s disheartening to see deer ate the flowers in your back yard for a snack. To help minimize deer damage in your landscape, you can select plants that are less desirable to deer.

Which characteristics do deer not like? Deer tend to avoid plants that have strong smells, milky latex or sap, or are toxic. They also have issues with odd textures. Look for plants with tough, leathery, hairy, or prickly features. While no plant is truly deer-proof, these plants are a good place to start!

1. Ajuga - Ajuga is a fast-growing perennial ground cover. Their shiny, dark green leaves deter deer from snacking on them. In the spring, expect tiny, blue-violet flowers to appear. Best of all, Ajuga is low maintenance! 
2. Azalea - In addition to being well-known for their beauty, azalea is also highly toxic to deer. 
3. Coneflower - Coneflowers, such as, rudbekia and echinacea provide colorful blooms. Rudbekia have the hairy leaves that deer do not like.
4. Milkweed - Milkweeds get their name from the sticky white sap that oozes from the leaves when they are damaged. These plants are great because they attract butterflies, not deer! 
5. Salvia - Salvia is in the mint family, making their foliage fragrant. There are many perennial varieties of salvia, and they are ideal for attracting pollinators. 

A few other flowers to consider include black-eyed Susan, daffodil, dusty miller, four o’clocks, sage, and Shasta daisy.

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