Whenever Middle Peninsula gardeners get together, the discussion eventually turns to the frustration of losing expensive perennials and shrubs to those large, four-footed eating machines known as white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). According to the Cornell University Cooperative Extension fact sheet “White-tailed Deer,” an adult buck, weighing 125 to 250 pounds, requires 4,000 to 6,000 calories daily, which equals four to ten pounds of greenery from the garden.
In the wild, that buck would consume grasses, wildflowers, leaves, twigs, and buds from late spring through summer. During the fall he would forage on beechnuts, acorns, and wild cherry seeds, and he would eat twigs and buds almost exclusively during the winter and early spring.
When we humans move in, we plant pretty flower gardens, tasty shrubs and fruit trees, and all kinds of wonderful vegetables. The deer soon discover that their neighborhood has become a giant smorgasbord, and they can find delicious food year-roun...