Notes on Deer-resistant Plants
Rhododendron
spp (Rhododendrons and Azaleas):
Joan Friedman finds that Rhodies are not
browsed during the summer when more palatable fare may be found
but get hit hard during the winter
Asclepias spp
(Milkweeds):
Deer have browsed the butterfly weed, Asclepias tuberosa,
on the edge of our dry shade garden. They didn’t eat it
to the ground bud did browse flower buds and reduced the
flowering display for the year.
Chelone spp
(Turtleheads):
Deer seem to consistently browse a patch
of turtlehead that I’ve been trying to get seeds from the
last few years. I have trouble even finding the plants which
suggests that they are eating them down to the ground.
Eupatorium spp
(Joe-Pye Weeds):
There are a couple of Hollow-stemmed
Joe-Pye Weeds (Eupatorium fistulosum) in an area in which I do a lot of seed
collecting and the deer seem to consistently browse them and
prevent flowering. On the other hand, Snakeroot, Eupatorium rugosum, a
very common woodland plant plant throughout the Catskills never
seems to be browsed by deer.
Rudbeckia spp
(Black-eyed Susans, Coneflowers):
The Black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia hirta in the
“Prairie” between the zigzag fence and Samsonville
Road at the nursery is heavily browsed by deer. On the other
hand, I know of a number of stands of Green-headed Coneflower, Rudbeckia laciniata,
that seem to be in flower every year, suggesting that deer
leave it alone.
