How to Deal with Deer Problems on Your Property in Hunterdon County, NJ

Deer have become a dangerous problem for drivers, and an expensive challenge for homeowners in Hunterdon County, New Jersey.
By: K.G.
 
July 7, 2011 - PRLog -- Hunterdon County and surrounding counties in New Jersey have been dealing with a growing problem with deer in 2011. Residents of this central New Jersey county are concerned with this issue as it impacts driver safety as well as home values.

The popular NJ website called yourhunterdon.com features a section for Hunterdon County, NJ area homeowners (http://www.yourhunterdon.com/house-home-nj-northern-new-jersey-hunterdon-county) that provides useful information for interior and exterior home improvement and home design challenges. This includes information on managing the deer problem in Hunterdon County as it relates to your property. Many of us are asking ourselves how something so beautiful be so destructive?

In Hunterdon County, deer are more likely to change their traffic patterns every year because of property development. One year you’re fine, then a couple of houses go up five blocks away and you’re in trouble. The overpopulation of the animals, coupled with a thinning of woodlands, has caused them to be hungrier and more desperate—especially in the winter.

Deer Life

The skittish nocturnal animals are up all night, but most often seen roaming during the two hours before sundown, and early in the morning. Deer have no upper incisors, so twigs and stems they have browsed show a rough, shredded surface. When eating branches, they strip the bark and leave no teeth marks. Compare the evidence to that of rabbits, who leave a sharp cut and rodents, who leave narrow teeth marks.

Dangerous Beauties

Deer damage goes beyond watching your hostas vaporize overnight. Deer spread Lyme disease by carrying the ticks that spread it. They cause injury to passengers in cars that hit them or swerve to avoid them--or are traveling behind them. And they destroy property in search of food.Is there a no-fail method to keeping them off your property? “Nothing is 100%,” advises Mitch Knapp of Scenic Landscape Design, “But there are definitely ways to discourage them.”

Plant Choices

Selecting plants unattractive to deer is a practical, easy way to deter the visitors. Knapp has seen entire landscapes destroyed when the wrong plants were chosen. He suggests planning out a yard with a licensed landscape architect or horticulturist, even if the homeowner or a less experienced landscaper will do the actual buying and planting. Working with a talented planner may also mean that you can still enjoy your favorite plants, even if deer share that affection. The expert would typically surround them with plants the deer avoid. Poor or no planning can mean a devastated garden. Even with a reputable landscaper (who typically guarantees his work), you’ll have to start from scratch to replant, and the seasonal timing isn’t likely to be ideal.

Deer Repellents

Knapp has found repellents like deerBgone very effective. The natural spray is applied professionally seven to 12 times a season, and is safe for children, pets, and even the deer (it’s the taste and smell that deters the intruders).

Fencing

Six foot fencing is the gold standard to repel deer, but in very active areas, Knapp has seen deer jump that height. “In extreme cases, a deer will crash through even an eight-foot fence to get to food. But if you have any kind of fence and your neighbor doesn’t, the deer is naturally going to go where access is easier.” And any fence is more effective if deer can't see what is on the other side. Laying material uncomfortable to a deer’s hooves, like corrugated metal, around the perimeter of your property is also helpful.

Netting

Flexible, degradable netting can be placed over tempting young plantings for the winter, when deer are hungriest and most destructive.

Home remedies

Bags of human hair, Irish Spring soap, egg sprays, wolf urine, dried blood and even getting a dog are reported to have worked for more than one garden. Worth a try!

Mitch Knapp’s Top 3 plant groups to resist deer:

Use

Ornamental grasses

Boxwood

Spruces

Avoid Planting

Hostas

Azalea/rhododendron

Delicate perennials

Visit http://www.yourhunterdon.com for more articles like this and a lot more Hunterdon County, New Jersey information.

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Point Media is New Jersey's largest producer of county-specific community websites.
Currently, Point Media produces websites for five of New Jersey's 21 counties. This includes mybergen.com, myhudsoncounty.com, myhunterdon.com, mymorris.com and mysomerset.com.
Additional websites will be launched by Point Media in 2011 and 2012.
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Source:K.G.
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Tags:Deer, Landscape, Design, Shrubs, HunterdonCounty, nj, Home, Improvement
Industry:Environment, Home, Lifestyle
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