How to deal with wildlife damage

EDITOR’S NOTE: This story was written by Eric Larson.

I was talking about collecting seeds at a gardening talk last week and got a question about what I would recommend to repair the damage she was suffering from the deer in her neighborhood.

As I was walking home from church last week, I was close to hitting a deer again.

There is a well-trodden game trail on my usual route home. One of our main concerns this time of year is what we can do about the deer on our trails. Deer don’t disappear.

Driving at night with all the deer puts us at risk of accidents on the road, and the danger increases proportionately.

According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, in November we are in the middle of the period when Ohio has seen the most deer-related car accidents from October through December.

With twins being born every year, the population is growing more rapidly.

Larger deer populations mean we face the problems of more deer.

Nature can and does correct itself. When I went to school to learn more about landscaping, my professors mentioned several times that deer damage was at its highest. Let’s not miss this amazing fact.

Ohio pioneers experienced deer populations as high as 20,000. Just 40 years ago there were 17,000 deer in Ohio, but today there are 670,000 to 950,000, according to statistics. These deer have caused 109,507 car accidents in Ohio since 2019. Fortunately, 95% of all accidents involving deer resulted in property damage only.

Still, there were 45 deaths in 44 accidents due to deer. In 2013, 191 State Farm drivers lost their lives and paid an average of $4,135 per claim in 2015.

According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and State Farm, deer, elk and moose cause $1 billion in damage annually. It is not uncommon for a farmer to incur a loss of $200 per hectare, affecting the farmer’s ability to survive.

Statistics also show that Ohio farmers have consistently suffered 50% of losses related to deer damage. Such losses mean that we all need to address this issue as these costs will affect us all.

Deer are starving in the forests and plundering our gardens and fields. As time goes on, we will see that deer are causing more and more damage to our environment. I want people to encourage hunters in the area to help with this serious problem. Hungry deer will find their way into our backyard if our yards are the only meal available.

If the natural habitat adequately supports deer concentrations, damage to our yard will be minimal. If the population is high, damage will occur.

Fortunately, there are many solutions to the deer situation, from what we can do to our communities.

As a landscape architect, I have been fighting deer for as long as I have been working in this industry. My first task was to see what was being eaten at home on Miles Road in Cleveland.

The lower third of the juniper bushes were stripped of their leaves and completely striped. Deer are difficult to control in harsh winters and will eat almost anything.

This homeowner was near the Cleveland Emerald Necklace Park system, where there were deer that came up to feed on people’s landscapes. I can give recommendations on which plants should grow in different locations.

One reason for different solutions is that some are more effective than others. The prevailing wisdom is to start with the least drastic solution and move on to harsher treatments if the first treatment doesn’t work.

Deer are more innovative and resilient than we realize, and they’ll gradually learn every tactic you try. Since deer are smart, our first wave must be the strongest and make it count.

I have had varying degrees of success with the following deer management tools. These are some of the recommendations I encourage. Over the years, I have recommended a variety of trees, shrubs and perennials as plantings in our gardens to combat deer damage. Large dogs hunt deer, which reduces the likelihood of deer grazing.

There are several repellents and deterrents available on the market with varying degrees of success. These repellents can be reasonably effective if used correctly. I’ve heard that human hair, blood, soap and feces from zoo predators can reduce the damage. All of this needs to be reapplied periodically.

The best solution to the problem is a product that I have tested for at least eighteen years.

“Scare Crow” was originally a Canadian product, a simple concept. This electronic eye connects to an external water source and hose. When the deer breaks through a beam, he gets a shiver and runs into the forest. The “Scare Crow” is the best solution I have seen in all my years. Send me an email and I’ll share some of my findings with you.

If you have any questions about gardening, please email me at [email protected].

This column will soon be published in a blog on the website www.ohiohealthyfoodcooperative.org. I will do my best to help.