jeremy: Your trees will regrow and can be retrained to whatever shape you want. What you need for the deer is fencing. The fencing can be a ring around each tree or fence the entire area. Also, don't forget about potential rabbit or vole damage depending on where you live.

No one said it would be easy but it can still be fun. Good luck!!

My experience with deer eating young fruit trees is that the trees will grow back but if the deer keep coming back and pruning the trees, at one point the tree seems to give up and stops growing, eventually dying. I watched this happen to four or five young fruit trees, over a two year period. Deer have good memories and they will be back. Your yard will be part of their routine, and they may even invite some of their friends over. Even after I surrounded my 1/2 acre yard with plastic deer netting/fencing, they still remembered and kept finding ways into the yard. It took years before they stopped trying, probably because the next generation of deers didn't know what was inside the deer fencing so they didn't make the effort to find a way in. The plastic fencing worked once I eliminated all possible entries, including the old wooden garage just outside the fence (one deer would climb up on top of the garage and jump into my yard from the roof).

Here's a website with some deer prevention products. I like the motion activated water sprayer idea, but I haven't tried it...where I live now the battle is with squirrels, and only aviary wire cages keep them away from my plants.

http://www.bugspray.com/articles99/deer.html

I find putting a plastic fence around any new trees is a requirement for me now. A few years ago the deer damage was so small that I had no worries, but now they know all the goodies in my yard and are regular visitors. The bigger trees they can't do much to, its the little ones that they go after.

Scott

For whips, I use my concrete reinforcing wire tomato cages. On larger trees, welded wire fencing supported w/three t-posts does a great job.

I've had really good luck with Plantskydd. This is my second fall/winter with almost no rutting damage. I lost one young tree that was planted all alone, (I hadn't reapplied Plantskydd for about 2 months) but didn't have any other damage. I also apply it as a slurry, but put dabs of it on the outer limbs (i.e., deer nose level). It does last for a long time, but I'd recommend at least one additional mid-winter application. Of course, a fence is the best way to go, but I've got a lot of mileage out of Plantskydd.

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Works for squirrels too! (So far!)

Nice work KeepItLow! You got that tree wrapped up like fort Knox!

My entry here pertains to both this deer thread, and also the current rabbit/tree guard thread being addressed. I need to be on the constant alert for both of these threats. I too, have learned some hard lessons in getting to my current approach on this. I once lost three years of growth on an apple tree, as just one example.

I mostly employ 2" x 4" x 6' fencing rings around my trees. I get double duty out of this system that I have adapted from necessity over the years. The small sized gap weave keeps out the rabbits, and the 6 foot height has kept the deer at bay for me. I don't rely on any rain washable sprays! So far, small newly hatched bunnies have left the tree trunks alone, by not messing with getting through while they are small enuff to do so. Apparently, their are plenty of other succulent greens enticing and satisfying them at that stage of the game. Their needs to be an appropriate diameter to the rings, depending on tree size, to keep the deer away from reaching over to munch. This is a steady upgrading process, but because I am constantly adding new trees, the rotational aspect is working out for me. Such as when I upgrade to larger sized rings. I usually start with a four or five foot height fence and smaller diameter, on smaller trees for my own accessibility, and upgrade from their as needed. I use cheap wire tent stakes to hold the tree rings down, which makes them easily removable as well.

An additional ploy of mine is utilizing T-post fence posts. I install 4 per tree at planting time (purchased via used/cheaply at farm auctions). These posts are spaced close enuff that a small buck deer cannot squeeze through to rake holy haities out of the tree trunks' bark during the fall rut. Yes, I used to have this happen too, but not any more. These T-post protectors also come in handy for when the fence rings are no longer being utilized, or have been temporarily removed. Yet another big advantage to doing this, is the ability to gently stake the trees to these posts. This is an absolute necessity here, or every tree I plant would be pointing to the North star from constantly prevailing spring and summer Southerly winds.

I haven't seen the need for the white plastic spiraled protectors yet using this system, but if the little mini varmints move in on me, I may have to readjust. However, I do wrap some tree trunks in the fall with a white trunk wrap made just for this, mostly as winter protection. As I understand it, the white color "MAY" help to delay budbreak somewhat for those of us in more Northerly climes. Which, ifso, could be extremely advantageous in skirting late frosts at bloomtime. Myself, I wouldn't use a darker colored product of any sort on the trunks just for this reason alone. Such as black plastic drain tubing, as I saw suggested elsewhere. I am planning on doing the white interior latex coat this upcomming season, especially since I have heard that it is a good borer protection method also.

Then their is also my newest addition to my arsenal. His name is "Chase" the fre-roaming beagle. Very aptly named if I may say so myself. Believe me, he is constantly looking forwards to the next varmint persuit!!!

Gotta fight a good fight...q3

OK, here we go again. I install hundreds of fruit trees in areas with deer like a Kenya game preserve has antelope. Sometimes big bucks with nothing better to do stand around to watch my handiwork- at least they are bashful enough to keep their distance (a stones throw) until I put up my quick fence rings.

Here's what works in all but worst pressure areas and even works in those places except for mulberries, Asian pears and certain luscious apple varieties. By worst pressure area I mean a spot like where an old lady used to feed her herd with corn, building up a very dense population and than died and the corn stopped. The new owner of her property asked me to plant 50 fruit trees- more on this situation later.

Keepitlow's construction would really PMO if I had to deal with it every time I need to touch the tree (I would guarantee that it won't work for east coast squirrels or west coast ground squirrels). All I use is a 10' length of 5' tall, 14 gage fencing, a single stake of either heavy steel of usually 2X2", 8' tall pressure treated wood and make a ring for individual trees, hooking it closed with 2 or 3 wires from the fencing itself. You can easily open it to get to the trees in 3 seconds. 14 gage is stiff enough to stand on its own but easy enough to cut.

For rabbits I use a 2' tall, narrow ring of chicken wire if it's necessary but my vole protection is usually adequate (plastic spirals) to exclude rabbits as well. Rabbits (and voles) usually only go after apples and sometimes pears IME.

On the rare occasion this doesn't work- and most of my work is in a county that only allows bow-hunting and many million and billionaires who own the equivalent of their own private hunting preserves don't allow hunting so pressure is intense. I live a county up that allows shot gun hunting and the pressure, especially from bucks is not nearly so bad although it's bad enough.

OK, so here's the problem, my system is not for fully dwarf trees, but for free standing trees that are at the very least of M26 vigor. The point is to grow the tree above the brows line, letting the deer much branches that grow outside the fence and helping to train the trees up. I doubt anyone in a Z5 is growing a dwarf pear tree (that would be on quince, known not to be cold hardy); they would likely be on semi-dwarf stock and capable of rising above the browse line. The apples are another issue.

As far as the above mentioned extra high pressure areas, an extra 2 to 4' length of fencing and 2 or 3 more stakes may be required if the bucks decide to stand up on the fencing to browse. Fencing will also have to be very securely wired to posts (I put small notches in the wood. However, for some reason even starving deer don't usually do this, at least here in the southeastern NY area.

Very interesting read. I have my small orchard of 20 trees and red raspberries with areas ready to plant blueberries and blk. rasp. this spring. The deer move through my place on a regular basis. A couple of weeks ago I had tracks all around my young peach trees, but nothing munched on. Yet!
I'm sure that it's just a matter of time. I'm considering a strand of high tensil electric fence around the whole thing. Anyone use this method? I also have my garden within this 3 acre area and hopefully the elec. fence would take care of everything. Any thoughts?

Thanks, Luke

I don't think a single strand is completely reliable but it may work for your deer if you bait the wire with peanut butter smeared foil. Commercial growers usually use at least a 5' tall 3 wire fence with a heavy slant on posts. Without the slant you need 8'. I've seen the slanted fence work.

By the way, all my experience is with white tails- mule deer are bigger and may need different specs on control structures.

harvestman, We have only white tails around here and they are not a serious problem like I've seen elsewhere. The herd around here is only around 15 max. There's soy beans, corn and alfalfa fields all around to keep them well fed. I took down a 5 strand HT fence a couple of years ago when I got out of the livestock business. guess that my planning is not too good. I think that I'll give the single strand a try and keep my fingers crossed. Thanks for the info.

Luke

I have had good success with the electric fence about nose height for the deer. It won't work in winter with the snow, of course, so I also use 6' tall circles of woven 2"x4" fencing around the fruit trees. I also added electric wire 2-4" and about 8-10" inches off the ground which I activate against raccoons and woodchucks when they could be a problem with my vegetables. So far, so good. Yes, you need to bait the deer wire with peanut butter at first. A neighbor had a deer that she routinely watched jump over her electric fence, however.

I have also had good success with 5' welded wire fence circles, though if the tree has a lot of branches near the fence I tie on 8' bamboo poles and run wire around every 6-12" vertically. I don't even use a stake (yet), though the bamboo can anchor the fence somewhat, that could be helpful but the deer here seem not to know they could push on the fence. So far. I get a lot of use out of my running P. nuda bamboo.

Once the trees are mature 20' trees, I don't use fences but keep the bottom branches on so there is maybe 3' or less clearance under the tree. This is a pain for me as well but keeps the deer limited to browsing on the lowest growth and keeps them away from the trunk so they can't scratch it to pieces rubbing velvet off antlers. Some larger trees without low branches I circle just the trunk itself closely with chicken wire for protection from scratching.

I grow ground cover comfrey, Symphytum grandiflorum, under trees in my orchard. It is about the only gc I know that is tougher than grass and weeds, needs no care, is low enough to see apples easily, and forget it if you want to get rid of it. No weed-trimming, cutting, mowing.:-)

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Doesn't the comfrey extract a lot of water?

sorry if this sounds silly, I don't have a garden or fruit trees but plan to when i move to upstate NY. what is the ground for hemmnancy??

lol, *ground cover is what i meant to say.