Just browsing here today, but I looked at your blog, Cameron. It looks wonderful! I'd like my yard to look something like that. I have a shady yard, but a big hickory tree has died, so there will be more sun when it's cut down. I've been looking for some evergreen foundation plants to put around my house and have come up with pieris, gaultheria (shallon), leucothoe, daphne and mahonia. I'll do some perennials once the foundations are in, perhaps in the fall. I already have spirea, potentilla, monarda and fothergill which are almost totally deer resistant around here. Thanks, Florrie

Probably flowers or groundcover. Trees would block the street sign. Shrubs would get crushed by the plowed snow.

Compiling lists of deer resistant plants is always a challenge........deer don't bother to read them :-) Seriously, deer can nibble on anything at least once and sometimes that's enough to cause serious damage. It depends on how much natural forage is available, regional deer appetites (they do vary widely), how new the plant is to the garden and the age of the deer. Fawns in particular will taste anything to determine if it is something they might like. Hellebores and euphorbias are typically safe as is anything with a lot of essential oils - lavender, salvias, agastache, echinacea, nepeta, bee balm (monarda). And plants with fuzzy foliage like lambs ears, phlomis, verbascum, digitalis. And most ornamental grasses are pretty safe bets as well.

As evidence of deer intelligence. We hunted a ranch near San Saba where about 50 acres surrounding ranchers home was off limits. Deer only stared at us while in that pasture but not so if in the war zone. The lady put a cowbell on a buck which she had special attachment. Eventhough he would have been spared (unless hunter didn't believe what rancher said) ,we never once heard his bell outside that small pasture during season,,,,,except during rut. Can you imagine the campfire stories regarding what does thought about a lovesick buck with a bell on his neck? Come and get it was never mentioned.