I have deer galore, and although my gardens are largely perennial, I do use a fair number of annuals. Deer have never touched zinnias, dahlias, dianthus Chinensis, verbena hybrids, statice, alyssum, petunias, geraniums, lisianthus, portulaca, nasturtiums, impatiens, snapdragons, dusty miller, osteospermum, or coleus. I think deer instinctively know to bypass anything you can get in a market pack for $2.99 in favor of the expensive perennials.

Maryland - Shasta Daisys (blooming) were ignored right next to perennial black-eyed-susans which were literally mowed down (just before blooming) in one garden. On the other side of the house, both were mowed down to the ground; both were JUST before buds opened; I think they prefer the young greenery. Once the flowers are open, they might be safer from deer. Really pointy hollies they leave alone (so far) but any hollies without the stickers, they eat them, especially new growth. Invasives? They ate a fence full of Virginia Creeper, but only on one side of the fence--of course, the side we get to look at. Daffodils? They don't eat them, just bite off the buds and spit them out. Hyacinths have been untouched. Marigolds? They just pull them out of the ground, then spit them out to dry up and die. Forget about the hydrangeas and daylillies. I've seen them eat the neighbor's barberry bushes, thorns and all. My barberries, they just step on and break. Iris goes untouched. Coral bells survive some nibbling. Periwinkle groundcover survives unless they pull it out. Most of my neighbors have arborvitae--there's a contest for the best "deer topiary." I'm trying some ferns now, some wild from our woods, some purchased. The nursery had a sale for "a buck a piece" but I hope that doesn't mean they are FOR the bucks. I know, lame joke. Motion activated lights? The deer look happier, oh thank you, now they can see what they are eating! Motion activated water? Oh, thank you, what a nice bath. Motion activated sound? Oh, thank you, piped in music. Barking dogs? Oh, don't worry, they can't get out. Coyote urine? Oh, just eat around it, there are starving children in the next county. My hairdresser gave me a bag of hair cuttings to try. One of her customers swears by it. Didn't help my poor hydrangea, though. Maybe I'll try tying little mesh bags full. The hydrangea has become the "deer test" for many supposed deterrents. None have worked so far. BlueBars

They may not chew and swallow but they will definitely sample anything new planted in their path. And if the plant is small the sampling involves pulling the entire plant out of the ground- some days you can find them quickly enough to save them and other times I just find the empty hole. I'd plant it, cage it with some wire border something as a deterrent, and spray it down with Liquid Fence so that first taste is terrible. Once the roots get established and it is stronger it can fend for itself but the first couple of weeks are when you need to watch out.

Many things are considered deer-resistant until they're hungry enough. I'd say the guaranteed ones would be the thorny plants (likely why your holly was fine, if it was an Ilex opaca) and plants with scented leaves--Salvias, Lavender, Rosemary. I have a Caryopteris "Dark Knight" in clay soil and it's doing amazingly well, has scented leaves, and you can control how big you let it get by how much you prune in the spring. Cut it back to 12 or 18" if you want a smaller shrub or just give it a trim if you want something big and blowsy. I have found that I need to stake them if I want them big--they tend to splay out in some of the brutal storms we get so my plan is to trim them further back this year to keep them a bit more "tight."