How to Protect Apple Trees From Deer
Deer love to nibble on trees -- especially those that bear fruit, such as apple trees. This can cause you a lot of headaches and potentially prove fatal for the apple trees if the deer are allowed to strip off enough of the bark. Thankfully, there are a few manners in which the deer can be discouraged from coming around, helping keep your apple trees safe. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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Place deer repellent near the apple trees. There are a good number of commercially available deer repellents on the market from any home and garden store -- or if you are more industrious, make your own. Some good options for do-it-yourself deer repellent include hand soap, blood meal, and human hair. Deer are likely to become accustomed to any of these scents after a time. As they do, simply switch to another option.
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Put up a "scarecrow." This can either be a traditional scarecrow like the ones found in many cornfields to scare off birds or it can be a model of any predatory animal, such as dogs, cougars, or the like.
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Install motion sensor alarms. This is a more expensive option, but it tends to work quite well. Set the motion sensors to moderate sensitivity so they will pick up anything larger than a small dog. The loud sound will scare off the deer.
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Rope off the trees. Plant 4-foot posts around the base of the apple trees. Run fishing wire between the posts at 6-inch vertical increments. This will keep most deer from being able to get to the tree.
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Fence off the apple trees. If none of the other options seem to be working, it may become necessary to put up a privacy fence around your apple tree grove. Generally, the fence should be roughly 8 feet tall, so that the deer cannot jump over it.
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