Before buying a house, I was never much interested in gardening. But now that we've got a beautiful lawn and room to grow, flora and fauna are all that occupy my brain lately. We have a flower garden of sorts right off the driveway that's only currently housing dirt, just ready to be seeded. Its too early now, but soon I'm going to try my hand (or thumb) at planting some flowers there. I also want to plant a cherry blossom tree and a weeping willow tree in the backyard. I keep saying Whomping Willow, a la Harry Potter though! We've got a huge back yard with plenty of room and I've always loved willows. We'll plant both a good distance from the house though - I know how big those willow trees can grow. I'm also planning on putting them on the edges of the yard, not too close to our neighbors' property. I don't want to plunk down a tree in the middle of the yard and then regret it years from now if we ever decided to put in a pool or something equally large.
With all the deer in our yard, the goal is to plant flowers that they aren't likely to eat. My dad recommended daffodils, marigolds and zinnias. Do you have hungry deer roaming your yard as well? Care to share some tips?
7 comments:
I have woods behind my house that belong to the golf course so I see a lot of deer. We have an inground pool so of course my yard is fenced (chain link), but deer have actually jumped over it! I guess I'm saying, even fencing doesn't keep them @ bay. They are magnificent animals with spectacular leaping ability. Fortunately they don't eat my flowers & veggies, the rabbits do!!! I plan on buying one of those raised gardens this year and put fencing around it. I can't wait to plant too ;)
There is this sterilized blood you can buy at garden stores. The smell scares the deer away.
But if you let your dog wander in the yard, that keeps most deer and such away.
Butterfly bushes attract butterflies and hummingbirds, yet repel deer and rabbits! It's a 2-fer.
Make sure you plan weeping willows far from any underground pipes or lines, cause the roots are immense and can destroy pipes in no time.
Make sure you plan weeping willows far from any underground pipes or lines, cause the roots are immense and can destroy pipes in no time.
With regard to planting trees. Get in touch with the Cornell cooperative extension here in NY. They're a wonderful resource for things like planting trees. We live in upstate NY and my DH plants trees on the back acreage every year. He buys the seedlings from them at very low cost. JMHO. Good luck.
Be careful regarding deer ticks(Lymes disease).
Thanks for the tips all!
Post a Comment