15 Best Deer-Resistant Plants That Will Help Protect Your Garden
Try marigold, lavender, lamb's ear, and other varieties.
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You love digging around in your garden, planting flowers, shrubs, and trees to beautify your landscape. What's not so nice to discover your favorite plants have been gnawed on by the neighborhood deer!
Sure, they have to eat, too, but does it have to be your yard? Although you can try repellants, research says they're only effective about half the time and you will need to reapply them regularly. So if you're looking for advice on how to keep these animals out of your garden, try deer-resistant plants.
While no plant is considered "deer proof," many are less tasty to deer so they're less likely to get nibbled. For starters, they tend to avoid plants that have highly scented foliage or a fuzzy texture. (Our suggestion: learn how to grow lavender, which is a variety included on this list.) You can also discourage deer by not planting their favorites such as hostas, daylilies, azaleas, and arborvitae. When shopping, read the plant tag so you know how much sun or shade a plant needs. (Full sun is considered 6 or more hours of direct sunlight, while part sun is about half that.) Also, make sure a plant will survive winters in your USDA plant hardiness zone. Adding a 2 to 3 inch layer of mulch also will maintain moisture and control weeds, too, to give your plants a healthy chance at thriving.
It's important to remember, however, that if there is a high population of deer, insufficient food sources, or a hard winter, they will eat pretty much anything in your garden to survive! Still, if you're determined to keep them at bay, explore our favorite deer-resistant plants for your garden.
Weigela
Oodles of bright flowers attract pollinators such as hummingbirds, but deer tend to leave this shrub alone. Some types of weigela rebloom throughout the summer.
Catmint
Catmint grows in all soil types, is drought tolerant, and blooms for weeks and weeks in mid to late summer. The purple spikes of flowers of this perennial are set against pretty, silvery foliage that has a slight minty scent deer don't like.
Bee Balm
Bee balm is a perennial that pollinators love! But deer usually steer clear of its highly-scented leaves. Look for new well-behaved varieties that stay in clumps and won't overrun your garden.
Lavender
This classic perennial has beautiful, delicate foliage and deep purple spikes of flowers. Nothing beats lavender's romantic scent, which deer don’t like.
Heuchera
These pretty perennials are grown more for their brilliant foliage, rather than their tiny flower spikes in midsummer. Heuchera come in a range of gorgeous shades from burgundy black to chartreuse.
Spirea
This sturdy shrub isn't a favorite of deer, but its bright foliage and clusters of pretty flowers make it reliable for landscaping or foundation planting. Some new varieties of spirea are reblooming.
Japanese Painted Fern
Shady spots in your garden will shine with these elegant ferns. Plant them in masses for best effect; deer almost never bother them.
Cranesbill
Also called perennial geranium, this super-cold-hardy plant has pungent foliage deer don't like and delicate blooms in mid to late spring. Some types bloom sporadically all summer long.
Lantana
Lantana is a tough-as-nails plant with bright flowers all summer long. Pollinators adore it, but deer don't like its somewhat prickly texture. It's considered an annual in cold climates but perennial in warmer parts of the country.
Dusty Miller
The fuzzy silver foliage of dusty miller is not enticing to deer. Still, it makes an attractive upright accent plant when combined with other annuals in containers or beds.
Angelonia
Also called summer snapdragon, this long-blooming annual is usually ignored by deer. It comes in every color of the rainbow, so it's smashing in containers or beds.
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Marigold
These cheerful annuals have been popular since your grandmother's day because they're super-hardy, they bloom all season long until a hard frost, and they are easy to grow. Their scented foliage is not tasty to deer.
Butterfly Bush
Butterflies will flock to this shrub, and deer won't! Look for new types that are more manageable in size and aren't invasive.
Sweet Alyssum
Sweet alyssum is a beautiful annual that looks lovely draping out of pots and containers or spilling over the edges of walkways or walls. It's a pollinator magnet, but not preferred by deer because of its honey-scented blooms.
Lamb's Ears
Besides having a very cute name, the little rounded, fuzzy leaves of the lamb's ear plant aren't appealing to deer. Plant this perennial in mixed borders or along walks.
Arricca Elin SanSone is a writer, editor, and content creator who specializes in lifestyle and gardening. With a background in health reporting, she applies these same research skills when writing about the science of growing things. She trials new plants in her expansive garden, and her houseplant collection consists of 60+ varieties. Arricca has written thousands of articles for publications such as Country Living, House Beautiful, Good Housekeeping, Prevention, VERANDA, Southern Living, and more. She’s happiest when digging in the dirt, baking, or spending time with the people and dogs she loves.
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