deer damage / browsing

[devon TWiG]

I am soon to underplant an area of mature Douglas Firs , and have a few choices of shade tolerant species .... Western red cedar , Hemlock , Japanese red cedar ( cryptomeria ) and Grand fir .... however there is deer at this site ,and was wondering which would be the best choice with regards to browsing damage ..... my first choice is WRC ....

[Greg]

Plant what you like and invite me to keep the deer under control :-)

[spandit]

Plant what you like and invite me to keep the deer under control :-)

 

Me too! Are you planting in tubes?

 

Seriously, if deer are that much of a problem, you shouldn't have a problem getting someone in to manage them. I don't know whereabouts in the country you are but I can cover the SE, have DSC1 and insurance

[waterbuoy]

We have a mixture of approx 30-35 Douglas Fir, spruce and larch down the side of our garden - all mature trees, some over 80' tall and up to a metre dbh. The whole strip is used as a daily commute by a mixture of deer - predominantly reds but also some sikas. What with the red squirrels it can look like a scene out of Bambi or Snow White at times

 

I've noticed in recent months that there are some decent sized hemlocks that have self seeded - all from a couple of specimens located at the southerly end of the strip. I've had to cut back the lower branches on the mature hemlocks for access etc, but there was no sign of grazing on the branches that we removed.

 

Not sure how much this helps you, just an observation. It may well be that the deer are spoilt for choice and are moving through to a more tasty meal....

[Stumpy Grinder]

As a professional deer manager myself, I would advise you not to listen to anyone that says you can manage deer by culling alone!

There are always some deer that are out of season, and you will always get nocturnally transient deer or just new immigrant deer. Culling does support other means of protection, but you really need to physically protect new trees if you want them to have the best chance of survival.

SG