Deer and rabbit resistant plants

Deer and rabbit resistant plants

Living close to areas where deer and rabbits roam can provide a nice view of these critters pretty much every day. But it is not too nice if they have also made your deck a supply of food. It is a known general rule that they will usually run away from gray or silver leaves, so you might want to keep that in mind when picking your plants. If you are having troubles with deer and rabbit continually destroying your containers, the following is a list with plants that these animals will usually avoid.

Dusty Miller

Dusty Miller, like most gray plants, has fuzzy leaves and is usually not liked by rabbits and deer. Probably this is why they avoid them altogether.  This plant looks great on containers and make a beautiful contrast with other more colorful plants.

Marigold

These flowers contain a sap that is pretty non-tasty for most herbivores. So, if you are a rabbit or deer you will not eat this plant at all.      Marigolds come in a variety of colors, which affects how effective they are at repelling animals.

Verbena

The Verbena leaves are pretty small and not soft to touch. Besides this, they have this sharp flavor that totally eliminates this plant from the menu of most herbivores.

Deer and rabbit will not hesitate to avoid these fuzzy white, blue, pink, or purple flowers. They are actually pretty nice at look.  They grow 8-12 inches tall and they will produce flowers until the next frost.  Any sunny location is perfect to place these in containers. Usually called floss flower, the plant is kept up by removing dead flower heads soon.

Snapdragon

These flowers will lighten up your spring garden with bright colors that will appeal you but not deer and rabbits. Snapdragons live on sunny and cool weather.  They vary in size, from 8-inch dwarfs to 3-foot giants.