I am sure many of you suburbanites out there can share the experience of waking up one morning and discover that the flowers and shrubs that cost you a lot of money and took forever to plant were totally devoured by deer as their late night snack. Unfortunately, there is really not a plant out there that is truly deer resistant they will not eat. There are many commercially available deer repellents on the market that does a good job keeping the deer away but they can also be very expensive and you must switch between different products from time to time to prevent the deer from getting accustomed to the repellent.

Chris Tse, John Ng and I were sharing our grief of deer attacks the other day at one of our weekly Dim Sum gatherings in Flushing. We shared stories of how the deer can out entire flower beds by eating everything in sight. Chris told us that he has been using a homemade deer repellent that has been very effective and he offered to send us the recipe for sharing with other old boys. 

Deer Repellent Recipe by Chris Tse

1 1/2 gallons Water
2/3 to ¾ cup Tabasco or hot pepper sauce
1 tbsp. corn oil
2 tbsp. DAWN (or similar detergent)
1 heaping tbsp. dry mustard

Mix the ingredients thoroughly, then spray the plants once a month, more if it rains heavily. If deer nibble certain plants spray them again.

It is a good idea to wear gloves and protective glasses. If the wind blows, you don’t want it in your eyes

Tags: