help! deers in blue berry field

OMG! the deer have found my blue berry field, thay have cliped every one of them. i refencing the field, i have hot ribbion wire on there now, which is nothing to them, any one got a solution to this problem, thinking about once fenced put a dog in there. i planted 100 4 yr plants this spring... now im whiped out! DRN whats me to relocated the berrys get real! too close to neighbor to shoot them with a gun, have to to be 500 feet away from nearest residents.. [img]/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif[/img] they were no help! Rose

A fence about eight feet hig shoud deter them.

I would suggest a main fence of four foot paige wire topped with three strands of barbed wire to about seven feet. outside of this fence and about six feet away run a single strand barbed wire fence so they have no chance at a running start.

Please note I have been building such a fence for some years now. The fence posts are still growing well and the paige wire is stored in the backyard! [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Deer can jump high or deer can jump wide but deer can NOT jump high and wide simultaneously. A standard fence is nothing to deer except it may keep their competition out of the fenced area. A tall fence (over 5 ft) with a horizontal component at the top (visualize an inverted "L") is a GOOD deterent to their access. There is some disagreement as to whether the horizontal component should extend to the inside of the "protected" area or toward the outside with some votes for some of both. There is no advantage to using electric fence with this approach as it offers no improvement and is a waste of $.

It is easier and less expensive to make the fence "deer proof" by extending it horizontally than by making it tall enough to do the job with height alone. It is imperative that you mark the added horizontal component with highly visible markers such as white cloth strips tied at intervals along the horizontal components. If the deer don't see it they will jump into it and make a mess of the fence and likely hurt themselves and suffer a lot from the injuries. You should "flag" the horizontal component at the extremes, i.e. farthest apart horizontal parts to show the extent that would have to be jumped.

There are a lot of folk remedies touted as deer deterrents but most have inconsistent or poor results. A fence that is WIDE and HIGH works.

A dog kenneled inside a standard fence might work but the fence doesn't have to be fed or cleaned up after.

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

I find with a deer, that a bullet and room in the freezer works best. It was suicide always works for me.

As Pat says, the deterrent factor must be visible to the deer. For three years now, I've protected my garden with a fence composed of cattle panels which are only 52" tall. I attach pieces of pvc pipe to every other t-post holding the cattle panels and run nylon cord at about 6 feet and as high as I can reach between the pcv pipe extensions. I then use flagging tape to make the nylon cord visible. I've had as many as eight deer at a time wandering through my yard, and not once has one tried to get in my garden. I don't suggest this as the ultimate protection for the blueberries, but it does show that it's what the deer thinks it can't get through that matters.

Chuck

thanks for all your input. gonna try the pvc over the fence post . talked to the Ag guy yesterday he said some times the dogs get use to the deer and wont bark or chase them.. i can see that happening. i got one plant left out of 100 .. ag guy said that the deer know what is more nutrious and will eat the better plants. {makes sence} thats why they have left the wild berries alone. wonder if i could weave ribbon wire up and down from top stand to apear as really tall post inbetween my post? i have an acer to fence and setting post is not the easest thing down there. but im ready to build a "fort fence"if needed [img]/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif[/img] Rose

Rose,

As a fast thing to try, the pvc and nylon cord can't be beat. If you are down to one plant, this might at least let you see if the chewed up plants will come back. You can always be thinking of more permanent solutions. I do the cattle panel and pvc extension trick because I take down the fence after the growing season, so I can work the garden with my tractor tiller. My garden is only about 60x60 feet, and I wouldn't be able to work that small area with any kind of permanent fence using my tractor. What I plan to do starting this year is put in raised beds, and when I get that done I will put in a permanent fence. That fence will be 5' welded wire. To keep the deer out of that, I plan to have posts inside the fence which will discourage the deer from jumping in. My raised beds will b made with concrete blocks, and I'll have posts, or some cattle panels, or maybe even my famous pvc pipes stuck in some of the holes of the beds along the sides nearest the fence. I can use those things for plants support anyway, and that will give at least the appearance to the deer of a wide barrier. I bet it works without needing the pvc extensions on the permanent fence. Some thing like that might work for you, too. A few feet inside your fence you could run a very visible "clothesline" or something, which the deer would have to clear when they jumped. Actually, either inside or out should do it, which ever is suitable for your situation.

Chuck

when i laid out my plans for the berry field i placed the rows 10 ft apart so that my compac tractor can get in and out to mow. with plants 6 feet apart.with enough room to tun in to each row with out hitting the fence or a berry plant.. thats what kills me the most, i just didnt "dig an hole "and throw them in. gurrrrrrrrrrrrrr. yes the plants that got niped are try to come back i am gonna loose a few from the looks of things. got irragation orderd had a water meter set. talked to the AG guy today he told me of a farmer who uses "plot saver " can order it from cabellas says it work really well. has use it for 4 yrs some of his neighbors use it now with great results.gonna try it also the kit comes with some kind of wire you spay this repelent on. works for 4 or 5 weeks deer wont cross it.. i guess we'll see.. was wondering if any one else has tryed it?the site is www.cabela.com. i have a bunch of pvc pipe in attic of building i bet my fence will sure be a site when i'm done! LOL Rose

Run another row of electric fence spaced about 3 1/2 to 4 feet around your existing one.

It won't apply to Brownmule's problem, but I'm preparing to put in some blueberries this spring, and I think I'll be able to keep the deer at bay fairly easily. I've made two raised beds, 4x25 feet, and am getting the soil to the proper pH and such over this winter. I spaced the two beds four feet apart for ease of picking and such, and this area is adjacent to an already fenced space containing two other raised beds I have used for strawberries and spring greens. The deer never tried to jump into that area, I think because it is rather small, and the beds are made of concrete blocks. The fence is only welded wire five feet tall, but I believe the deer don't want to jump into an area only about 20 feet wide which has so many things to land on. I plan to just expand the area to encompass the new space for the bluberries, and since I have all those nice holes in the concrete blocks, I'll stick some poles in those and maybe add some flags to create more clutter and make it really look unfriendly to jumping critters.

Chuck

Teach the deer about electricity? Peanut butter on a live wire, once zapped even if the power goes out they can associate the scent to something bad!

I have heard that human urine will keep them away. That is I guess that they have had negative experiences with humans. [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

Human urine as a deterrent for deer encroachment...I know you mean well but deer can move pretty fast and make an extremely difficult target, even if you get close through expert stalking and luck!

Pat

Pat,
Didn't even smile through the first read of your post, waiting for the "Pat in-depth chemical analysis of human urine and its interaction with the olifactory senses of the deer population". Then I got it. LOL

Yeah, it is only effective in low wind situations tool

I used to be subject to random urinalysis and polygraph. The procedure was to contact my superior who would call to tell me. One time he said I had to pee in a bottle topside and I replied I'm bayside right now (a mile away and much higher than my waterfront location) but I'll give it a try!

After that he was more careful with his phrasing. Stuff like that passes for humor among scientists and engineers at a DoD (Navy operated) research and development lab.

All sorts of ANTI-DEER anecdotal remedies are touted, mostly by people who have either never tried it themselves or for whom a single apparent success is sufficient evidence and or they are selling something.

Fences that are high AND wide do work. If the deer can see the height and width they have to jump and it is too great they will not try and get hurt, messing up your fence. Whatever fence you have, it needs to be very well marked so they see it. We mark new electric fence that is ony 3 ft high so the resident deer notice it. Otherwise for the first few weeks the deer run into it because it wasn't there the last time they visited.

Traditional electric fences like you would use with a cow are a waste of time and money. Electric fence and peanut butter. Yeah right. If you were lucky and stuck with it you could teach some deer to avoid peanut butter if you think that would help solve your problem. An electric fence out a few feet from a regular fence is not much good as the deer will jump it and then jump the regular fence. For multiple layered fences to work they have to give too little landing room between them for the deer to be comfortable.

Deer don't need much or any running start to jump a fence.

The right dog on duty inside the enclosure will work. Will deer walking outside the enclosure make the dog bark so much that your neighbors will shoot it? Or will it make you crazy enough to do it yourself?

Shooting a deer sounds macho and it is practical to put one in the freezer and the neighbors freezers too, a fine thing but... what if there are dozens of the deer? Is it legal, will someone rat you out, who gets the midnight to 0800 shift day after day after day with a gun and lights?

Fences never sleep. Make the fence 1. either high enough and visible so no deer will try it or 2 make it high (just not as high as required in #1) and wide. A visible high and wide fence will deter deer from trying. A fence that is sufficiently high and wide is easier and cheaper to construct than one high enough with no visible width. It is just a fact of the deer's athletic ability. Many deer can clear an 8 ft fence. Most deer will not try to jump a fence 6-8 ft high with a horizontal component 5-8 ft wide. No part of the fence above 4-5 ft needs to be reinforced against deer physically testing it. They won't be launching themselves 6-7 ft into the air to "test" the strength of the horizontal part.

One way that is easy to get a visible horizontal component is to put PVC pipe extensions on T-posts. Then put PVC or fiberglass wands cross wise (horizontal) a foot or so down from the top of the vertical PVC extensions. PVC horizontals will sag quite a bit so you need to attach a string from the top of the vertical PVC to the ends of the horizontals. Visualize a stylized Christian Cross with a string from the top to the ends of the horizontals. The load on the vertical PVC is balanced as it is equal on both sides and the horizontals are held up against droop by the strings.

You run strings horizontally, connecting the ends of the horizontal pipes together, one string on each side of the fence. Also connect the tips of the verticals to each other with a horizontal string. Flag the horizontal strings every few feet with strips of white cloth for good night time visibility.

Wally World sells rolls of really good string in the sporting good section. It is black and is very UV resistant (important feature). Don't skimp and get the small stuff the size of heavy sewing thread. Get the bigger stuff, way too strong to break by hand as it will last much longer.

With PVC vertical extensions making the top string well over 6 ft high (7-8 works) and the 6-8 ft horizontals making the fence wide, the deer will likely not challenge it. To be able to mow beside the fence you can swivel the whole thing if the vertical PVC extensions are free to revolve. You need to tie "guy wires" (actually string) to prevent the twisting from wind, not every vertical but just a couple to prevent the whole thig from rotating and loosing its width.


I have friends/neighbors across the highway from me who have a second property (150 acres)about 25 miles south. They planted hundreds of small pecan trees, totally ignoring my dire warnings about the heavy deer population. They don't have a dozen trees left. They have to start over again and have lost a year. John is quite a sportsman, a fine long range marksman, a good wing shot, and has no problem shooting an animal but how many deer is it appropriate to shoot and who gets the midnight to 8AM shift 7 days a week for the first few years till the trees are big enough to survive deer?

They are rethinking their plans of how to start their pecan operation which is to be part of their early retirement/transition to rural based economy. IF they take advice on cattle like they did on little trees they are in for an expensive initiation.

The world is not a Disney theme park. Reality is what happens while you are making other plans or are deluding yourself into wishful thinking that SOMEHOW it will be OK and there will be a happy ending like a movie. You have to MAKE THE HAPPY ENDING HAPPEN with your own actions and not depend on dumb luck or he said she said, I wish, I thought, I hoped, maybe...

You can keep deer off your berry bushes without standing guard duty, hiring a company of mercenaries, or keeping a large alert "lightly fed" dog in the berry field. Proper fences can do it. Some people report success with IR motion detecting systems triggering ultrasonics, bright lights, and even propane "crow" cannons as are used in melon fields or a "Rain Crow." Your relationship with your neighbors might deteriorate if you use the cannon. Over time the non-lethal alternatives to a high and wide fence tend to loose effectiveness as the deer just get used to noise, lights, and such. The dog is a good plan if you can stand the barking caused by deer outside the fence. The high and wide fence works too and doesn't have to be fed or cleaned up after. (I personally wouldn't want a dog confined in my berry patch.) See also "dog dooly" via Google.
I wish you the best of luck.

Pat

This method may work best from a stand Pat. [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] But patience will be required till one is directly below! [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Depends on wind. Oklahoma can have wind in sufficient quantity to go beyond drift into misterizing the stream into ineffectual moisture. I suppose another delivery method such as paint ball technology might get the selected reagent into play but still, who gets the midnight to 8AM shift?

The DIY fence accessory I described will do the deed. There are commercially available deer fencing materials as well as add-ons for DIY fence improvement but I think what I gave is actually more cost effective if the linear feet of fencing needed keeps the parts cost and assembly time within acceptable parameters. Once you have the materials gathered up it only takes a couple minutes per post/section to erect if you aren't totally uncoordinated.

Pat

Here in the North it's the ice balls that form! [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] A strong wind just gives them a little more whack impact! [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]