Most people have a favorite restaurant, a place that we frequent because we know we will get a good meal and we enjoy the atmosphere. Like humans, deer are creatures of habit and have good memories. When they find a place where they have gotten a good meal and felt safe while feeding, they will keep coming back to that area.
If you live in zone 8 and would like to prevent your landscape from becoming the favorite restaurant of local deer, continue reading to learn more about deer resistant plants in zone 8.
About Zone 8 Deer Resistant Plants
There are no plants that are completely deer proof. That being said, there are plants that deer prefer to eat, and there are plants that deer rarely eat. When food and water are scarce, however, desperate deer may eat anything they can find, even if they don’t particularly like it.
In spring and early summer, pregnant and nursing deer require more food and nutrition, so they may eat things that they don’t touch any other time of the year. In general, though, deer prefer to eat in areas where they feel safe and have easy access to, not where they are out in the open and feel exposed.
Oftentimes, these places will be near the edges of woodlands, so they can run for cover if they feel threatened. Deer also like to feed near waterways. Plants on the edges of ponds and streams usually contain more moisture in their foliage.
Are There Plants Deer Hate in Zone 8?
While there are many deer repellents you can purchase and spray to deer proof gardens in zone 8, these products need to be reapplied often and deer may just tolerate the unpleasant scent or taste if they are hungry enough.
Planting zone 8 deer resistant plants can be a better option than spending lots of money on repellant products. While there are no guaranteed zone 8 plants deer won’t eat, there are plants they prefer not to eat. They don’t like plants with strong, pungent odors.
They also tend to avoid plants with thick, hairy, or prickly stems or foliage. Planting these plants around or near deer favorites can help deter deer. Below is a list of some plants for deer proof gardens in zone 8.
Zone 8 Deer Resistant Plants
- Abelia
- Agastache
- Amaryllis
- Amsonia
- Artemisia
- Bald Cypress
- Baptisia
- Barberry
- Boxwood
- Buckeye
- Butterfly bush
- Cast Iron Plant
- Chaste Tree
- Coneflower
- Crape myrtle
- Daffodil
- Dianthus
- Dwarf Yaupon
- False Cypress
- Fern
- Firebush
- Gardenia
- Gaura
- Ginkgo
- Hellebore
- Japanese Yew
- Joe Pye Weed
- Juniper
- Katsura Tree
- Kousa Dogwood
- Lacebark Elm
- Lantana
- Magnolia
- Oleander
- Ornamental Grasses
- Ornamental Peppers
- Palms
- Pineapple Guava
- Quince
- Red Hot Poker
- Rosemary
- Salvia
- Smoke bush
- Society Garlic
- Spirea
- Sweetgum
- Tea Olive
- Vinca
- Wax Begonia
- Wax Myrtle
- Weigela
- Witch Hazel
- Yucca
- Zinnia