Grass Valley, California is on the outer rim of our region, but the resident gardening columnist Carolyn Singer is worth knowing about, especially for gardeners in the foothills of the Cascades. She is very experienced with the ravages of deer, and address this concern in two books. “Deer in My Garden” (2006), was largely written while the author spent the summer of 2005 in Seattle and focuses on perennials and subshrubs. “Deer in My Garden: Volume 2” (2008) considers the impact on groundcovers and garden edge plants.
Both books are part of “The Yucky Flower Series,” honoring the advice of her then 3-year-old grandson: “The deer wouldn’t eat yucky flowers!” So that is what she planted. Her deer-resistant recommendations are based on her own experience, or those of gardeners who grew trial plants for her, knowing that in the interest of science (or cervid consumer selection), the trial plants might disappear.
While yucky to deer, the selected plants are all quite lovely to gardeners and would make many other recommended plant lists. Most are drought tolerant and adapted to a wide temperature range. Best of all, the author enthusiastically rates the maintenance requirements of most as “EASY!” to “VERY, VERY EASY!” Deer or no deer, these are great garden plants.
Excerpted from the Spring 2015 Arboretum Bulletin