Ohio Deer Resistant Plants and Repellents


Boxwood is very popular, deer don't like the odor.  Yellow forsythia makes a good screen as it grows to about 6 feet.


Creeping plants:  barren strawberry, moss phlox, partridge berry,


Medium-height plants: butterfly weed, columbine, flowering spurge, Jack-in-the-pulpit, nodding pink onion, trillium.


Flowering shrubs: Carolina rose, devils walkingstick, flowering rasberry, fragrant sumac, highland blueberry, smooth hydrangea, 


Tall plants:  Jerusalem artichoke, New England asters, wild senna, 


High traffic deer resistant plants:  New England asters (Aster novae-angliae), wild senna (Cassia hebecarpa), Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus).  A native Ohio flowering shrubs that is deer resistant: devil's walkingstick.


List of deer resistant plants often used in Ohio:  goldenrod, black-eyed Susan, blazing star, wild quinine, smooth penstemon, lavender hyssop, cream false indigo, bearberry, butterfly weed, lanceleaf coreopsis, marigolds, cosmos, daffodils and iris...


Fritillarias, a blooming bulb with red, orange or yellow bell-shaped flowers. prefer full to partial sun. 


Managing Deer in the Garden Landscape:  Some deer control options and resources.  Information from Ohio State University Extension


Readers sound off on best ways to keep deer off their lawns June 2, 2015 Ohio, Cleveland Plain Dealer

... plant flowers and plants that are deer resistant ... goldenrod, black-eyed Susan, blazing star, wild quinine, smooth penstemon, lavender hyssop, cream false indigo, bearberry, butterfly weed, lanceleaf coreopsis, marigolds, cosmos, daffodils and iris...


Gregg & Kindra's deer-friendly garden in Ohio September 21, 2012 Fine Gardening

... what distinguishes us from many typical gardeners is that we truly enjoy the deer. How can you not appreciate a 110-200-pound animal that somehow raises a family in your backyard? They're beautiful to watch grazing in the yard ... deer resistant gardening can result in a nice looking garden. Included are our 2012 season of new fawns ...


Two Easy Steps Discourage Deer May 15, 2013 Ohio, Community Common

... the battle to protect ornamental plants from deer and rabbit browsing is winnable... Step One. Installing PlantSaver with new plants or adding it to existing plants will not work until the Bitrix is absorbed ... Step Two, a plant food tablet containing 6-8-8 fertilizer, a wide array of soil mycorrhizae, and one percent Denatonium. Called PlantSaver, this small pill can be easily pressed two inches deep in the root zone of any ornamental plant...