Does this sound familiar? You’ve spent countless hours tending to your garden, nurturing each plant with care and dedication, only to have deer wander in and devour all your hard work! It can be extremely frustrating to see your beautiful spring and summer flowers and carefully cultivated vegetable garden reduced to mere stems. But don’t worry—there are effective strategies to keep these pretty yet persistent visitors at bay. We even talked to a gardening expert to get tips on how to keep deer out of your garden. Whether you're dealing with curious fawns or seasoned adults, these proven methods can help you reclaim your garden and enjoy its beauty without the constant worry of deer damage. But first, you need to be able to identify whether deer are indeed paying visits to your garden.

What are some signs that you have deer in your garden?

Wondering if deer are visiting your garden? Here are some signs to be on the lookout for:

• Damage to plants: Deer like to nibble on leaves, shoots, and buds, which can leave the edges looking jagged or torn. They might also snack on flowers and veggies.
• Tracks: You can spot deer tracks pretty easily in soft soil or mud. They have distinctive hoof prints that look split in two.
• Browsing height: Deer eat at different levels, but you'll often see signs of munching around 5 feet or lower, especially on smaller trees and bushes.
• Rubbing or scraping marks: During rutting season (fall to winter), male deer (bucks) rub their antlers on trees and bushes, leaving marks and sometimes damaging the bark.
• Fecal pellets: Deer droppings look like small, clustered dark beans. You'll usually find them where deer feed.
• Browsed bark: When food is scarce in the winter, deer sometimes chew on tree bark. Look for chewed spots and stripped areas on trunks and branches.
• Disturbed areas: If deer visit often, they might create paths or compacted spots in your garden as they move around.

What are the best ways to keep deer out of your garden?

When it comes to keeping deer out of your garden, knowing a few easy tricks can make a big difference. From using fences and scents they don't like to planting things they'd rather not munch on, there are some straightforward ways to protect your plants from these four-legged garden pests.

"Deer are sensitive to scent and will often avoid areas with smells they do not like," says Rebecca Sears, the CMO and resident green thumb at Ferry-Morse, a leading gardening brand. "Certain aromatic herbs such as lavender, mint, rosemary, oregano, sage, and thyme are natural deer deterrents and planting them on the perimeter of your garden is a simple way to keep deer away."

However, Sears notes that after a long winter, deer may be hungry enough to eat even plants they dislike.

"In this case the only effective deterrent is a physical barrier," she says. "If you’re interested in installing physical barriers, steel garden fencing can keep everything from rabbits to deer away from your garden. For a more natural look, you can also use decorative hedges or thorny bushes to discourage deer from entering your garden."