Garden Design II

Read and complete Step 10 ‘Wildlife Interference’ in the Site Assessment for Gardeners workbook.

While this activity is targeted for voles, take note of ALL kinds of animals and wildlife you may have to deal with in your area and please note any that you may ultimately interact with: raccoons, deer, neighborhood cats or other pets, rabbits, mice, rats, birds (crows, blue jays, bird feeder traffic, popular nesting trees), beavers, and so on. The purpose is to sleuth a bit and maybe extend outside of your normal observation habits, so listen for noises or look for tracks and scat. Anticipating animals’ presence will help you plan so that they do not dig up your expensive fledgling plants. Depending on some animals’ presence, such as deer, it will also inform what you should and should not plant.

➡️ Record any wildlife species that exist on your site on the worksheet (pg 59) at the back of the workbook.

Here is a link to further information about controlling almost any pest imaginable whether its bugs, birds or snakes:
https://nysipm.cornell.edu/whats-bugging-you

As stated above, deer are becoming significant garden pests in much of the country. There are no fool proof deer-resistant plants, however planting selection can play a major role in keeping unwanted visitors from eating up all your hard work. Here is a link to a particularly helpful deer-resistant plant list: https://njaes.rutgers.edu/deer-resistant-plants/. Keep in mind that since this plant list was created in New Jersey not all of these plants will be hardy in your area.