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Lionne posted 4/5/2014 12:46 PM

Okay, looking for suggestions for shrubs to plant in a shady area, or short ornamental grasses that the deer don't like. Am I kidding myself? I looked on the Rutgers site but really want some RL information.

I am on the east coast, zone 7.

Sad in AZ posted 4/5/2014 13:38 PM

These are very popular in the west, but they grow in zones 6-9. I know for a fact they are deer-proof, as the mule deer population is out of control in Alto, NM and they grow all over the place there. They are Kniphofia a/k/a Red Hot Poker plants and come in a variety of colors.

tushnurse posted 4/5/2014 13:40 PM

Not tulips. They munch em off whole.

Sad in AZ posted 4/5/2014 13:42 PM

Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia) is another. It's also known as tumbleweed but I doubt you'll have that problem in the east.

ETA: I missed the part about shade; kniphofia won't grow in the shade, but Russian sage will.

[This message edited by Sad in AZ at 1:49 PM, April 5th (Saturday)]

Lionne posted 4/5/2014 13:54 PM

They don't eat anything in the narsissis family either. I do have some Russian sage. I'll get more of that.

It's an new area, a slope, I've given up on grass and the ground cover is too slowly covering it. I need to plant something to stop the drainage there. In my rose/lavender garden, I'm going to invest in a motion activated sprinkler and cross my fingers. They can munch away on the rest. They were here first.