Deer Deterents

NATURAL DEER DETERENTS AND FERTILIZER FOR ROSES

1. Plant lavender at the base of rosebushes if deer are a problem in your area. Deer are attracted by the rose scent, and lavender muddies the rose aroma.

2. Dump coffee grounds and used tea leaves around bushes. Both acidify the soil slightly, which roses love.

3. Bury banana skins or even the entire black, mushy banana at the base of bushes to provide magnesium, an element that the plants crave.

4. Scratch 2 tablespoons of Epsom salts into the soil around a rose. The salts make flower colors more intense.

5. Use rabbit food for fertilizer. The pet food is composed of alfalfa meal, which supplies a growth stimulant, nitrogen, and trace elements to roses. Scratch in ½ cup of pellets around each rose and water well.