
Common Roots Woodside's Experiments in Deterring Deer - Without a Fence!
Common Roots Urban Farm (CRUF) broke ground at its Woodside location in the Spring of 2015 with a market garden and community garden. Although there was the occasional deer sighting (and tulip topping), it wasn’t until 2022 that our bean crop started taking a hit. In 2023, our production was down by almost a third (due largely to deer, but also to weather). By all accounts, our deer problems would only get worse, but remarkably, with the help of a Feed Nova Scotia Innovation and Learning Grant, in 2024 the market garden had its best growing season yet (and the deer were not gone!)
This post will outline some of the things we experimented with, what worked, what didn’t, and our challenges and hopes for moving forward.
CRUF Woodside is on the grounds of the Nova Scotia Hospital, and for a host of different reasons, including our desire for the garden to have an open and welcoming feel, we have not erected a deer fence. If you are gardening in a scenario where a fence is feasible, an eight foot fence is the most reliable and straightforward way to keep deer out of your garden! However, if a deer fence is not viable, read on for some tips and tricks that might help keep your vegetables for human consumption!

Hoops and Covers*
Out of all the things we tried, hoops and covers were by far the most successful solution for the market garden growing. For community gardeners, who were visiting their plots less regularly, it worked less well.
Over the course of the 2024 growing season, we experimented with different types of crop covers:
– Floating Row Cover (19g standard weight)
– Small Insect Netting (openings .032mm square)
– Large Insect Netting (openings .85mm x 1.5 mm)
– Shade fabric (47% shade)
For hoops we used 74 inch and 96 inch wire hoops. Our market garden beds are 3 feet wide and the community plots are four feet wide.
We secured the covers along the edges with soil, sandbags or rocks (be careful: sharp rocks may tear row cover). We used the smaller hoops for crops like greens, carrots and beets and larger hoops for crops like bush beans, kale and chard. Unfortunately, none of the hoops were tall enough for fully grown peas or tomatoes – more on that below.
The covers we used are not manufactured for the purpose of deer deterrence, which meant they often filled more than one role in the garden.
– Floating row cover is usually used as a thermal layer to extend the growing season. It also protects from some pests and insects. Floating row cover is the cheapest option but also less robust and likely to tear if not handled correctly. We have had deer stomp through it.
– Insect netting is mostly used to protect from insects (surprise!). For most of the season, we preferred the insect netting over the row cover because of increased air flow and sturdiness.
– We were only able to get the shade cloth late in the season so were not able to use it in 2024, but hope to use it in 2025 during heat waves to protect the lettuce from both the heat and the deer.

Advantages to the the covers:
- Protection from deer
- Protection from a variety of insects – depending on the cover
- Extension of growing season
- Protection from extreme weather (would provide protection in the case of a summer hail, for example!)
Disadvantages of the row covers:
- It is much more work to have hoops and cover than no hoops and cover! Every time the bed needs attention (weeding, harvesting), the cover news to be taken off and then re-secured afterwards. We found we could water through the covers but it took special care and the beds got a more consistent and reliable water by taking the covers off.
- When a crop is flowering the cover needs to be off, at least during the day, to allow pollinators to get at it. (more work!)
- It is more difficult to see crops through the covers so problems can go unaddressed unless the grower checks regularly.
- We had increased aphid pressure due to the lack of airflow under the row covers during the hottest/muggiest part of the season
- They are costly and use resources (human, material and financial)
Despite all the disadvantages, these covers worked great for our market garden. They worked less well for the community gardeners due to the need to monitor them and take them on and off when needed – many community gardeners only come once a week.
* All our hoops and covers were purchased through Wolpin Enterprises.


Mini Fences
Several community gardeners took it upon themselves to use the row cover as a mini fence rather than over a hoop (see examples above). Although this did not work well for the row cover (which tore easily) it did work relatively well as a deer deterrent.
Because the individual plots are quite small, the fence did not have to be tall to deter the deer. Although the deer could easily jump over the fence, they need a bit of a ‘landing strip’ to land from their leap or prepare to jump. These mini fences also meant that the gardeners did not have to take the row cover on and off for pollinators.
Most gardeners used sticks or stakes and the row cover to erect these fences. If the sticks were not strong or we had a particularly windy day, the fence would fall over and/or the row cover would tear and blow away. The fences worked better early in the season, but the deer seemed to get more determined as the season progressed. We have purchased metal stakes and deer fencing for anyone who wants to make a mini fence around their plot next year (thus, saving the row cover and making the fence taller and less likely to fall over in the wind).
We may use a similar set up around our field tomatoes next year.


Unappealing scents
We tried several options for deer repellents, from planting plants that deer don’t love the smell of (rosemary and thyme) to hanging small pouches filled with bonemeal or bloodmeal or Irish Spring Soap (ideally switching regularly) among our peas.
These methods seemed to work for short amounts of time – until the deer got wise to our tactics – which is why it’s important to switch them up regularly. One smell that was quite effective was from the product Plantskydd. We used this product on our peas, beans and tomatoes, but it needs to be applied somewhat regularly while the plants are growing and cannot be applied once the plant begins to produce tomatoes/beans/peas.
Plantskydd Advantages
– Good for tall crops that are not easily covered
– Seemed to work quite well although its effective repellency seemed to decrease over the season (which would have been partly due to the fact that we couldn’t reapply it after fruiting began).
– Not harmful to humans or wildlife
Plantskydd Disadvantages
– It was messy to apply and not a job anyone wanted
– It’s made of dried blood, which is good because it’s organic, but not good if you’re vegan or trying to avoid animal products
– It cannot be applied to the plant once it starts to fruit.

Conclusions
We are aware that our experiments with deer are far from over but are heartened with the success of the 2024 growing season. As outside pressure increases, it is likely the deer will get more desperate and more destructive. We also have a long way to go in protecting community garden plots that are not regularly monitored by their gardeners.
In an ideal world, the deer will find greener pastures and more green space will be protected for wildlife in general (and more green space for urban farming and community gardens too please!) In the meantime, we will continue experimenting with deterrents that do not harm the deer and protect urban gardens.
A job well done! Thanks for the efforts and info on safe deterrents to nibbling while working harmoniously alongside wildlife.