Fencing land is a better way of protecting it from deer than managing local deer populations. That’s the conclusion of a University of Kentucky deer specialist.
Out of all of the wildlife complaints University of Kentucky Extension specialist Matt Springer handles complaints from vegetable growers about wildlife. He says that whitetail deer are the top wildlife threat to vegetable crops.
He recommends three kinds of deterrents:
Propane cannons or distress tapes – but deer become accustomed to them within a fortnight.
Fences are a good line of defense, but they need to be eight-feet high to keep deer at bay, which pushes costs up. A 1.5-acre electric fence for deer can cost $1,200.
Hunting is the top overall deer management strategy for many states because their natural predators were eliminated – but Springer puts it in third place.
