The 22 Best Deer-Resistant Shrubs to Plant (Because Bambi Is Getting on Your Nerves)

Bambi is adorable. Until she starts chewing on your roses or chowing down on your azaleas. The truth is that as suburbia has spread, deer have to go somewhere. And that could be your garden.

If you appreciate deer but want to have some greenery to enjoy, you can try planting deer-resistant shrubs. Nothing’s 100 percent foolproof for staving off hungry deer, but we’ve rounded up a few of the best types to plant and have a few tips for living peacefully with your neighborhood deer with advice from our expert, Michael Mengak, PhD, professor and wildlife specialist at Warnell School of Forestry & Natural Resources at the University of Georgia. And, just to provide you with more options, we've included recommendations for deer-resistant plantings from several university extension coop services across the country.

You can plant shrubs deer don’t love. However, if they get hungry enough, if there’s a large deer population in the area or if it’s an especially harsh winter, deer will eat anything—even plants they usually don’t like. But you can at least give these plants, which they’re less likely to munch on, a try. 

The plants deer typically hate the most include boxwoods, junipers, forsythia, butterfly bush, beautyberry and inkberry holly, as well as most hollies in general, says Dr. Mengak.

You also can check with your local university coop extension service (find yours here), which often list deer-tolerant ornamental plants in your region, such as these lists by the University of Georgia, Penn State, and Rutgers University, the University of Michigan and Oklahoma State University.

The bottom line: There’s no such thing as deer-proof plants, only (somewhat) deer-resistant ones.

If you notice chewed-up plants and you’re not sure you have deer damage, look for ragged edges. Because deer have no upper incisors, they bite and tear plants from ground level up to about 6 feet off the ground. Some of your plants may get trampled, too, as they roam your yard.

Damage can occur year-round. Plus, even if you’ve never had deer browse issues before, it can start at any time—due to conditions such as drought, flood, overpopulation and competition with other browsing animals, such as rabbits. “Deer can travel a mile or two and a young deer dispersing for the first time can travel up to five miles,” says Dr. Mengak.

Nothing is 100 percent foolproof. A fence that’s 4 to 6 tall is most effective for keeping them out of gardens, but it’s not always practical. Plus, “motivated deer can jump an 8-foot fence,” says Dr. Mengak.

You can try scare devices, or repellants such as capsaicin, putrescent egg (smelly, though the odor fades in a day) or products such as Milorganite, but research shows they only work some of the time. Plus, you usually need to rotate repellant types and reapply after rain. “You also need to get the repellants in the garden as early as possible in the season,” says Dr. Mengak. “Application before the deer start feeding on your plants is important.” Finally, read the label; some repellants should never be used on edibles such as vegetables and berries.

As for homemade repellants (bars of soap, hair, coyote urine), they just don’t work. Deer are incredibly adaptable and will learn to put up with a lot of things once they learn they’re not really in danger.

Your best bet is to combine methods: Use repellants, and rotate what you’re using every week or two. Be consistent, and reapply after heavy rains or about every 5 to 7 days.

There are no guarantees about what deer will or won’t eat because deer have individual preferences, just like people! But you can try flowering shrubs that are strongly scented or that have fuzzy or rough leaves. That includes shrubs such as butterfly bush, deutzia, weigela, daphne and lilac.

It’s not really known why deer avoid boxwood, says Dr. Mengak. Lists of ornamental plants that are considered “deer resistant” have been compiled mostly from observations and trial-and-error, instead of from controlled scientific studies. Many different variables influence deer feeding preferences, including the number of deer in an area, weather and individual tastes.

There are theories as to why deer generally avoid boxwoods (though, remember, they may eat anything during lean times). Some say it’s because boxwoods contain alkaloids, which are toxic to animals such as cats, dogs, and horses and people. Others say the scent—which some people think smells faintly of cat urine—is a turn-off to deer.

But the truth is that we don’t know for sure. And because the deer aren’t talking, all we can do is plant boxwoods and rejoice in the fact that Bambi and friends will leave them alone, at least most of the time.