Deer and hops question

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EdWort

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As some folks have seen, I have loads of deer around my place. They cleaned up 9 pounds of spent grain in no time (the rocks were licked clean overnight).

Anyway, we have to be very careful about planting any kind of vegatation as these critters will devour most everything if they can reach it.

So, do deer eat hops or will they leave them alone? I'm just wondering if I have to fence in my hops trellis. Thanks. :mug:
 
Now THERE'S an awesome use for spent grains! I'll use 'em to bait my deer stand!! How come I never thought of that??? :ban: :ban:

BTW, I dunno 'bout the hops, can't help you there.......
 
All I can say is that I used to know some "people" that would plant marijuana out in the woods. Their biggest fears, besides being busted for illegal activity, were the fact that rabbits and deer particularly liked to eat the plants. It would attract them from miles around.

Hops (Humulus) are from the same family (Cannabaceae) as Marijuana (Cannabis), so it could be possible that the deer would seek them out as well.

John
 
I have had many problems with my hops, but deer are not one of them. The deer eat my fruit tree's leaves & the fruit, blackberries, grass, blueberry bushes and the currants, but so far, they have left the hops alone.
 
I say let them eat them. That way you can collect the pellets later at your leisure instead of fussing about them.

What? People use hop pellets, don't they? :p
 
david_42 said:
I have had many problems with my hops, but deer are not one of them. The deer eat my fruit tree's leaves & the fruit, blackberries, grass, blueberry bushes and the currants, but so far, they have left the hops alone.
Deer in diffrent ares eat diffrent things. The deer in Ed's hood may very well eat hops because they are the only plants around that aren't dead and dry.
 
Do you have a dog that lives outside? If so i doubt the deer will be a problem. If not, wait till the fall, sit on the porch, relax and have a home brew while looking down the barrel with a deer in the peep site and.......................................................................no more hop eater!:mug:
 
Thanks for all the replies. I think I'll put up some fencing around the trellis when I plant the rizomes next spring.

I found this idea for a Hop Trellis and I'm going to build it. It looks pretty easy to build and it makes it easy for harvesting.

Hop Trellis
 
my suggestion: many gardening stores sell peletized fox urine. spread this stuff around the base of your garden and you won't have any problems. it stays around for a whole season if you spread it moderately thick.
 
Where I live, the deer eat EVERYTHING. My sunflowers, all plants, blackberry bushes, etc. The only thing that works is a fence, at least 8 feet high. I'd love to plant some hops just to see if they'll grow, but it would be a major undertaking to do the hop trellis and then a effective deer fence that doesn't look like we live in a war zone. I'd love to see the pictures of everyone else's, while I dream of it.

Lorena
 
The easiest remedy for deer is to collect dog fur and place it in various places around your garden. The deer will smell the dog scent and stay clear. If you have a dog just use a dog brush and collect the hair.
Fences don't usually work too well in my experience. Sometimes I think that the animals are smarter than us!

Marc.
 
Ha- the deer snort and stamp at my dog (collie) and then ignore her. I wave my arms and chase them and they run about 50 yards and wait until I go back into the house. Dogs don't face them at all, because they are so used to them. Maybe I need a paintball gun. At least they'd be "marked" so I can recognize them. And, we can't hunt in town, so they knock down birdfeeders and eat all my trees! Grrrrr!

Lorena
 
Lorenae,

I'm sure glad I don't have that problem...sigh. Deer seem un-phased by me or my dog or my noisy generator until hunting season rolls around. Then they are nowhere to be found of course...
 
Exo- I hunt in Wisconsin, but live across the border in Michigan. I rarely see deer in the woods- most of them seem to be in town. Opening day of deer season last year, I was getting ready while it was still dark. There were deer out in my yard under the apple tree and all over my yard. I drove 10 miles to my blind (on my property in WI) and didn't see a deer there for 9 days! Everynight when we pulled in our driveway- there they are!

I think they know that they have plenty to eat in town, and can't be hunted! Grrrr!

anyway, I'd love to grow hops. I think they'd be great going up the clothesline poles. I think they deer would eat them in a minute, though.

Lorena
 
lorenae said:
Exo- I hunt in Wisconsin, but live across the border in Michigan. I rarely see deer in the woods- most of them seem to be in town. Opening day of deer season last year, I was getting ready while it was still dark. There were deer out in my yard under the apple tree and all over my yard. I drove 10 miles to my blind (on my property in WI) and didn't see a deer there for 9 days! Everynight when we pulled in our driveway- there they are!



Lorena


I swear to God that's only cuz the WI DNR has the entire deer population all f***ed up so badly that it's beyond repair. First it was CWD and summer seasons to try and eradicate that...Now it's earn-a-buck this year, that's gonna suck too. GRRRRRRR. Anyway, sorry for the rant, especially to those of you not from WI and therefore don't know what I'm whining about.......
 
Yea, the DNR louses things up. Where I hunt I can't harldy get a doe tag...so I'm not worried...it has horns and most times it walks...not big enough or the drag to a road is WAY to much.
 
Man, we got loads of em. In the front yard, in the back yard, all over the place. You have to be real careful when driving at dawn and dusk, otherwise you'll tag one with the car. Set up a blind next to the road where I live and you'll get your deer in a few minutes. Of course I could just open the front door and tag one real quick, but SWMBO would not like that.

Deer.jpg
 
EdWort said:
Man, we got loads of em. In the front yard, in the back yard, all over the place. You have to be real careful when driving at dawn and dusk, otherwise you'll tag one with the car. Set up a blind next to the road where I live and you'll get your deer in a few minutes. Of course I could just open the front door and tag one real quick, but SWMBO would not like that.

Open the back door? :tank:
 
kornkob said:
I wonder what deer raised on hops would taste like.

I bet that Texas backstrap would go well with a homebrew.

As far as the deer problem this will work work awhile until they figure it out. Surround the garden with fishing line about mid leg and neck height. They can't see it but they can feel it so it spooks them. I've seen it in action so it works but as I said after a month or so they just walk through it.
 
Hmm, great idea. They must really jump the first time...

That works on piers as well to keep the seagulls and geese from flying in and landing. Gotta use higher # test though so they can see it.
 
I would absolutely put up atleast a 6 foot tall fence around your hop trellis if you are afraid of deer. Probably best to do 2 layers of fence to make it harder to jump over (deer can hop a 6 foot fence easily)

I live on a forest and have deer in our yard daily. We have been trying to grow hops this year for the first time. It has been a constant battle. Half of the fresh sprouting vines kept getting eaten. I only have 6 of my 12 plants growing at this point and all of those are missing most of their leaves from about 6 feet down (confiming that deer are the culprits). Put up a 3 foot snow fence that i had already in the garage but that has done nothing. Got to up it to a bigger fence and at this point i am already looking to next year.
 
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