View Full Version : Will deer eat banana leaves?
SteveW17
04-02-2009, 08:36 PM
I will be setting out some new m. basjoo plants soon (in-ground). These are my first naners and I live in an area heavily frequented by white-tailed deer. We'll get 4-6 at a time meandering through, 2-3 times a week, mostly nibbling on my lawn, occasionally chewing on my azaleas, and other low hanging leaves/branches. We enjoy having them, and they have never done any serious damage- nothing like my poor brother up in Connecticut, who has has his expensive professionally landscaped plantings decimated by the hungry creatures. But I was wondering if anyone else has ever had deer problems or if it's anything I should be concerned about at all.
hammer
04-02-2009, 08:47 PM
i live with lots of deer around my house i planted nine trees in my front yard last summer there was deer tracks all around them but they never hurt my banana trees.
Chironex
04-02-2009, 08:48 PM
I don't know the answer, but if you plant clover and some corn near the path where they enter your yard, they should opt for that until your bananas are tall enough that the new growth can't be reached.
Perhaps putting a salt lick in the woods may also help as well as setting up a feeding station with apples, corn and such.
lorax
04-02-2009, 10:47 PM
They were always much more interested in my hibiscus.
stumpy4700
04-02-2009, 10:54 PM
Hey Steve, they leave mine alone and focus on my fruit trees. You don't live too far I can place a tree stand and take care of it,,,,lol,,,Hey Bob you agree?
Las Palmas Norte
04-03-2009, 01:34 AM
I once saw deer damage that was quite unique. The deer had browsed on the leaf material and left the center mid-ribs alone. This made for a strange looking plant. Should've taken a picture ... dang.
Cheers, Barrie.
Bananaman88
04-03-2009, 06:22 AM
Deer absolutely love hostas so if you have any you care to sacrafice..... When I lived in Missouri we frequently had deer come into our yard and I finally had to move all of my hostas to an area they could not reach in order to save any of them.
Stumpy , if I had that big of a deer problem and you were closer you'd be the first line of defense!
Since the seasons closed I would say that small applications of blood meal to the leaves will help (you have to reapply regularly) as well as hanging woman's stockings with life buoy soap all around. The scent of blood just makes deer nervous I guess but, it works if they're not starving ,which they're usually not this time of year.
sandy0225
04-03-2009, 08:48 AM
my friend Brad down in Brown county has a lot of problems with deer eating his basjoo. Have you tried dusting them with straight baking powder? usually if you keep it on there for a while when the deer taste it they start thinking that this isn't such a good thing to eat. But they will nibble a little first trying it out. Once they reject it, it will take them a while to come back to it, and maybe it would be bigger by then.
I know calves love banana leaves. Every time I'd trim them, they would come up to the fence and beg until I gave them some.
lorax
04-03-2009, 09:51 AM
I should probably mention that the deer here are about the size of german shepherds - not whitetail or anything big. They can't even reach tall pups.
lorax, are they brocket deer?
lorax
04-03-2009, 01:22 PM
They are indeed - Red Brockets, to be specific. They're so unbearably cute that I can never bring myself to sic the cat on them. Hence, many of my hibiscus have a very well chewed look.
Patty in Wisc
04-03-2009, 02:00 PM
Plant caster bean plants around the nannas. They are nice & tropical looking & deer stay away from them.
pitangadiego
04-03-2009, 09:59 PM
Absolutely YES.
mskitty38583
04-03-2009, 11:17 PM
i have had most of my nanas planted since may first of last year. we have a deer trail that runs down my fence. my nanas hang over the fence. ive not had any problems with them eating my nana plants. then again....across the street there are pear trees and im sure that could be why they didnt eat my nanas. deer will eat anything that is not posionous or near anything thats posion. so plant daffidills around daylilies and lambsears. plant the castor beans around your other stuff. warning: do not plant castor beans with in 10 ft of anything you intend to eat!!!!
Lagniappe
04-04-2009, 01:23 AM
I should probably mention that the deer here are about the size of german shepherds - not whitetail or anything big. They can't even reach tall pups.
Size is a liability when heat is a factor. The whitetail deer in Belize were about that size and the whitetail in South Texas can be really small as well. In contrast, the Canadian Whitetail are monsters.
This often baffled me.....I mean , what about elephants??? It wasn't until I pondered the woolly mammoth's size that it all made sense :P
Okay, so I remain non-affiliated with the HJ crew.....deer will eat banana leaves. I had a doe that would bed in my Ice Cream matte last year. She only nibbled on new pups though and never caused much damage.
lorax
04-04-2009, 09:36 AM
I used to get elk in my yard, so I know exactly what you're talking about.
Elephants have very efficient heat-exchange systems via their large ears.... And if you observe their wild behaviour, they spend a lot of time in the water.
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