Deer Covid

[jrdewhirst]

https://nypost.com/2021/08/04/covid-...er-population/

This year for the first time, I've had severe deer damage to fig foliage. Earlier in the summer, they massacred my in-ground trees. Even now they are returning to nip fresh growth. Nothing like this has ever happened before. In past years, I'd get only minor damage to tips, presumably from fawns too stupid to know what tastes bad.

Speculating about the reason for this year's change, I joked to myself that maybe the deer had caught Covid and so had lost their sense of taste.

Now it seems that hypothesis is not so ridiculous.

[ZomVee]

Didn't a papaya test positive for covid?

[davej]

They much prefer tomato plants but they ate the heck out of my figs one spring ten years ago.

[BackwoodsSouthernLawyer]

2/3rds of deer in Michigan are positive it seems. https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/two...eral-study.amp

[KDAD]

I guess we should've followed CDC guidelines and wore masks around the garden. Joe, make sure you post 'Must Wear Masks' signs on the deer fence when it is completed.

[BackwoodsSouthernLawyer]

https://wpst.com/zombie-deer-disease...-pennsylvania/

Buckle up, y’all!

[jrdewhirst]

Yeah, we're on the lookout for CWD. Not here yet.

[Tongalahi]

My figs are fine but bugs(oriental beetles and June bugs) have been eating my other plants up like crazy this year. They’ve eaten things they shouldn’t be able to eat because of poison content like tobacco, datura, Brugmansia, horseradish, rhubarb, hot peppers… and my family that live in more wooded areas have had all their plants including the bark off a large old cherry tree eaten by deer and rabbits this year. It’s very strange. Maybe there’s an overpopulation of them due to less hunting during the Covid season so they’re starving and getting desperate?

[Sparky]

The deer haven't bothered my figs yet but they were munching the crap out of my young apple trees so I got this. So far seems to be working great.

[TorontoJoe]

OK. If this happens again please try and get a screen shot so I can understand exactly what you're seeing.

[davej]

I just got one of those (used off of Ebay). I'm impressed. It looks like it might be quite effective for deer.

[Sparky]

davej They haven't touched my apple trees since I put it up

[WVMJack]

Deer are not bothering figs but they are a limiting factor for any other tree or bush and it seems even worse this year, they have learned to push down our plastic tree guards and bend over young trees and eat all the leaves off and break the limbs. Each tree will now need a narrow guard at the base for rabbits and a TPost with a fence to keep the deer back. I really would like to plant hundreds of more trees but its now just impractical cost and time wise.