Deer Resistant Plants - Ask Extension
List of deer resistant plants in the syate of Delaware
Knowledgebase
Deer Resistant Plants #875867
Asked July 03, 2024, 6:00 PM EDT
List of deer resistant plants in the syate of Delaware
Kent County Delaware
Expert Response
https://njaes.rutgers.edu/deer-resistant-plants/
The above reference is quite good general material for deer resistant plants.
Below is a list for native plants which are deer resistant. Do keep in mind that hungry deer will graze on whatever is available!
Native Deer Resistant Plants
Gardeners challenged by browsing deer often look for a definitive list of plants that deer
will leave alone. Unfortunately, deer are not quite that predictable. In areas where high
populations of deer have over-browsed the woodland understory, they are likely to eat
any plant they can find to survive. Gardeners and habitat restorationists are strongly
encouraged to use other appropriate barriers to exclude deer. Plants marked with an
asterisk (*) may be browsed occasionally.
The list below was compiled from Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve (2002), The
USFWS’s Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping (2005), and
The Flora of Delaware – An Annotated Checklist (2001).
Grasses and Grasslike Plants
Andropogon gerardii Big bluestem
Panicum virgatum Tall switch panic grass
Herbaceous Plants
Actaea pachypoda White baneberry
Allium tricoccum Small white leak
Aquilegia canadensis Red columbine
Arisaema triphyllum Jack-in-the-Pulpit
Asarum canadense * Canada wild ginger
Asclepias tuberose Butterfly milkweed
Geranium maculatum Wild crane’s-bill
Helenium autumnale Common sneezeweed
Hibiscus moscheutos Swamp rosemallow
Lobelia cardinalis * Cardinal flower
Lobelia siphilitica * Great blue lobelia
Lupinus perennis Purple lupine
Podophyllum peltatum * Mayapple
Polemonium reptans Greek valerain
Rudbeckia fulgida Orange coneflower
Rudbeckia hirta Black-eyed susan
Solidago species Goldenrod
Aster novae-angliae New England aster
Veronicastrum virginicum Culver’s root
Herbaceous Emergents
Iris prismatica Slender blueflag iris
Iris versicolor Blueflag iris
Vines
Celastrus scandens Climbing bittersweet
Clematis virginiana * Virginia virgin’s-bower
Lonicera sempervirens Trumpet honeysuckle
Shrubs
Aralia spinosa Hercules club
Clethra alnifolia Sweet pepperbush
Hamamelis virginiana American witch-hazel
Hypericum densiflorum Bushy St. John’s wort
Ilex laevigata Smooth winterberry holly
Ilex verticillata Winterberry holly
Kalmia latifolia Mountain laurel
Leucothoe racemosa Fetterbush
Lindera benzoin Spicebush
Myrica cerifera Bayberry
Myrcia pensylvanica Northern bayberry
Spiraea alba Narrow-leaf meadow-sweet
Spiraea latifolia Northern meadow-sweet
Spiraea tomentosa Hardhack spiraea
Viburnum acerifolium Maple-leaf viburnum
Viburnum dentatum Arrow-wood
Viburnum prunifolium Smooth black-haw
Trees
Acer negundo Box elder
Acer rubrum Red Maple
Betula nigra River birch
Carpinus caroliniana American hornberry
Cercis canadensis Eastern redbud
Cornus alternifolia Alternate-leaf dogwood
Cornus florida * Flowering dogwood
Diospyros virginiana Persimmon
Fagus grandifolia American beech
Fraxinus americana White ash
Fraxinus pennsylvanica Green ash
Ilex opaca American holly
Juniperus virginiana Red cedar
Magnolia virginiana Sweetbay magnolia
Nyssa sylvatica Black gum
Pinus echinta Shortleaf pine
Pinus rigida Pitch pine
Pinus serotina Pond pine
Pinus taeda Loblolly pine
Pinus virginiana Virginia pine
Quercus alba * White oak
Quercus bicolor * Swamp white oak
Quercus coccinera * Scarlet oak
Quercus falcata * Southern red oak
Quercus lyrata * Overcup oak
Quercus marilandica * Blackjack oak
The above reference is quite good general material for deer resistant plants.
Below is a list for native plants which are deer resistant. Do keep in mind that hungry deer will graze on whatever is available!
Native Deer Resistant Plants
Gardeners challenged by browsing deer often look for a definitive list of plants that deer
will leave alone. Unfortunately, deer are not quite that predictable. In areas where high
populations of deer have over-browsed the woodland understory, they are likely to eat
any plant they can find to survive. Gardeners and habitat restorationists are strongly
encouraged to use other appropriate barriers to exclude deer. Plants marked with an
asterisk (*) may be browsed occasionally.
The list below was compiled from Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve (2002), The
USFWS’s Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping (2005), and
The Flora of Delaware – An Annotated Checklist (2001).
Grasses and Grasslike Plants
Andropogon gerardii Big bluestem
Panicum virgatum Tall switch panic grass
Herbaceous Plants
Actaea pachypoda White baneberry
Allium tricoccum Small white leak
Aquilegia canadensis Red columbine
Arisaema triphyllum Jack-in-the-Pulpit
Asarum canadense * Canada wild ginger
Asclepias tuberose Butterfly milkweed
Geranium maculatum Wild crane’s-bill
Helenium autumnale Common sneezeweed
Hibiscus moscheutos Swamp rosemallow
Lobelia cardinalis * Cardinal flower
Lobelia siphilitica * Great blue lobelia
Lupinus perennis Purple lupine
Podophyllum peltatum * Mayapple
Polemonium reptans Greek valerain
Rudbeckia fulgida Orange coneflower
Rudbeckia hirta Black-eyed susan
Solidago species Goldenrod
Aster novae-angliae New England aster
Veronicastrum virginicum Culver’s root
Herbaceous Emergents
Iris prismatica Slender blueflag iris
Iris versicolor Blueflag iris
Vines
Celastrus scandens Climbing bittersweet
Clematis virginiana * Virginia virgin’s-bower
Lonicera sempervirens Trumpet honeysuckle
Shrubs
Aralia spinosa Hercules club
Clethra alnifolia Sweet pepperbush
Hamamelis virginiana American witch-hazel
Hypericum densiflorum Bushy St. John’s wort
Ilex laevigata Smooth winterberry holly
Ilex verticillata Winterberry holly
Kalmia latifolia Mountain laurel
Leucothoe racemosa Fetterbush
Lindera benzoin Spicebush
Myrica cerifera Bayberry
Myrcia pensylvanica Northern bayberry
Spiraea alba Narrow-leaf meadow-sweet
Spiraea latifolia Northern meadow-sweet
Spiraea tomentosa Hardhack spiraea
Viburnum acerifolium Maple-leaf viburnum
Viburnum dentatum Arrow-wood
Viburnum prunifolium Smooth black-haw
Trees
Acer negundo Box elder
Acer rubrum Red Maple
Betula nigra River birch
Carpinus caroliniana American hornberry
Cercis canadensis Eastern redbud
Cornus alternifolia Alternate-leaf dogwood
Cornus florida * Flowering dogwood
Diospyros virginiana Persimmon
Fagus grandifolia American beech
Fraxinus americana White ash
Fraxinus pennsylvanica Green ash
Ilex opaca American holly
Juniperus virginiana Red cedar
Magnolia virginiana Sweetbay magnolia
Nyssa sylvatica Black gum
Pinus echinta Shortleaf pine
Pinus rigida Pitch pine
Pinus serotina Pond pine
Pinus taeda Loblolly pine
Pinus virginiana Virginia pine
Quercus alba * White oak
Quercus bicolor * Swamp white oak
Quercus coccinera * Scarlet oak
Quercus falcata * Southern red oak
Quercus lyrata * Overcup oak
Quercus marilandica * Blackjack oak