Ep 117. Deer Remedies & Rat Snakes

We start the episode with a fascinating follow-up of last week's (Ep 116) Owl and Hawk story – witnessing a rat snake snagged by a hawk. 

Leeding to the wisdom of not tampering with nature despite the biggest garden dilemma - Darn Deer. We chat about Non-stinky Deer Deterrents to spare your gardens and why feeding deer is detrimental.  

And wrap up with Eastern Rat Snakes' remarkable hunting and predator avoidance techniques.

 Related Stories and Helpful Links       

Non-Stinky Deer Deterrents                   

Feeding Deer Promotes Disease

 Link to last week's story Great-Horned Owl meets Hawk

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report of Occurrence of  Chronic Wasting Disease.

                                                                     8888

I'd love to hear about your garden and nature stories. And your thoughts about topics for future podcast episodes. You can email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.com. Thanks so much for tuning in.

You can Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStone

Episode web page —Garden Dilemmas Podcast Page

Thank you for sharing the Garden of Life,

Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden Designer
                 AskMaryStone.com

More about the Podcast and Column:

Welcome to Garden Dilemmas, Delights, and Discoveries.

It's not only about gardens; it's about nature's inspirations, about grasping the glories of the world around us, gathering what we learned from mother nature, and carrying these lessons into our garden of life. So, let's jump in in the spirit of learning from each other. We have lots to talk about.

Thanks for tuning in, Mary Stone
Garden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com
Direct Link to Podcast Page

Transcript

Ep 117 Deer Remedies & Rat Snakes

Sat, Jul 15, 2023 12:01PM • 10:04

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

deer, garden, dilemmas, rat snake, sunflowers, deer resistant, snake, spray, idioms, plants, life, left, coral bells, chronic wasting disease, wildlife, porch, road, non-venomous snakes, predator, dilemmas, mary stone, garden, nature, inspiration

SPEAKERS

Mary Stone

Mary Stone  00:00

Hello fellow lovers of all things green. I'm Mary Stone and welcome to Garden Dilemmas, Delights and Discoveries. It's not only about gardens, it's about nature's inspirations, about grasping the glories of the world around us, gathering what we learned from mother nature, and carrying these lessons into our garden of life. So let's jump in in the spirit of learning from each other. We have lots to talk about. 

Mary Stone  00:26

Hello, there, it's Mary Stone. And thanks for joining me on the screen porch. I hear some of thunder in the background. So hopefully, it's at a distance and won't intrude on our time together. I want to thank those that reached back about last week's chat about the great horned owl and the fate of our resident red shouldered hawk. Melissa, who's the editor of The Press wrote, oh, no, but tis the circle of life, I suppose. 

Mary Stone  00:54

And it is a little side note here this morning, we were on a road walk and Jolee came upon a dead rat snake on the side of the road. And it was perfectly coiled and hardly even damaged. I couldn't really see any damage actually. And as we continued a hawk came by and snagged it and flew right above our heads dangling this four-footer. It was remarkable. And a driver stopped and watched and rolled down her window and said, Wow, that was so cool. And while the snake was not alive, it is the cycle of life. And who can blame the hawk for having a free meal, right? 

Mary Stone  01:33

Anyway, today's chat is about the cycle of life to and not tampering with it. It's about one of our biggest garden dilemmas. Darn deer, and it starts like this. Hello fellow listeners and readers. I woke this morning to my adored sunflowers grown from seed in the garden plots chomped by Bambi as were the palace purple who grow which are coral bells. Unlike years past, I didn't lose my cool. A good thing in the recent heatwave. No point in crying over spilled milk. One of mom's many idioms often shared. I never liked milk anyway. The sunflowers were about to bud, and the coral bells started shooting out their cloud like puffs of pink flowers. I giggled while mixing my preferred natural deer spray. Another thing came to mind the horses out of the barn, meaning it's too late to try to fix what's already happened. The saying stems from the days when horses pulled carriages and stagecoaches after the horse left the barn and began its trip. It was too late to get on it -- comparable to the train has already left the station. I just love idioms don't you, but it's not too late to prevent more damage. 

The thing is I sprayed the plants a few weeks ago, but that was way before the heavy rains and so deer out with a strong peppermint scent is one of my go twos. It's funny because I thought that the main ingredient was clove oil because it's hard to ID what the smell really is, but it's not bad. It's not bad smelling unlike so many of them. The main active ingredient is peppermint oil mixed with garlic oil, white pepper and putrescent whole eggs putrescent means rotting by the way, but at least deer out doesn't smell like a bad septic on a hot day. Deer stopper is another made of natural and systemic ingredients, which means it won't wash off in the rain for three months under normal conditions. However, they suggest spraying every month and more when it's peak growing time because new growth of course is not protected. And that was my weak link because of course the sunflowers are sprouting all sorts of new growth as was the heuchera. 

I've learned the hard way. It's very important to rotate deer spray because deer get used to things just as we do. As we walked down the drive this morning there were a likely culprit. A doe standing tall amongst the forest floor, a sunbeam augmenting her rusty colored fur. Jolee is on high alert, ready for a chase. You're on a leash I say, and she looks at me pleading to let me do her job. We trained her to chase deer to the edge of the property. But this is not ours and we are too close to the road, I tell her she lunged on the lead and gave an intimidating bark, and the deer ran off but only a few feet. Not fearful of humans or dogs on a leash. It's true. She was glorious to look at I took a few photos it'll be on my Garden Dilemmas website and of course there'll be a link in the show notes. 

I heard from a neighbor about a doe who hovers close by, and she talks to her. She is beautiful but taming wildlife as to the dilemma. 

Mary Stone  04:53

Some feed deer thinking it will keep them from eating their plants. Maybe if you're a deer whisperer, but you are drawing more deer to your garden and your neighborhood. Adding to the dilemma, others feel sorry for them. It's tough not to feel bad for wildlife, especially when temperatures are frigid, and snow abounds. However, feeding deer and other wildlife can harm them, encouraging unnaturally large congregations that increase their risk of disease. You know, in the fall, I often see the deer corn signs all over the place. But deer corn is like junk food, and it disrupts the gut microbiome necessary for deer to digest their regular diet, which can cause painful stomach problems, severe diarrhea and dehydration that can be deadly. And by the way, using corn to bait deer for a hunt hardly seems fair game. 

Mary Stone  05:46

With the increase in the population of deer in one concentrated area. There's more of a danger of spreading parasites and diseases such as chronic wasting disease. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sites that as of March 2023, there were 405 counties and 29 states with reported Chronic Wasting Disease from deer that are rearranging out in the wilderness. There's no red dots in our area, but just west of here, I think it was 14 counties that have reported the disease. The good news, though it does not spread to humans. Unlike Mad Cow Disease, which does.

Mary Stone  06:25

 Yes, we moved into their territory, making guilt a motivation to offer up food. But feeding deer and bear by leaving trash outside can dramatically increase their fertility, which adds to the problem of overpopulation. Deer are hardwired to get through the winter on their own. They go into a feeding frenzy to build a fat reserve to accompany their winter coat in the fall. Which is why you need to pump up the volume on deer spray in the fall and early spring by the way. And as the cold weather sets in, their metabolism slows, they become less active, and they seek sheltered areas. So, supplementing their food interrupts that's natural ability to adapt and survive. So, no help is the best help for your deer and your garden. Garden Dilemmas, AskMaryStone.com. 

Mary Stone  07:18

Of course, one of the best remedies is to choose deer resistant plants, we happen to have a wonderful deer resistant plant lives by Rutgers University, their extension office, so check with your local extension office to find out what deer resistant lists you have available. But I have to tell you, it is such a moving target, it literally changes by neighborhood. So, one of my tips and tricks is to look around the neighborhood and see what they are not eating. And of course, make sure that neighbor doesn't have a deer spraying service. 

Mary Stone  07:50

So, I'm going to circle back onto that rat snake because I'm fascinated by the snake, and I think we have a few more minutes. So, I researched more about the snake. And the National Wildlife Federation writes that the Eastern Rat Snakes, which are formerly called Black Rat Snakes, are large non-venomous snakes that are about three and a half to seven feet long. They have shiny black scales on their backs, like color, belly and a white throat and chin. At one of the Comfort Zone Camps, there was a huge rattlesnake climbing a tree. It became quite a funny scene because a lot of the city kids were so petrified of it. But it's a harmless snake by and large, unless of course you are a bird, or a nest of eggs or rodent because they're great hunters. And they have some interesting features I never knew about one is that they emit a foul-smelling odor. So, when they're threatened by a predator, it gets a whiff of it, and it reminds them of what poison would taste like. So that keeps the predator away. And another amazing thing is that they have a constrictor quality to their ability to hunt, they actually use it to suffocate the bodies of their prey. So, there you go, amazing technology of nature. 

Mary Stone  09:05

So thanks for coming by. I always enjoy our time together and I hope you have as well and if so, I would so appreciate it if you have the time and inclination to leave a five-star rating. For some magical reason the more that we have, the more find us and the more that learn about the Garden of Life and how it’s best not to interfere - a healthier world it will be thank you again. See you next time on the screen porch. You can follow garden dilemmas on Facebook or online at Garden dilemmas.com and on Instagram at hashtag Mary Elaine Stone. Garden Dilemmas, Delights and Discoveries is produced by Alex Bartling thanks for coming by. I look forward to chatting again from my screen porch. And always remember to embrace the unexpected in this garden of life. Have a great day.