Another fall walk and deer destruction at home
Beautiful fall weather enticed me and DH out for another walk around Lady Bird Lake last weekend, but first we stopped at Red Bud Isle to check out the bald cypresses going rusty orange. It’s a good show for Austin!
Kayakers and canoeists were enjoying it too.
The fall color wasn’t as bright at Lady Bird Lake, but the views were good nonetheless.
The lake view from Voodoo Temple, a tucked-away arbor on the Hike-and-Bike Trail.
Back at home, I had to grumble over fresh antler-rubbing damage to my formerly untouched whale’s tongue agave. Those damn deer! The males are antlering everything this year, including sotols, Yucca rostrata, Sabal minor — really anything and everything. I can’t tell you how frustrating it is to find shredded yucca and palmetto leaves strewn about the garden, pushed-over sotols, and broken agaves.
The scene two doors down. Not the guilty party (no antlers), but he’s around somewhere.
__________________________
Digging Deeper
Come learn about gardening and design at Garden Spark! I organize in-person talks by inspiring designers, landscape architects, authors, and gardeners a few times a year in Austin. These are limited-attendance events that sell out quickly, so join the Garden Spark email list to be notified in advance; simply click this link and ask to be added. Season 8 kicks off in fall 2024. Stay tuned for more info!
All material © 2024 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
That’s awful and so close to the house. I was not aware they would damage Yucca rostratas. Little Moby has a screen over it, but the yuccas are vulnerable. Considering the replacement price on those, I need to get to that today.
Ugh, it IS awful, Shirley. So far it’s just a young Yucca rostrata (less than 3 feet) that they’re antlering, not the big established ones next door. But they’d never bothered it, or the Sabals or sotols, until this year. For years I’ve caged my small trees and have gradually removed most of my agaves to keep the destruction to a minimum, but now they’re damaging these other plants.
Oh my gosh, I feel your pain! A buck cut down my four foot tall Arizona Cypress in my front yard. He completely whacked it in half. I have since moved it to the backyard where it is fenced in. They have taken off branches before, but it’s never been broken at the trunk.
Oh no! Those dang bucks! I confess, now I am curious to know what it will look like — what form it will take — as it recovers after being cut in half. Keep me updated?
I love the images reflected in the lake. Sorry to see the damage to the whale’s tongue agave. At least raccoons, possums, rabbits and coyotes don’t do that.
I’m always trying to “buck” myself up by saying something similar: at least I don’t have moose…bears…elephants! 😉
I’ve heard that there are ten times as many deer in Texas now as there were when the Europeans came. We killed off the bears, cougars and wolves, but we can’t bring ourselves to even keep the deer in check.
They cost homeowners millions of dollars each year. They cause hundreds of car accidents. And worse, they kill off the young trees and small shrubs in pastures and fields. The hill country now is mostly big trees and invasive grasses. Our many lovely understory trees are rare outside of high fences properties like mine.
I think people who feed deer in neighborhoods should pay for the damage they cause their neighbors. And the bag limits should be removed until the numbers are back to a sustainable level.
And don’t forget how deer have made tick-borne diseases a serious problem in much of the country. We’ve caused the problem, for sure. I don’t know how hunting could be a solution in a suburban neighborhood like mine though. I wish they could come up with an easy birth control treatment for them.
Love that photo of Austin buildings through bridges. That’s an angle I don’t remember considering shooting when walking that direction myself, but now I will copy your idea.
Since I live in the mostly deer-free part of Austin, I never thought about the damage from antlers!
That’s the majority of the damage in my garden, actually. I’ve planted things they don’t like to eat, although of course sometimes they still nibble. But the antlering damage every fall means you either have to cage every plant with a pliable trunk (young trees) or stiff leaves (agaves, yuccas, and now sotols, palmettos, and more) or don’t plant them. The plant palette continues to shrink.
I feel your pain about the damn buck damage! Earlier this year, we had our agaves pruned up and looking good! Now the bucks have damaged one again’ Arghh! Sorry about your whales tongue! So sad!
We live in Buchanan Dam and I had no idea where Red Bud Isle was! So thanks for sharing the location. I enjoyed your beautiful photos! Must go!
Yes, go see. Parking can be tricky because it’s very popular for dog walkers. But it’s a lovely place to visit, and it’s not far from Mount Bonnell, so you can do that too. 🙂
How frustrating. I’m so grateful that I don’t have deer issues in my garden-though many in the Napa Valley do. I think I’m a little too close to the city center. Have you ever experimented with spraying ?
Yes, I’ve been spraying vulnerable plants all fall, but it doesn’t seem to make much of a difference. Maybe because the damage is from antlers, not from eating?
Dammit! I’m so sorry about the fresh agave damage. I heard a tip I’ll share with you, although I’m sure you’ve tried them all. A friend suggested to another friend that a few pieces of rebar hammered in around the plant act as a minimalist fence.
Yes, I’ve seen that but haven’t tried it myself. Am honestly thinking of just letting them have at it and replacing it all with grasses. I’m tired of fighting the deer.
Too bad deer aren’t contained on deer island. It looks quite beautiful right now.
You have a lot of deer in your neighborhood. I won’t complain, too much, about our squirrels.
Deer island — I like the sound of that. I wish!
Oh man that is frustrating! I can imagine how upset you were when you saw that agave.
Lady Bird Lake is stunning.
I was just there again today, and the fall colors are even better. Thanks for the deer sympathy. 🙂
Is Lady Bird Lake in the middle of Austin? Would it have been called Town Lake at one time?
Yes, it was renamed for Lady Bird Johnson after her death.