On Wed, 07 Feb 2007 23:51:26 GMT, "charliekilo"
wrote:

"Bob" wrote in message
...
We want to put a ground cover around a couple large Live Oaks in
our front lawn. Our nursery suggested Vinca-Major and said it was
deer proof. We bought a couple hundred dollars worth and set them
out last October.

As you can guess, the deer have eaten them to the ground. Don't know if
they will come back or not, I rather doubt it.

Anyway, I'm looking for suggestions for a good ground cover under Oak
trees, one that the deer won't eat.

I was wondering about Wandering Jew. Anyone have any experience?

Thanks, Bob

My wife and I have lived in our house in the Great Hills area of Austin for
almost 10 years...we have spent thousands of dollars on plants various
nurseries, landscape designers, horticulturalists, etc have said were "deer
proof." What have I learned over ten years and thousands of dollars? Nothing
attractive is deer proof. Rosemary and really spikey cacti come to mind as
the only plants I've found to be deer *proof.* During dry periods, they even
tear up our grass and eat the moist roots.


The preferred food for deer are forbs. Grasses come next. I suggest
also doing a search on Rangeland Ecology for our region. Deer will
eat anything as anyone who has them will attest. We are in their
forest, not the other way around, but I don't want to get into a big
"to do" about how I think of that.