We've been in our west Durham home, near Duke Forest, for eleven years, and
we've always had problems with deer. Twenty-five azaleas were regarded as
salad, and hosta, impatiens, lilies, and many other plants were usually
consumed just before they reached their peak.

It's been worse, however, in the past two or three years. The deer have
eaten English ivy almost to the ground, have drastically pruned the liriope,
and are evermore daring. They are often on the front walk or in the backyard
in the middle of the day.

This morning there were five in the front yard, including two in the azalea
plantings only six feet from the living room where I was taking photographic
evidence.

I'm sure part of the problem is a neighbor who puts out cracked corn in the
wooded area behind his house. The deer have worn that area, about twelve
feet by twenty-five feet, to bare earth. I often see six or seven deer in
the area, about 150 feet from my backyard.

Is feeding deer the problem, or is it that there are just too many more
housing developments?

Can I do any thing other than politely asking my neighbor to stop feeding
the deer?