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sugarhill_gw

Milorganite and Deer

sugarhill
17 years ago

A workman who was here yesterday mentioned that deer were eating everything in his yard except the plants he had fertilized with milorganite. Anyone else heard of this as a deer deterent?

Comments (8)

  • Iris GW
    17 years ago

    Yes, a master gardener mentioned it to me as being effective for her as well.

  • rosiew
    17 years ago

    Milorganite worked beautifully for me at my former home in Roswell. It saved my hostas, pansies, sweetpotato vine and lots more. I would reapply if I saw any evidence of deer grazing. Wonderful product. Smelly to humans when in the bag, but not in the garden. Non burning - I just tossed it by the handful wherever I needed protection. And the bonus: a great low action fertilizer.

  • nancybea
    17 years ago

    I need this stuff! Where would you buy Milorganite? Does it have any other name or brand name? I'm not familiar with it. My two hydrangeas now look like leafless toothpick bushes courtesy of the #$%&@ deer who last week ate every leaf and bloom. One was a new one given to me last year, color unknown. It did have 4 immature blooms, too early to tell the color. Oh well, maybe next year.

  • sugarhill
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Milorganite is composted human waste from the Milwaukee sewage system. I expect the reason it keeps deer away is that it still has a human scent to it. I don't know if there are any other brands of human waste on the market or not.

  • Iris GW
    17 years ago

    I've heard you can buy it at Home Depot.

    I think for large shrubs you might also want buy/create some spray to make the foliage less tasty. I spray my "tastiest" shrubs about every month or two (depending on how much rain we get).

  • rosiew
    17 years ago

    Nancy, sorry about your hydrangea damage. Call Lowe's and HD to check availability. As Sugarhill says, this is composted sewage sludge from Milwaukee. A huge success story. You could spray the foliage, but don't think you'll need to. Milorganite is pelletized, about the size of Oscomote, super easy to handle. Just hand broadcast it well beyond the plant you want to protect. And please let us know if you find it as effective as I have. Best, Rosie

  • rosie
    17 years ago

    It worked excellently for me, too, just scattered around. I don't think it would deter deer who were really hungry for very long, though. Not yet a problem where we are.

  • davida
    17 years ago

    I have lots of deer in my area and Milorganite has not worked very well for me.