Do those motion-detecting sprinklers really keep deer at bay?
They can. Deer are by nature skittish creatures, so when they stroll into your oh-so-peaceful garden at two o’clock in the morning looking to snack on your prize-winning roses, they tend to be a bit taken aback when confronted by a hissing, spitting creature their highly refined senses hadn’t detected. Their instinctive response is often to flee to a safe distance which, hopefully, will be the neighbor’s garden where the plants are just as tasty.
However, it’s good to remember that deer are remarkably adaptable creatures and after they’ve encountered this hissing, spitting fiend a few times without being harmed by it, it can become as normal to them as sudden wind gusts and they may continue to munch on your roses in defiance of the water show.
Before installing one of these devices, you might want to note that they are non-specific and react to any motion that crosses their sensors. This means that not only do deer get water-whacked, so does the neighbor’s dog, prospective burglars and any teenagers trying to sneak home after curfew.
Come to think of it, that may not be such a bad thing.
As an added bonus, the more motion they detect, the better watered your garden will be, sparing you from having to give up any precious television time to do it yourself.
If you have any questions or comments, please send them to me at vanessa@gardenmuse.ca.
