Do Coffee Grounds Keep Deer Away? We Consider Why it Might Work – And Look at Tried-And-True Deer Deterrent Measures for Your Gardens
Do you have deer problems? If deer populations thrive near your home, you may feel like giving up on growing some of the plants you love, especially if they have fragrant aromas that deer treat like an invitation to dinner.
In the face of deer problems, people turn to a wide range of inventive solutions. You find yourself ready to turn to home remedies to stop your deer invasion, asking your neighbors “do coffee grounds keep deer away?” Below, we discuss deer deterrents, why people like to put coffee grounds in their gardens, and whether you should consider it.
You might be surprised to know that a garden design company can be your best friend when it comes to keeping deer away. You don’t have to rely on synthetic solutions or unsightly motion-activated deterrents for success.
Borst Landscape & Design has over 30 years of experience in Bergen County. We’ll work with nature to control the uninvited dinner guests in your garden. Give us a call at (201) 581-8076, or online.
Do coffee grounds keep deer away?
While there’s no science confirming that coffee grounds keep deer away, putting grounds coffee in gardens as a deterrent is a common home remedy. Why?
Deer are led by their noses. They love to munch on tender plants with strong, pleasant aromas such as roses, azaleas, berries, clematis, chrysanthemum, and others. This can be really bad news for gardeners who love the same aromatic plants.
In theory, putting a layer of fresh coffee grounds around favorite plants will mask their smell for the deer and replace it with a bitter scent. Plus, coffee has a distinctly human-world smell that may activate the deer’s flight response because they will associate it with danger.
Is coffee good for your garden?
It’s possible that mulching with coffee grounds could have some benefits for your garden, depending on your soil content and what plants you grow.
- Coffee grounds are acidic and may help balance the soil pH if it is alkaline. But if your soil is already acidic or you have plants that are sensitive to acidic soil, you risk damaging them.
- Coffee grounds aren’t just for deer. Mulching with them can also help keep slugs away.
- Earthworms like coffee grounds, and a healthy earthworm population is great news for your soil
If you are planning to try the coffee ground remedy to keep deer away, make sure you speak with your landscaping company to see what they advise for your soil. And remember, there are other totally-natural and reliable ways to discourage deer from snacking in your gardens.
Tried-and-True Tips
Before you go laying out the coffee grounds, consider using an intentional garden design to keep deer away.
Cover Scents: Instead of using coffee grounds to deter deer from favorite flowers, consider adding patches of strongly scented herbs among your garden beds to mask the smell of your flowers. Herbs like garlic, mint, lavender or chives smell fresh and inviting to humans and have a lovely appearance, but deer don’t like their smell at all.
Plant Close to Home: Work with your garden designer to plant favorite flowers near your house instead of elsewhere on your property. Deer are less likely to come near your home because they are naturally timid and frightened of the scents and noise of our lives. Plus, you will be able to keep a closer eye on your garden and chase away any brave deer that dare set foot there.
Borst has over 30 years of experience bringing natural and organic methods to garden design and maintenance, including deer and pest control. Give us a call at (201) 581-8076, or contact us online today.
Photo by Andrea Tummons on Unsplash