Native Plants
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
rate this answer
Friday - April 06, 2007
From: Mountain Rest, SC
Region: Southeast
Topic: Deer Resistant
Title: Lupines for attracting deer in South Carolina
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
I live in SC and was watching a TV show called "Making it Grow" and they did a segment on Lupine. The lady on the show said that the plant attracted whitetail deer and I was wondering if that was true...We are going to plant a food crop and was interested in the Lupine...Thanks for any help or advise you could give...ANSWER:
There are two species of Lupinus native to South Carolina, Lupinus perennis (sundial lupine) and Lupinus villosus (lady lupine). The former, L. perennis, is listed as being browsed by deer, but there is also a statement about its toxicity. Poisonous Plants of North Carolina lists them as "toxic only if large quantities eaten". Farm and Garden, an online gardening magazine, in their article, Lupine, reasons that the alkaloids in lupines will be a deterrent to deer eating them. Judging by the white tail deer and the bluebonnets in Texas, I would say that the deer may occasionally eat the bluebonnets, Lupinus texensis (Texas lupine), but it is not one of their major foods and not necessarily an attractant for them.
From your question it sounds as if you are interested in planting the lupines as a food plant for deer. If this is so, you would be better off with a variety of herbaceous plants and with shrubs and trees included in the mix. Deer are mainly browsers on various forbs (broadleaf herbaceous plants) in the spring, switching to leaves and twigs of trees and shrubs when the forbs are scarce. They also feed on mast (fruit, acorns, and seeds of woody plants). Here are a couple of sources for creating supplemental food to attract deer: Food Plots for White-Tailed Deer from Purdue University in Indiana and Attracting Deer to Forested Areas from the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, Division of Forestery.
.
More Deer Resistant Questions
Do Deer Eat Orchid Trees?
March 08, 2013 - I have planted three anacacho orchid trees, however we have a lot of deer around us. Is this a tree they will want to eat? Do you have any ideas to keep deer away?
view the full question and answer
Keeping deer and rabbits out of plants
June 23, 2007 - Are there plants that are both deer- and rabbit-resistant? Something is eating the plants that the deer seem to leave alone--snipping off the flowers at the top of the stems (ie, zinnias and plumbago...
view the full question and answer
Deer-resistant native plants for Michigan
June 06, 2008 - I am looking for a deer-resistant ground cover for a mid-to-northern Michigan (lower peninsula), which can grow in completely sandy soil.
Thanks for any advice.
view the full question and answer
Deer-resistant plants for Maryland
August 23, 2008 - Hello- I have a acre that is mostly full-sun (and no shade on the house) and part shade (edge of the yard) and not much in between. It is also overrun with hungry deer! I am having a hard time finding...
view the full question and answer
Plants resistant to white-tailed deer from Austin
April 01, 2013 - Could you tell me whether American Beautyberry and Blackfoot Daisy are usually eaten by our Austin white-tailed deer, or not? I get different answers in different publications. It would be great to ...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |