Although browsing deer are charming to watch, their feeding and rubbing damage on your plants is devastating. Your garden is often their major source of food. Our ongoing drought makes late summer and fall a particularly trying time for deer-plagued areas.
Most wildlife experts suggest that feeding deer makes the problem worse. Feeding deer attracts more deer than can be fed and adds to landscape damage.
Deer used to be just a winter problem as they moved out of the hills looking for food. This is no longer the case. Many now live year round in the urban areas, and never even go into the mountains. They are born, mature, and die in the garden as almost permanent residents.
The following is a list of plants that are less tolerant to deer damage and some that are very susceptible to deer damage.
 

Readily browsed	Rarely browsed	Rarely browsed
Herbaceous Plants
Geranium, wild  (Geranium fremontii)	Black-eyed susan (Rudbeckia sp.)	Pearly everlasting  (Anaphalis margaritacea)
Low sunflower  (Helianthus pumilus)	California fuchsia  (Zauschneria sp.)	Purple coneflower  (Echinacea purpurea)
Nodding onion  (Allium cernuum)	Daffodils  (Narcissus sp.)	Russian sage  (Perovskia atriplicifolia)
Penstemon, low  (Penstemon virens)	Gaillardia/blanketflower  (Gaillardia aristata)	Thyme  (Thymus sp.)
Phlox, common  (Phlox multiflora)	Gayflower  (Liatris punctata)	Yarrow  (Achillea sp.)
Pussytoes, rose  (Antennaria rosea)	Grape hyacinth  (Cynoglossum officinale)	Santolina (Santolina spp.)
Strawberry  (Fragaria sp.)	Larkspur  (Delphinium nelsonii)	Blue Salvia (Salvia farinacea)
Tulips  (Tulipa sp.)	Lavender  (Lavandula sp.)	Wild iris  (Iris missouriensis)
Begonia (Begonia sp.)	Mariposa lily  (Calochortus gunnisonii)	Jupiter's beard (Centranthus ruber)
Zinnia (Zinnia sp.)	Mountain harebell  (Campanula rotundifolia)	Most herbs except basil
Vines
Grapes (Vitus sp.)	Virginia creeper  (Parthenocissus quinquefolia)	English ivy  (Hedera helix )
Trees
Apples  (Malus sp.)	Apache plume  (Fallugia paradoxa)	Boxwood (Buxus microphylla)
Aspen  (Populus tremuloides)	Blue mist spiraea  (Caryopteris x clandonensis)	Oregon grape  (Mahonia repens)
Mugo pine  (Pinus mugo mughus)	Common juniper  (Juniperus communis)	Pinyon pine  (Pinus edulis)
Rocky Mountain juniper  (Juniperus scopulorum)	Douglas fir  (Pseudotsuga menziesii)	Potentilla/cinquefoil  (Potentilla sp.)
Roses (most)  (Rosea sp.)	Hawthorn  (Crataegus spp.)	Rabbit brush  (Chrysothamnus sp.)
Japanese euonymus  (Euonymus japonica)	Fir (Abies sp.)	Yucca  (Yucca)
American arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis)	Oak (Quercus sp.)	Bigtooth maple (Acer grandidentatum)
Wild red raspberry  (Rubus idaeus)	Mountain mahogany  (Cercocarpus montanus)	Hackberry (Celtis)
Pyracantha (Pyracantha coccinea)	Eleagnus  (Eleagnus sp.)	Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba)

Larry A. Sagers
Regional Horticultural Specialist
Utah State University Extension Service
Thanksgiving Point Office
© All Rights Reserved

With the winter weather, outdoor gardening activities begin to wind down.  There is still fall clean up, mulching and winterization of the garden.  As part of the winterization, remember to treat your tools and power equipment with the same protective care you provide for your plants.

A few minutes spent now will make life much easier next spring. Winterize the mower so it will start next spring. Start by disconnecting the spark plug before beginning work on the mower.

Drain out all the gasoline and coat the inside of the tank with a marine rust inhibitor. Alternatively buy some fuel stabilizer and add it to the fuel. Start the engine and run it for a few minutes so the carburetor fills with stabilized fuel. If you do not do this varnish in the fuel clogs the jets and prevents the mower from starting next spring.

Drain out the old oil and replace it with fresh oil. Used oil contains moisture that causes internal parts to rust and it contains acid that corrode the parts. Fresh oil helps protect valuable engine parts.  Remove and clean the air filter and replace it if necessary.

Remove and sharpen the mower blade before storing it for the winter. A dull blade strains the mower engine and produces a less satisfactory cut.  While under the mowing deck changing the oil and checking the blade, scrape out the accumulated grass that is built up on the mower.

Inspect the mower wheels and replace worn wheels to ensure a level cut next spring. Clean of the top of the mower and make certain the grass catcher is clean and dry.

Clean the plant material and dirt from your power tools such as leaf blowers, hedge trimmers, and weed whips.  Replace fouled spark plugs, oil all necessary parts, and sharpen or replace worn cutting surfaces.  Store all tools in a protected, dry place so they will not rust over winter.

Clean and dry pesticide spray equipment before storing it for the winter. Fill the tank partly full of water and add several drops of detergent or a cup of ammonia. Shake the tank well, and spray the solution through the pump and hoses. Drain all water out of the sprayer and sprayer lines before storing them in a dry place for the winter.
 

Larry A. Sagers
Regional Horticultural Specialist
Utah State University Extension Service
Thanksgiving Point Office
© All Rights Reserved
Winter injury of ornamentals is a common problem in Utah and can be difficult to diagnose because symptoms may not be apparent for several months after the event. Symptoms in the spring include dead twigs and branches, small leaves, or retarded growth.
Sunscald, or southwest winter injury, is a problem of thin-barked trees such as maple, ash, crabapple, mountain ash, and fruit trees. It is especially a problem on newly transplanted trees.
Winter sunscald occurs when the bark on the south and west side of a tree warms during the day and then freezes at night. In the spring, dead patches of bark show on the trunk. The radiant heat from the sun shines on the south or west facing bark and heats it well above the ambient temperature.
Trees produce no heat and when the sun is no longer shining on the bark, the temperature quickly drops. In some cases, the bark temperature will get to above 60 degrees when the sun is shining. Then the temperature will drop within just a few minutes to well below freezing. The alternate freezing and thawing kills the cambium cells and the bark peals away on the south or west side.
This dead or weak tissue often becomes infected with the cytospora fungus that causes Cytospora canker. Evidence of cytospora infection is noticeable when the dead bark peels away in paper-like sheets and black fungal pycnidia are present. The fungus can girdle and kill the tree if it occurs on the main trunk.
Sunscald can be prevented by wrapping the trunk of newly transplanted trees commercial white wrapping materials. Put the wrap on in November and remove it next spring. Wrap sensitive tree for two seasons.
Avoid using black plastic or other dark colored materials to wrap the trunks.  It will build up heat inside during the day and increases the extreme fluctuation between day and night temperatures.
Use white latex paint to reflect the heat of the winter sun. Other materials such as a board to prevent the sun from hitting the trunk during the winter help prevent Southwest winter injury.