Peaches are one of the most famous fruits around the world. There is another type of peach fruit available known as nectarine. On the other hand, deer can cause problems by eating several fruits, vegetables, and flowers in your garden.
Today, we are going to discuss and find out whether deer eat peaches or not.
Do deer eat peaches?
It has been noticed that deer love eating peaches because of their taste. Peach fruits taste sweet to the taste buds of deer. So peach fruits are considered as a good source of food for deer. The leaves, pits and barks of the peach tree are also eaten by deer as they pose no danger.
Let’s look at different forms of peach and see if deer eat them.
Canned peaches:
If you are an animal lover and enjoy being in the company of deer, then you can use canned peaches to lure deer onto your property. Deer love and enjoy the sweet taste of peaches.
So feeding canned peaches to deer will attract them to your property even if you do not have a peach tree in your garden. Canned peaches can be a good source of food for deer because of the health benefits and the taste.
Raw peaches:
Deer are most of the time attracted to the raw peaches of the garden.
When the ripe and raw peach fruits fall off the tree, deer can be seen eating them with joy. Planting peach trees in the garden can be a good way of attracting deer to your garden if you consider yourself an animal lover.
Will whitetail deer eat peaches?
According to animal experts, deer are known for enjoying the taste of peaches. The whitetail deer is no exception when it comes to peaches. In fact, deer hunters use peach trees as a trap to attract whitetail deer to their garden.
It has been noticed that whitetail deer like eating the ripened versions of peach fruits on the ground.
Once a whitetail deer gets the taste of peaches, it will keep coming back to your garden for more. It can cause problems for you as whitetail deer like eating the leaves of peach trees too.
Moreover, whitetail deer have been accused of damaging the leaves of a peach tree more than the fruits.
You will have to plant deer resistant plants in your garden to fight against the invasion of whitetail deer. Gardening experts suggest using fences around the peach tree to keep it safe from whitetail deer.
Are peaches bad for deer?
Peaches are considered to be good for deer by animal experts. Deer are drawn towards gardens that have peach trees in them. It is very difficult to keep deer away from peach trees once they get the taste of a peach fruit.
The obsession of deer with peaches does not end here as they are known for eating the leaves, and pits of a peach tree too.
Deer hunters know about this peach obsession of deer and use it to their advantage to trap deer. So peaches are a good source of food for deer as it contains no toxic element detrimental to the overall health of a deer.
Deer do not shy away from eating fruits. Specially, they enjoy the ripeness and the sweetness of peaches. Growing deer resistant plants in your garden might save your peach tree from deer.
4 reasons why deer loves peaches
There are a lot of reasons why deer love eating peaches. Let’s discuss in detail about some of them.
The taste of peaches:
First of all, the sweet is the major reason why deer can not stop themselves from eating peach fruits. The ripe fruits of the peach tree are devoured by deer on a regular basis. It is true that deer love eating most of the fruits.
But peach fruit is a special kind of fruit for deer because of its sweetness. Deer stay away from eating things that taste bitter to their taste buds. But that is not the case for peach fruits due to the sweet taste.
Edible:
Peach fruits, peach leaves, and peach pits are considered to be edible for deer. The fruits, leaves, and pits of peaches contain no poisonous elements in them that can harm the overall health of deer. That is why deer are able to eat peaches as part of their daily diet.
Components of peaches:
Peach fruits possess a lot of important food components needed for the proper growth and functioning of deer. Peach fruits are full of vitamins and fibers that can improve the health condition of deer significantly.
Peach fruits can do wonders for the digestive system of deer because of the high amount of fiber in them. Peach fruits are also good for the heart of deer.
Availability:
One of the key reasons why deer love eating peaches is the availability of peach trees. Peach trees are very easy to grow in a garden and most gardeners prefer planting in the garden to attract birds and animals. Peaches are a good source of food for deer.
So deer do not miss the opportunity of eating peaches. It is natural for a deer to eat peaches as it tastes good and can be found in most of the gardens.
Do deer eat these parts of peaches?
There are different parts on peaches. Sometimes people are confused about what parts of the peaches can be eaten by deer. Let’s discuss in detail about some of the parts of peaches and see if deer can eat them.
Peach trees:
Peach trees are not a deer resistant plant and deer can manage them if they want. Many parts of the peach trees can be eaten by deer such as the leaves and the fruits. Peach trees need an extra layer of protection in the garden to keep deer away from eating them.
Peach leaves:
The leaves of the peach are the most favorite part of a peach tree for deer. They often indulge in eating the leaves of the peach tree instead of the peach fruits. The green leaves of peach trees attract deer because of their taste and texture.
Peach pits:
Deer possess the ability to digest the pits of the peach fruit. Deer are able to consume all parts of the peach fruit including the pit. Peach pits do not cause any problems for deer upon digestion and are safe for deer.
Peach tree bark:
If there is no other source of food available for deer, then they might end up eating the peach tree bark. Peach tree bark does not hold a lot of health benefits for deer. But it is able to satisfy the hunger of deer when they are in immediate need of food.
How do you keep deer from eating peaches?
Keeping deer from eating peaches might seem like a daunting task if you have no prior experience regarding the matter. However, you can follow the steps and methods given below to accomplish the task.
Grow deer resistant plants:
The basic way of stopping deer from eating the peaches is by planting deer resistant plants along the perimeter of the garden. The deer will not enter your garden and eat the peaches if there are lots of deer resistant plants inside and outside the garden.
Use fences:
You can also use fences to keep deer from eating peaches in your garden. The fences need to be at least eight foot tall to keep out deer. Deer will be able to jump over a short fence. Adding barbed wires on top of the fences gives you extra protection against invasion of deer.
Use soap:
You can even use soap as a way to stop deer from eating the peaches of your garden. Deer do not enjoy the smell of soap and will do anything to keep themselves away from areas with the aroma of soap.
You can sprinkle bars of soap along the perimeter of your garden or the peach tree to keep deer away. The soap can also be used in the form of a spray to deter deer from consuming the peaches.
Apply rotten meat:
Applying rotten meat around the perimeter of the garden or the peach trees can stop deer from eating the peaches. Deer do not like the smell of rotten meat and will naturally stay away from the peaches if there is rotten meat nearby.
Apply rotten eggs:
Another smell that deer dislike is the smell of rotten eggs. Rotten eggs can be used along the perimeter of the peach trees to stop deer from feasting on the peaches. Rotten eggs are a natural deer repellent.
Final Thoughts
Peach is a favorite fruit of deer due to its sweet taste. Peach fruit also possesses a lot of health benefits for deer. Keeping deer away from eating peaches can become difficult once they get the taste of peaches. Using fences, soap, rotten eggs, and rotten meat can help to keep out deer.