Ryegrass is mostly used as a lawn grass throughout the world. It is known for increasing the landscape beauty of your yard and garden. But ryegrass is also a source of food for many animals. Today, we are going to discuss and find out whether ryegrass is eaten by deer or not.
Do deer eat ryegrass?
Deer are capable of eating ryegrass due to several reasons. First of all, ryegrass tastes good and can be easily digested by deer. Secondly, ryegrass is full of protein and deer can benefit from the protein supplied by ryegrass. Ryegrass is also a safe source of food for deer.
Let’s look at different varieties of ryegrass and see if deer have a tendency to eat them.
Winter ryegrass:
Winter ryegrass can be grown in the garden to protect the other plants of the garden. Deer are immediately attracted towards winter ryegrass whenever they see it. Winter ryegrass is a good choice of food in the garden to draw the deer.
Deer like the taste of winter ryegrass and it causes no harm to the overall health of deer.
Winter ryegrass can be a crucial part of the food plot to attract deer. Deer enjoy the protein provided by winter ryegrass. Winter ryegrass is also very easy to grow which is an additional benefit.
Perennial ryegrass:
Perennial ryegrass is known for its fast growing rate. It does not take much time to cover up your yard or lawn properly. Perennial ryegrass can also be used in the food plot to attract deer. Deer do not mind eating perennial ryegrass if they get a chance.
Perennial ryegrass can be a good addition to your garden to attract deer and protect other plants also.
Annual ryegrass:
The scientific name of annual ryegrass is lolium multiflorum. There are two varieties of annual ryegrass available throughout the world. One of them is called Westworld ryegrass and the other one is Italian ryegrass.
It is believed by animal and gardening experts that deer like eating annual ryegrass. The reason behind this is the abundance of protein provided by annual ryegrass. Annual ryegrass also tastes good to the taste buds of deer.
The additional benefit of annual ryegrass is that it causes no toxic reaction in deer.
Tetraploid ryegrass:
Both annual ryegrass and perennial ryegrass have a variety called the tetraploid ryegrass. Tetraploid ryegrass is given this name because of the four sets of chromosomes it possesses.
The good thing about tetraploid ryegrass is deer like eating it because of easy digestibility. Tetraploid ryegrass is also rich in protein and other food components needed for the proper growth of deer.
Marshall ryegrass:
Marshall ryegrass is known for being a winter season ryegrass because of its ability to handle the cold weather. When the sources of food are limited in the winter, deer rely on marshall ryegrass for their survival.
Marshall ryegrass contains a decent amount of protein needed for the growth of deer.
Deer also do not dislike the taste of marshall ryegrass and can be seen eating it whenever they get an opportunity. Growing marshall ryegrass in the garden in winter can help you to attract deer.
Do deer eat wild ryegrass?
Wild ryegrass is known for being a hybrid variety of ryegrass. This variety of ryegrass has been produced by combining bermuda grass and saltgrass. Wild ryegrass is produced in different parts of the United States.
It is believed by animal and gardening experts that deer do not mind eating wild ryegrass. Wild ryegrass can even be beneficial for the overall growth of deer as it contains a high amount of protein.
Wild ryegrass can also be digested easily by deer and causes no poisonous reaction upon digestion.
If there is no other source of food available, deer will not hesitate eating wild ryegrass. It gives them energy to go through the day in the form of protein and other elements.
Do whitetail deer eat ryegrass?
Whitetail deer are not picky eaters. So they can be drawn towards your garden even by growing a simple lawn grass like ryegrass. But the important thing to remember here is that ryegrass does provide much needed protein for the whitetail deer.
Whitetail deer find it easy to digest ryegrass because of the fiber present inside it. Ryegrass can be an important part of the food plot to attract deer to the garden.
Animal and gardening experts have suggested the usage of ryegrass as a source of food and bait to draw whitetail deer.
5 reasons why deer eat ryegrass
There are a lot of valid reasons why deer eat ryegrass. Let’s discuss in detail about some of them.
Taste of ryegrass:
The major reason why deer eat ryegrass is the taste provided by it. Deer have been known for liking the taste of ryegrass. So they do not perceive ryegrass as being dangerous for them.
If ryegrass tasted bitter to the taste buds of deer, then they would have stayed away from eating it forever. But deer do the opposite of it and can be seen enjoying the taste of ryegrass whenever they get a chance.
Components of ryegrass:
Ryegrass contains a lot of important food components needed for the growth of deer. For example, the high amount of protein found in ryegrass gives deer the required energy to go through the day.
On the other hand, the fiber present in the ryegrass helps the digestive system of deer. Ryegrass does not possess any harmful food component that can cause damage to deer in any way.
Availability of ryegrass:
Ryegrass is used in many yards and gardens as lawn grass. So when there is a scarcity of food, deer can be seen eating the lawn grasses such as ryegrass. Ryegrass is able to satisfy the hunger of deer and provide them with food nutrients.
The availability of ryegrass has made it a good and safe source of food for deer.
Variety of ryegrass:
There are lots of varieties of ryegrass available for deer to choose from. There are annual ryegrass, perennial ryegrass, tetraploid ryegrass, diploid ryegrass, marshall ryegrass etc. Deer are able to consume all of these varieties of ryegrass whenever they get a chance.
Non toxicity of ryegrass:
Ryegrass does not cause any toxic reaction inside deer after they have digested it. The non toxicity of ryegrass makes them a safe source of food for deer. Deer are also intelligent enough to stay away from unsafe sources of food.
But deer like eating ryegrass as it is safe and healthy for them.
What ryegrass do deer like best?
There are different types of ryegrass available throughout the world. But all of them are not liked equally by deer. The list of ryegrass deer like the best is given below.
- Westworld ryegrass
- Italian ryegrass
- Marshall ryegrass
- Tetraploid ryegrass
- Diploid ryegrass
- Annual ryegrass
- Perennial ryegrass
- Intermediate ryegrass
- Wild ryegrass
How to keep deer away from ryegrass?
Keeping deer away from ryegrass might seem like a difficult task if you have no prior experience regarding the matter. However, there are some steps and methods you can follow to accomplish the task. Let’s discuss in detail about some of them.
Apply high fences:
The most basic way of keeping deer away from ryegrass is by putting up high fences along the perimeter of your lawn or yard. Deer are good jumpers and they will be able to jump above fences shorter than six feet. It is wise to put up fences that are eight feet in height.
Barb wires can also be added on the top of the fences to make it difficult for deer to jump through.
Grow deer repellent plants:
You can also plant and grow deer repellent plants along the perimeter of your lawn to keep deer away from ryegrass. Deer will stop entering your lawn to feed on lawn grasses like ryegrass if they smell deer repellent plants nearby.
Deer repellent plants cause discomfort to the smelling sense of deer and keep them away for good.
Make a mixture of soap:
You can also take the help of heavily scented soap to keep out deer. The soap has to be mixed with water and applied in the form of a spray around the ryegrass to keep deer away from it. Deer will stay away from eating the ryegrass due to the smell of soap.
Use predator urine:
Predator urine can also be used along the perimeter of the lawn to keep deer away from ryegrass. Deer will associate the smell of predator urine with the presence of a predator and stay away from the ryegrass.
Final Thoughts
Deer have been seen eating ryegrass as they like the taste of it. Ryegrass also has no toxic effect on the body of deer. Deer consider ryegrass as a good source of food because of its food components. Deer also prefer eating ryegrass due to its availability.