We have found that putting moth balls around and in the garden to help with the deer and rabbits eating our plants. We put them in the rows, between the plants and the smell keeps them out of the garden. When it rains we have to put more out because the rain dissolves them. -Kim and Glenn Ruff, Polk County

Living in the foothills of Burke County, along Irish Creek and near Table Rock Mountain, we have our share of God’s little critters in our yard - and in the garden. Over the years, my wife Patricia has waged a relentless battle against the deer and  rabbits who discover our garden. This talented woman has tried almost every non-violent method mentioned. To date she has refused to try two suggestions: pouring human urine around the garden and spraying the plants with a concoction of milk and raw eggs.

Patricia has collected human hair and religiously sprinkled it at each corner and on other occasions substituted rags soaked in perfume or aftershave. She has planted marigolds nearby, tied aluminum pans on poles, created a scarecrow, and even sprinkled chicken manure here and there. Strips of scented plastic trash bags did not work. This year, nearby trees are festooned with yellow cloth streamers flapping in the breeze. These did not work either. Patricia’s only success has been in saving the strawberry plants by completely covering the entire patch in wedding veil material.

Perhaps the old farmer’s adage remains true: you plant 1/3 of the crop for disease, 1/3 for the critters, and 1/3 for your family. But don’t tell my wife this—she still thinks that she can save it all. -Larry Clark, Morganton

1) Rabbit and deer repellent: Blend well two to three eggs. Pour into it a gallon of water. Spray plants. Holds for about two weeks unless rain washes it off. Re-spray as often as needed. Works well in Carolina and California. I’ve done it in both places.

2) Deer and rabbit fence: Available commercially. It is a 6-foot wire that has small mesh at bottom and larger mesh at top. Drive in 10-foot “T” posts with a post pounder. Attach “deer and rabbit” wire, plus two strands of barbless wire at top to make it 8 feet high. This does the trick well. Eight-foot gates are easy to construct using elbows, Ts, pipe and wire. We just fenced in five acres. -W. Boone Mora, Camarillo, CA (formerly of Jackson, N.C.)

My home is on a small farm in Washington, NC. We do not let people hunt, and we have no outside dogs. I planted a garden this year. I ran string all around it, and tied groceries bags on it. The noise they made when the wind blew kept the deer away. Their feet prints came up to the string and stopped. I plan to make streamers to put up this year so it will look better. It did not stop the rabbits. -Patricia Boyd Plymouth

I lived on the edge of a wooded area of over 100 acres with streams and wet weather runs. We had a deer family that traveled through our yard, both front and back. There are no open fields for 500 yards north and south, or one mile west and east. One year I reseeded our back yard with white clover, including 5 to 10 feet around my garden. After this, our vegetables were not bothered. The clover was always “mowed” by our four-legged friends. -Charles Garrette, Ashland, Va., Halifax EMC member