Do Deer Eat Raspberry Bushes? Everything You Need To Know

It does not feel good if you plant raspberry bushes to enjoy the delicious, juicy berries, but animals like deer eat them before you savor the first bite.

Deer invade in your garden and eat the parts of raspberry bushes during the active foraging period, spring to fall, the growing season of the plant.

So, go through this entire article to know why deer and other animals love raspberry bushes and the effective ways to get rid of them.

What Animals Eat Raspberry Bushes?

Raspberry bushes, which are still young, are the favorites of many mammals and birds during food scarcity.

The living organisms, including Birds, Squirrels, Mice, Raccoons, Bears, Rabbits, etc., feed on the raspberry bushes in your garden.

Varieties of birds invade into your garden and forage into your raspberry bushes in search of sweet berries. If the fruits are not present, they even consume the young buds to get energy during food shortages.

Similarly, small animals like rabbits, squirrels, mice, etc., feed on the bushes for fiber to get a healthy digestive system. They also get the energy for the breeding season from the bushes.

During the scarce, raspberry bushes and young leaves can be easily available food sources for these animals.

Do Deer Eat Raspberry Bushes?

The herbivores, like deer, feed on various foods like fruits, vegetables, cereals, etc., while they are foraging for food.

These cunning creatures even feed on the plants like Coreopsis, which they usually avoid. They feed on these plants during the scarcity for survival.

In contrast to these plants, Raspberries are one of the favorite food sources for animals like deer.

The sweet and delicious fruits can provide nutrients, energy, hydration, and other essential requirements for the growth and development of deer.

It’s because raspberry bush and its parts like leaves and twigs are sweet and rich in fiber, making animals like deer fuller to forage other food items.

Besides this, the tender leaves are easy to chew and digest. Like other grasses, raspberry bushes can be good food sources for deer.

How To Protect Raspberry Bushes From Deer?

While raspberry bushes are not the major food source for deer, they can still invade your garden. It can destroy the newly produced flower buds and small fruits.

So, it’s vital to apply various protection methods if you want to enjoy the delicious raspberries during summer.

• Use an 8-foot-long metal fence, as deer can jump easily through small fences.
• Apply deer repellents all over the raspberry bushes to make deer avoid them. You can also use neem oil all over the plant.
• You can also use motion-activated or noise-making devices to scare deer away from your garden.
• If you don’t want to scare deer, and only make them avoid the bushes, plant other fodder plants that deer love to draw their attention.
• You can also plant deer-resistant plants like rosemary, onion, garlic, peppers, etc., to make them avoid your garden.
• Cover your raspberry bushes with mesh or netting covers to keep the young leaves out of reach from these animals.
• If the raspberries are ripe, clean and remove the fallen fruits from the garden to avoid attracting deer.

If your garden is located in an area with a huge deer population, contact the professionals to stop these animals from enter your garden repeatedly.