How do I keep deer and rabbits out of a garden?

Identifying which animal is doing the damage from the cut, the fencing heights that actually work, and the plants each tends to leave alone.

Difficulty: intermediate
Time: 4 hr
Read: 3 min

Short answer

A clean angled cut is rabbit, a ragged torn one is deer. Rabbits need wire netting at least 900mm high with 150mm buried and turned outwards; deer need fencing 1.8m high or more. Nothing else works reliably, and no repellent lasts.

Both animals are creatures of habit. Once a garden is on the route it stays on the route, which is why damage is usually repeated in the same places and why interrupting access early matters more than reacting later.

What you'll need

Wire netting, 31mm mesh for rabbits
Posts
Tree guards or spiral guards (optional)
Spade

Step by step

Identify the animal from the damage.Rabbits have upper and lower incisors and leave a clean 45 degree cut. Deer have no upper incisors, so they tear, leaving a ragged frayed end. Deer damage is also higher up.
Look for other evidence.Rabbit droppings in scattered piles and shallow scrapes. Deer droppings, slots in soft ground, and bark stripped or frayed on young trees at chest height.
Fence for rabbits properly.Wire netting of 31mm mesh, at least 900mm above ground, with a further 150mm buried and the bottom turned outwards in an L away from the garden so digging is blocked.
Fence for deer high.1.8m is the practical minimum for roe deer and 2m for larger species. Deer jump well but do not like landing in confined spaces, so a narrow gap between two lower barriers can also work.
Protect individual plants where fencing is impractical.Spiral guards on young tree trunks against rabbits, and taller mesh guards or cages against deer. Far cheaper than fencing a large area.
Check the gates and gaps.Almost every fencing failure is a gap under a gate, a hole at a corner, or a section pulled up by a badger. Walk the whole line after any damage.
Use repellents only tactically.Scent and taste repellents give a few weeks at most and need reapplying after rain. They are useful over a short vulnerable period, not as a strategy.
Choose plants they tend to avoid.Deer and rabbits both tend to leave aromatic, hairy, spiny and toxic plants — lavender, rosemary, euphorbia, foxglove, daffodil, berberis, box and most ferns. Nothing is truly deer-proof when they are hungry.
Protect new planting specifically.Fresh soft growth on newly planted material is what gets eaten. Guards on new plants for the first two or three years covers the vulnerable period.
Do not rely on a dog, a hose or a gadget.Motion-activated sprinklers and sonic devices have some short-term effect and both animals habituate quickly. A physical barrier is the only durable answer.

Tips

Clean angled cut is rabbit; ragged torn end is deer. The diagnosis takes seconds.
The bottom of a rabbit fence matters more than the top — bury and turn it outwards.
Guards on individual plants beat fencing a large garden on cost every time.

Common mistakes

Fencing for rabbits without burying the bottom — Rabbits dig. A fence sitting on the surface is under-run within days. 150mm buried and turned outwards is what makes it work.
Relying on deer-resistant plant lists — The lists describe preference, not immunity. In a hard winter or a dry summer deer eat things they normally ignore, including plants sold as deer-proof.

If it doesn't work

Plants grazed to ground level overnight

Cause: Rabbits — Fix: Rabbit-proof fencing with a buried outward-turned base, and guards on individual plants.

Growth stripped at chest height, ragged ends

Cause: Deer — Fix: 1.8m or higher fencing, or individual cages on the plants that matter.

Bark stripped from young trees

Cause: Rabbits at the base, deer higher up and fraying — Fix: Spiral guards for rabbits, taller mesh guards for deer. Damage right around the trunk usually kills the tree.

Damage continues despite fencing

Cause: A gap somewhere — Fix: Walk the entire line looking at the base, gates and corners. There is almost always a specific point of entry.

Questions people ask

How high does a deer fence need to be?

1.8m as a practical minimum for roe deer and 2m for fallow or red. Lower fences are jumped easily, though deer avoid landing in tight spaces, so a double barrier can substitute for height.

Do deer and rabbit repellents work?

Briefly. They need reapplying after rain and both animals habituate. They are useful to protect new planting for a few weeks, not as a permanent measure.

Which plants are safest?

Aromatic, hairy, spiny and toxic ones — lavender, rosemary, euphorbia, foxglove, daffodil, berberis, box, ferns and most ornamental grasses. None are guaranteed.