Hibiscus/Rosemallow for deer

[Telemark]

This summer I saw the deer had hammered any hibiscus they could find, even venturing into areas they rarely go, seemingly to specifically target the hibiscus.

After searching around the net, it seems that other people have the same problem. I wondered if I could turn this problem into an advantage.

I have basically zero experience with hibiscus and rosemallow. Anyone have any experience with this? Is there a cheap way to experiment with these plants?

 

[KY wild]

I bought and planted rose mallow this spring from MDC, they were very reasonable and came in great shape. Too young to tell anything else, I planted like 50 around some water holes and my pond. MDC is simply great to deal with for seedlings.

 

[SwampCat]

It is thick here - never seen any sign of deer usage

 

[Telemark]

Seems like you guys have a southern species. I guess I specifically need hardy species for zone 6 and colder. The plants I saw eater were in Ohio.

 

[gurgalunas]

I planted MDC stock around my 2.5 acre pond about 6 years ago. It grows well, and sprouts have shown up all around the pond. No issues with it, interesting to look at, but never seen any kind of use by deer.

 

[The Fishman]

I have planted about 50 swamp mallow, Hibiscus moscheutos, plants around my pond and in wet areas. I have also planted hundreds of seeds in these same areas. I planted them unprotected and I have never seen them again. I do not know what happened, but they either didn't survive in areas that they should or something ate them. Some of my neighbors have pineland hibiscus, Hibiscus aculeatus, growing naturally on their property. I am not sure if the deer eat them or not.

As far as a cheap experiment, they are easy to grow from seed with most seeds germinating and becoming a 3-4' tall plant in just a few months. It may be a little late to collect seeds this year, but gather some seeds and see what happens. iNaturalist is good site to look for plants around your area if you don't already have access to some.

 

[Telemark]

I will probably have to find some seeds online. I tried a few sites, but they seem a bit unreliable as to the exact species.