I am fencing around a garden bed trying to prevent deer from getting in and destroying the bed. We have a pretty severe deer issue in the neighborhood and it has been a struggle to prevent the landscape from getting completely trampled and eaten by the deer. I'm putting up t-posts around the outside perimeter of the landscape bed and running 17 gauge wire from post to post. I don't have a wire stretcher and have been pulling the wire tight with some pliers and tying it off at each post and then using turnbuckle in the middle of the wire to tighten the wire (see attached images). Initially the wire is reasonably taut, but then it gets some slack in it that will ultimately allow the deer to push right thru it. So, I'm trying to find a better solution to get the wire stretched tight and remain tight. Do I need a wire stretcher or is there another method to get the wire tight? I've never used a wire stretcher before and wondering if there is an easier way to get that slack out of the line? I posted a few days ago regarding my live oaks trees and the responses were helpful. This is a slightly different issue and question that is primarily focused on how to stretch the wire tight between posts. Thanks.
Proper tool(s) and method to remove slack in a fencing line
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Around here the white tail will clear a 6 foot fence like it wasn’t there and an old guy was keeping tame deer in a fenced in area and he had a 10’ high fence around them. He had 4 deer and he would look out in the morning and he would have 6 or more in his pen.
Sounds like you have a real problem and I know how much damage they can cause as the farmers around here suffer huge losses. The community has to really take on the population problem in some way.
As to stretching wire I use a tool we call fence pliers. They grab tight and allow you to really pull the wire. They also work as a hammer and wire cutter and staple puller.
Here is the harbor freight version.
10 In. Fence Pliers/Stapler Puller
I’m afraid though the deer will find a way in if you are providing a food source.
Sounds like you have a real problem and I know how much damage they can cause as the farmers around here suffer huge losses. The community has to really take on the population problem in some way.
As to stretching wire I use a tool we call fence pliers. They grab tight and allow you to really pull the wire. They also work as a hammer and wire cutter and staple puller.
Here is the harbor freight version.
10 In. Fence Pliers/Stapler Puller
I’m afraid though the deer will find a way in if you are providing a food source.
Jeff Handy
Well-Known Member
Electrify the fence with a battery powered fence charger.
Generally frowned upon (illegal) in suburban locations. OK in rural settings.
Her dad has a bunch of electric fencing for the cows in pasture and the deer don't pay any attention to it. Barb wire is the same. Once they figure out where it is and that is instantaneous they just hop over it. The only thing that works for farmers around here is to apply for red tags and they give them to the Amish and in a day or two the deer are gone. In residential areas there are no predators and half the people buy corn and feed them all winter. The thought of thinning them out makes you a mass murder. So the deer overpopulate and then move in and eat stuff they don't even like get sick because of overcrowding and nature will eventually kill them off.
Jeff Handy
Well-Known Member
I have had good luck with mylar flash tape tied to fencing or poles.
Also tying some old CD’s and pie pans to the fence, ugly but makes noise and flashes in the breeze.
Also installing a few scarecrow type motion activated sprinklers, and moving them around every few days.
There is also a deer repellant made from blood meal that has helped, called Plantskyd.
It also fertilizes.
Also hitting them with an Air Soft gun, if nosy neighbors will not bust you, do it early am.
Also tying some old CD’s and pie pans to the fence, ugly but makes noise and flashes in the breeze.
Also installing a few scarecrow type motion activated sprinklers, and moving them around every few days.
There is also a deer repellant made from blood meal that has helped, called Plantskyd.
It also fertilizes.
Also hitting them with an Air Soft gun, if nosy neighbors will not bust you, do it early am.
Jeff Handy
Well-Known Member
Jeff Handy
Well-Known Member
