It seems that the darn deer are eating almost everything this summer and the worst is yet to come.

You see, late August is the time that does start pushing their fawns away to start finding food for themselves and they don’t know what they like yet, so they try everything, even the plants they are not supposed to eat.

But there are a number of plants that for the most part are deer resistant. One of those plants which has good deer resistance is the Physocarpus, more commonly called the Ninebark.

Ninebarks come in a variety of color shades from deep maroon to bright yellow. They are deciduous and will lose their leaves in the winter.

One of my favorite yellow varieties is Amber Jubilee. Amber Jubilee has striking foliage in glowing tones of orange, yellow and gold all on the same leaf. Delicate white blooms similar to spirea, are produced in spring, and fall foliage is highlighted with tones of red and purple, making this ninebark appealing over the entire season.

Locate plant in full sun for the best color performance. Amber Jubilee is a dense shrub that will get about five feet high and five feet around, but you can prune them to keep them a little smaller if you wish.

Our Amber Jubilees at the store this spring got some pruning from the deer as they were taste testing some of our plants looking for their next meal.

We spread a little Milorganite the next day and never had another problem.

A great maroon variety of ninebark is Diabolo, this rounded, deciduous shrub with deep, reddish purple foliage holds its color all season long, while white to pink flowers make a nice show in May and June. Superb exfoliating bark adds winter interest and is where the name ninebark was derived from.

Another maroon variety that can fill many gaps is Little Devil. Little Devil is nearly carefree, with colorful maroon foliage, great blooms and tolerant of almost any poor, rocky, or dry soil.

Does that soil sound familiar?

Little Devil is aptly named for its petite leaves that are actually smaller than a barberry leaf. It is a strong bloomer with small pink to white blooms that arrange themselves in small, circular domes of color along its many stems in late May through mid June.

Like the other varieties part to full sun will give you the best color. Another group of deer resistant plants is the family of Spireas.

Spireas come in many sizes from the Bridal Veil Van Houttei Spirea with its white flowering blooms that cover a shrub that can get eight feet tall and seven feet around down to the Little Princess Spirea that only gets two to three feet tall with lovely pink blooms.

Both of these varieties have green leaves, but to add a little more flare, Goldmound Spireas have golden yellow leaves that turn to a pinkish red in the fall as well as pink blooms in June and July.

But probably my favorite of the spireas is the Goldflame Spirea. This Spirea starts out the season with bronzy to reddish foliage in the early spring that changes to a lemony green shade in the summer, then to a coppery golden color in fall.

This kaleidoscope of colors is set off by crimson flowers that appear in early summer on sizable, flattened flower heads and, if deadheaded, they will continue blooming through early fall.

Goldflame is fast growing, very tolerant of most soils, moist or dry, and possesses an easy to maintain, neat habit, especially if you prune yearly in the early spring.

Without pruning they will only get to a height of three feet with a four foot spread so they are easy to maintain in the landscape. Altheas are also good choices for their deer resistance and their late summer blooms.

Blooming in August, altheas come in a variety of colors and can be pruned to be smaller shrubs or if you let them grow, most varieties will get eight to ten feet tall in most or full sun.

Best of all with these plants, is that they are less likely to be devoured by the ravenous deer population here in Sullivan County.