My Deer Garden

Plant record · Annual

Is Flowering Tobacco deer resistant?

Nicotiana sp.

Tubular flowers of nicotiana
Photo by Joachim Müllerchen, CC BY 2.5. Via Wikimedia Commons.
Damage step 1 of 4 · Rarely Damaged

Yes. Deer almost always leave this alone.

Type
Annual
Hardiness
Grown as an annual, any zone
Light
Part shade
Bloom
Summer and Fall
Maintenance
Moderate
Toxic to
dogs, cats, and horses

Damage steps follow a published university field scale. How plants are rated.

About Flowering Tobacco

Scent arrives after dark, so plant it where you sit in the evening rather than where it looks best at midday. The sticky glandular leaves are what deer object to.

That stickiness is the whole defense and it works on most browsing animals. It also catches small insects, which is harmless.

The tall white species is the fragrant one and reaches five feet or more, seeding around gently once established. The compact bedding strains bred for color have largely had the scent selected out of them. If you want the evening perfume, buy by species rather than by flower color.

Part shade and moisture. It wilts hard in full afternoon sun.

Soil and care

Soil pH
5.5 to 6.5
Drainage
Consistently moist
Water
Moderate
Spacing
12 to 18 in apart
Growth rate
Fast
Maintenance
Moderate

Similar to Flowering Tobacco

Other annuals with the same deer rating.

Where Flowering Tobacco grows

Hardy across every state on zone range alone. Mountain and coastal areas sit outside the ranges used here, so check your own zone before ordering. Select any state, including one it will not grow in, for what is resistant there.

Alabama — hardy here. Zones 7 to 9.Alaska — hardy here. Zones 1 to 8.Arizona — hardy here. Zones 5 to 10.Arkansas — hardy here. Zones 6 to 8.California — hardy here. Zones 7 to 10.Colorado — hardy here. Zones 3 to 6.Connecticut — hardy here. Zones 5 to 7.Delaware — hardy here. Zones 7 to 7.District of Columbia — hardy here. Zones 7 to 8.Florida — hardy here. Zones 8 to 11.Georgia — hardy here. Zones 7 to 9.Hawaii — hardy here. Zones 9 to 12.Idaho — hardy here. Zones 3 to 7.Illinois — hardy here. Zones 5 to 7.Indiana — hardy here. Zones 5 to 6.Iowa — hardy here. Zones 4 to 6.Kansas — hardy here. Zones 5 to 7.Kentucky — hardy here. Zones 6 to 7.Louisiana — hardy here. Zones 8 to 10.Maine — hardy here. Zones 3 to 6.Maryland — hardy here. Zones 6 to 8.Massachusetts — hardy here. Zones 5 to 7.Michigan — hardy here. Zones 4 to 6.Minnesota — hardy here. Zones 3 to 5.Mississippi — hardy here. Zones 7 to 9.Missouri — hardy here. Zones 5 to 7.Montana — hardy here. Zones 3 to 6.Nebraska — hardy here. Zones 4 to 6.Nevada — hardy here. Zones 4 to 9.New Hampshire — hardy here. Zones 3 to 6.New Jersey — hardy here. Zones 6 to 7.New Mexico — hardy here. Zones 4 to 9.New York — hardy here. Zones 4 to 7.North Carolina — hardy here. Zones 6 to 8.North Dakota — hardy here. Zones 3 to 4.Ohio — hardy here. Zones 5 to 6.Oklahoma — hardy here. Zones 6 to 8.Oregon — hardy here. Zones 6 to 9.Pennsylvania — hardy here. Zones 5 to 7.Rhode Island — hardy here. Zones 6 to 7.South Carolina — hardy here. Zones 7 to 9.South Dakota — hardy here. Zones 3 to 5.Tennessee — hardy here. Zones 6 to 8.Texas — hardy here. Zones 6 to 9.Utah — hardy here. Zones 4 to 9.Vermont — hardy here. Zones 3 to 5.Virginia — hardy here. Zones 6 to 8.Washington — hardy here. Zones 5 to 8.West Virginia — hardy here. Zones 5 to 7.Wisconsin — hardy here. Zones 3 to 5.Wyoming — hardy here. Zones 3 to 6.
Hardy on zone rangeNot hardy — still linked
Choose a state from the listeasier on a phone

Common questions about Flowering Tobacco

Is Flowering Tobacco deer resistant?
Flowering Tobacco (Nicotiana sp.) is rated Rarely Damaged, step 1 of 4 on the damage scale this site uses. Deer almost always leave this alone.
What hardiness zones does Flowering Tobacco grow in?
Flowering Tobacco is hardy in USDA zones 2 to 11. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat. That is the range across the genus, so a named species or cultivar may be narrower.
Does Flowering Tobacco grow in shade?
Yes. Flowering Tobacco tolerates part shade, which makes it one of the options for a shaded bed where deer also browse.
Is Flowering Tobacco toxic to dogs or cats?
Yes. The ASPCA lists Flowering Tobacco as toxic to dogs, cats, and horses. Site it away from where animals graze, or choose something else if you have a dog that chews.

Browse from here

Every list Flowering Tobacco belongs to.

All annuals·Rarely damaged·Part shade plants

Hardy in these zones

Zone 3·Zone 4·Zone 5·Zone 6·Zone 7·Zone 8·Zone 9

Damage ratings follow the four-step field scale published by Rutgers University. Growing data is compiled from state extension sources and still being verified record by record. Last reviewed .